Lemon Meringue Pie, pg. 264....Easy as Pie

Sorry for the long absence away from the blog. I actually had some form of employment this past couple of weeks (no, don't get too excited, it is babysitting, not anything that puts those months of studying for NY and SC bars to use). And since I am starting to get more on a schedule with temporary employment, I need to get back to the kitchen!

   The last receipt I made from our beloved cookbook was Mrs. Walter A. Davis's Lemon Meringue Pie. I made it while out in Darien for the weekend and I chose it for a couple of reasons. One being, Mrs. Lloyd had all of the ingredients already, and two, Mr. Lloyd is allergic to peanuts. And many of the desserts in Charleston Receipts favor a nut of some sort. It is great having a dessert receipt that doesn't require a trip to the grocery store.

   I decided to make the pie crust from scratch because I do think they taste better. And I had access to Mrs. Lloyd's food processor. For those who fear the handmade crust, fear not. I found the best recipe for novices like me in Virginia Willis's great cookbook Bon Appetit Ya'll . She combines classic french techniques with the southern recipes she was raised with. It is a beautiful book too, and I would highly recommend it. The real key to the crust is keeping the butter and crisco ice cold. I found the pie crust receipts in Charleston Receipts as a bit iffy. I know I need to try them out in the adventurous spirit of the blog, but on this day I needed something bulletproof. 

     Anyway, back to the Charleston Receipt. I was amazed the receipt only required one lemon, but it tasted very lemony (is that a word?). I think the addition of the lemon zest adds a lot of flavor. The only problem I had was with the meringue. I was beating happily and getting peaks, but then I noticed when reading the directions I still needed to add the sugar. The cookbook reads as follows: "Beat egg whites very stiff. Add 1/2 cup sugar slowl, beating all the while." Well those eggwhites did not want to rebeat after I added the sugar, so it sorta made a less pretty meringue pie. I probably should have added cream of tartar to aid the limping peaks. Oh well.

  We were in a rush to take the train back to the city, so we ate the pie quickly and I never got a picture of it either. But it is an easy pie, and a receipt I would recommend. (though I prefer a good chess pie, and I am shocked this cookbook doesn't contain such a classic southern dessert).

   One last note, while this is easy, if you are making the pie crust it becomes a bit more time consuming than one expects. The crust requires 30 minutes to chill. 20 minutes to blind bake. 20 minutes to assemble (I am slow at that stuff), and 20 minutes to bake. And you really want another hour or so to cool. But nothing beats homemade!