Lemon Meringue Pie
Crust:
1 ¼ cups flour
¼ tsp. salt
4 tbs. butter, diced
1/3 cup solid vegetable shortening
3 tbs. ice water
Flour for rolling
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
You will need a nine inch pie pan.
• With the paddle attachment of an electric mixer, mix the flour, sugar and salt.
• Add the butter and shortening and beat oven medium heat until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.
• Add the cold water and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together into a ball. Place the dough on a floured board (a marble slab works nicely.)
• Flatten it into a disk.
• Rollout the dough with a rolling pin to measure about 12 inches in diameter.
• Pick the dough up using a spatula and ease it into the pie pan.
• Trim the edges with a knife and make a nice edge with a tiny bit of extra to form the crust edge.
• Poke it with a fork to create room to crow it and use some pie weights like beans set aside for this purpose or the metal kind you can buy (or take a chance and use nothing which is what I do.)
• Bake the crust for 10 minutes until it just starts to loose the doughy look and turn golden. Remove it from the oven and let it cool.
Filling:
1 cup sugar
5 tbs. cornstarch
¼ tsp. salt
4 egg yolks (save the whites for the meringue)
1 cup lemon juice
½ cup water
5 tbs. butter, diced
1 1/3 tsps. grated lemon rind
• In a saucepan just placed on the counter stir together the sugar, cornstarch and salt and whisk in the yolks, one at a time.
• Finally add the lemon juice and water.
• Now place the pan over medium heat and cook stirring very steadily without stopping for five minutes or until it starts to boil and is thick enough to make ribbons on itself. Remove it from the heat and stir in the butter and lemon rind.
• Pour the custard into the pie crust, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least an hour or until the custard sets.
Meringue:
1 tbs. cornstarch
1 tbs. sugar
1/3 cup water
4 egg whites
½ tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. cream of tartar
½ cup sugar
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch, sugar and water.
• Cook over a medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture turns thick and clear. Set it aside to cool.
• In an electric mixer fitted with a whisk, combine the whites, vanilla, cream of tartar, and sugar.
• Start beating and keep going until the whites are foamy.
• Add the cooled cornstarch mixture and keep going until the meringue forms stiff peaks that stand up and bend a little.
• They should be firmer than the softly beaten whites but not stiff.
• With a rubber spatula, spread the meringue on the custard, going right up against the edge of the crust.
• Make pretty little peaks with the spatula.
• Bake the pie for 10 minutes or until the peaks turn golden.
• Cut into wedges with a sharp knife dipped in hot water between cuts.
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