Shaker Lemon Pie with Vodka Pie Crust

My Dad makes the best pies! He’s a perfectionist at heart and when he makes this pie, you better believe it’s the best darn pie you’ll ever taste - perfect lemony heaven. He found this recipe at Cooks Country and makes it for special occasions. It’s my favorite pie! I always tell him to make two so he can share the wealth with me!

You will need 6 tablespoons of lemon juice for this recipe. Have an extra lemon on hand in case the 3 sliced lemons do not yield enough juice.

Serves 8.

Ingredients

1 double-crust pie dough (Dad uses this Vodka Pie Crust Recipe )

3 large lemons, sliced THIN and seeded (see technique below)

1 ¾ cups sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cornstarch

4 large eggs

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a 9-inch pie plate with 1 dough round and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. Squeeze lemon slices in fine-mesh strainer set over bowl; reserve juice (you should have 6 tablespoons). Bring drained slices and 2 cups water to boil in saucepan, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until slices are softened, about 5 minutes. Drain well and discard liquid. Combine softened lemon slices, sugar, salt, and 1/4 cup reserved lemon juice in bowl; stir until sugar dissolves.

3. Whisk cornstarch and remaining lemon juice in large bowl. Whisk eggs into cornstarch mixture, then slowly stir in lemon slice mixture, then slowly stir in lemon slice mixture until combined. Pour into chilled pie shell. Brush edges of dough with 1 teaspoon cream and top with remaining dough round. Seal, crimp edges, and brush top of dough with remaining cream. Using paring knife, cut 4 vents in top of dough.

4. Bake until light golden, about 20 minutes, then decrease oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue to bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool on wire rack for at least 1 hour. Serve. (Pie can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for 2 days.)

Technique

The Slice is Right

We found that using a knife to evenly cut the lemons into paper-thin slices was a difficult and time-consuming task. We had better results with a mandoline (or V-slicer), which produced perfectly thin slices in no time at all. If you don’t have a mandoline, we did find another piece of kitchen equipment that will make the process easier—the freezer. Popping the lemons into the freezer for about 30 minutes firms them up for better hand-slicing, which is best accomplished with a serrated knife.

Technique

Building Bold, Not Bitter, Lemon Flavor

Using sliced whole lemons, pith and all, can produce an overwhelmingly bitter filling. We found a few tricks to create bright lemon flavor while tempering the bitterness of the pith.

1. Squeeze the seeded lemon slices and reserve the juice for the filling.

2. Simmer the slices to mellow the bitterness of the pith and then add them to the filling with the uncooked juice.

Picture by sindicatosbuzz and knoxnews

Lime and Lemon Posset: A Simple and WONDERFUL Dessert!

 This is one of my favorite desserts to make. You can't beat a creamy, lime and lemon posset! It's so simple and fancy and only takes a few minutes to make...the only thing you'll need to wait for is the chilling process. I usually just eat these dreamy cups of posset as is, but other people prefer to spread it on Friand tea cakes. I found this recipe in a Bon Appétit back in 2007. What an awesome find! So grateful to have it stored in my recipe box!

yield: Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups whipping cream

3/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

1 teaspoon grated lime peel

 

Bring cream and 3/4 cup sugar to boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly, adjusting heat as needed to prevent mixture from boiling over. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and lime juice and cool 10 minutes. Stir mixture again and divide among six 1/2-cup ramekins or custard cups. Cover and chill possets until set, at least 4 hours or overnight.

Mix remaining 1 teaspoon sugar, lemon peel, and lime peel in small bowl. Sprinkle atop possets.

Almond Cake with Lemon Meringue

A few days ago I was watching one of my favorite shows; Spain on the Road Again. The mini series features Mario Batali, Gwyneth Paltrow, Claudia Bassols and Mark Bittman on a culinary road trip across Spain. What a dream! Please take me on the next one!

Any who… this particular episode followed Batali and Bassols as they explored restaurants in Mallorca, Spain. They came across this little cafe named Can Joan de S’aigo -- known for their coffee and pastries. Can Joan de S’aigo has been around since 1700! Wowza…they must have done something right with those pastries! I fell in love with their tarta de almendras (almond cake) with lemon meringue topping. So I set out to make my own.

I found a recipe for almond cake by David Lebovitz and a lemon meringue topping by the food network.

Here they are. Enjoy!

Almond Cake

1 1/3 cups (265g) sugar

8 ounces (225g) almond paste

3/4, plus 1/4 cup (140g total) flour

1 cup (8 ounces, 225g) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cubed

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

6 large eggs, at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF (162ºC). Grease a 9- or 10-inch (23-25 cm) cake or spring form pan with butter, dust it with flour and tap out any excess. Line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind the sugar, almond paste, and 1/4 cup (35g) of flour until the almond paste is finely ground and the mixture resembles sand.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 3/4 cup (105g) of flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Once the almond paste is completely broken up, add the cubes of butter and the vanilla and almond extracts, then process until the batter is very smooth and fluffy.

5. Add the eggs one at a time, processing a bit before the next addition. (You may wish to open the machine and scrape the sides down to make sure the eggs are getting fully incorporated.)

After you add all the eggs, the mixture may look curdled. Don’t worry; it’ll come back together after the next step.

6. Add half the flour mixture and pulse the machine a few times, then add the rest, pulsing the machine until the drying ingredients are just incorporated, but do not over mix. (You can also transfer the batter to a bowl and mix the dry ingredients in, which ensures the dry ingredients get incorporated evenly and you don’t overbeat it.)

7. Scrape the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake the cake for 65 minutes, or until the top is deep brown and feels set when you press in the center.

8. Remove the cake from the oven and run a sharp or serrated knife around the perimeter, loosing the cake from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool completely in the pan.

Once cool, tap the cake out of the pan, remove the parchment paper, and set on a cake plate until ready to serve. (Tip: Warm the bottom of the cake pan directly on the stovetop for just a few seconds, which will help the cake release.)

Lemon Meringue Topping

• 4 large egg whites



• 2/3 cup sugar



• 1 teaspoon lemon juice



• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest



• Pinch cream of tartar



• Pinch fine salt

For Meringue: Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a mixer's bowl above the water. Whisk the egg whites, sugar, lemon juice and zest, cream of tarter and salt in the bowl by hand. Set the bowl above the boiling water and continue whisking until the mixture is hot to the touch and the sugar dissolves, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat at medium-high speed until meringue is cool and holds stiff peaks, about 5-7 minutes.

To decorate: Using a spoon, offset spatula or piping bag, dollop, spread or pipe meringue on top of each cupcake. Use the back of a spoon to create peaks and valleys in the cupcake as desired.

picture: 1,2