Lemon Meringue Pie

Just before I went to Texas a few years ago, I purchased one of the Pastry Queen cookbooks.  Prior to purchasing the book, I knew nothing about the author.  The impulse purchase was made solely because I was utterly intrigued by the meringue picture on the cover.  Ever since I can remember, I have loved lemon meringue pie.  Perhaps it was because I grew up in a household which did not make regular trips to the bakery. . .perhaps because Kikukat mom was not into pie baking. . .perhaps I had been a naughty girl. . .for whatever reason, we NEVER bought lemon meringue pie.  On  occasion, my uncle, who was a frequent bakery patron, would bring over a lemon meringue pie (probably when the bakery was out of prune cake, his favorite).  I remember exercising restraint when all wanted to do was to stick a fork into the meringue and eat a big glob of it.

When I moved into my home, Kikukat mom bought me a Meyer lemon tree.  It was the first tree we planted.  When the men came over to dig the swimming pool, I made sure they did not touch the lemon tree with the heavy equipment.  Thankfully the lemon tree flourished and over the years, it has given me a nearly constant supply of big, juicy lemons.

Being a lemon meringue pie fanatic, you can bet it was close to the top of my list of recipes to make with my lemons.  I've tried several recipes, and I've discovered I prefer a slightly sweet filling (as opposed to tangy).  Another ingredient amount which varied among the recipes I tried was the cornstarch.  I don't like a soft runny filling; I like the filling to be able to stand when cut.

Of course, the most important part of a lemon meringue pie is the meringue.  I like a generous ratio of meringue to filling.  In my experimentation, a 4-white meringue makes a nice topping.  The 3-white versions, while covering the filling, didn't seem high enough for me.  Some recipes called for more whites than yolks, but if you know me, you know the extra yolks sitting in my fridge would likely get thrown away before they get used.  When I first started making this pie, I would use a spatula and spoon to spread and smooth the meringue over the hot filling (the left side of the above photo).  After the Pastry Queen cookbook purchase, I began piping the meringue from an icing bag fitted with a large star tip.  I love the way the meringue looks (the right side of the above photo).  I guess it depends on the effect you are after.  If you are like me and love the slightly burnt tips, then use a piping bag.  Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find a solution to keep the meringue from weeping (caramel colored drops on the surface of the meringue).

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Lemon Meringue Pie

     9" baked pie crust

Filling:  7 tbsp cornstarch
              1 3/4 c sugar
              1/4 tsp salt
              1/2 c lemon juice
              2 1/2 c water
              4 egg yolks. beaten
              3 tbsp butter
              grated rind of 1 lemon

Meringue:  4 egg whites
                   1/4 tsp cream of tartar
                   1/2 c sugar
                   1 tsp vanilla    

Combine all filling ingredients, except lemon rind, in the top of a double boiler.  Heat over high, stirring constantly.  When mixture thickens (about 10 minutes), continue cooking 2 more minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add lemon rind.  Keep warm.  Using a whisk attachment, beat egg whites until frothy.  Add cream of tartar.  Gradually add sugar.  Add vanilla.  Continue beating until stiff peaks form.  Place filling back on heat source and heat briefly, stirring a few times.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place meringue in icing bag.  Pour hot filling into pie crust.  Immediately cover surface of hot filling with meringue, being careful to pull meringue to edges.  Either mound or decoratively pipe remaining meringue onto pie.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.  Meringue should be golden brown.  Let cool before serving.

Food Processor Dessert: Lemon Bars

Happy New Year!!!  I'm back at work today, but students don't return until Wednesday.  I'm not excited about having to work, but I am excited about beginning the second half of the school year.  In 5 months, the bleeding will end (and new gaping wounds will open).

Before I continue, I'd like to wish a belated happy birthday to my friend Maggie in NY.  Would've loved to join in the celebration at the Cheesecake Factory and check out the 80s band.

I'm feeling rather well-rested, having dodged the bullet of hosting an endless new year gathering.  All I was asked to bring was some kind of namasu and a dessert to CAE's house.  The namasu was easy. . .cucumber & chicken namasu.  The dessert was a no-brainer. . .lemon cake, fruit cake, and confetti jello.  I was going to make lemon bars, my "signature" dessert, but I made lemonade with the last of the lemon juice.  My favorite uncle has a huge dose of a citrus beverage daily to combat the formation of kidney stones.  And really, I think I OD'd on lemon bars anyway.

I've been making lemon bars for nearly two decades, and for most of that time, my lemon bars were just another item on the dessert table.  My late uncle would ask me to bring it as a dessert to family parties.  But a year or two ago, things changed.  After bringing the bars to an office potluck, my buddy SF asked me to make some for the dessert table for her daughter's wedding.  I once made a 40-piece tray of it for a "feed-the-hungry" service project for D1 (she got yelled at by her club advisor---"thats not the kind of dessert for a soup kitchen!").  This past summer, I brought it to a gathering at the HHS pool when the students from Sumoto came for a visit.  The club advisor and some of the kids went crazy.  D1 said that she saw a student eat 5.  That was the first time D1 and D2 had ever eaten lemon bars (yup, I know what you're thinking).  D1 wanted to know what all the fuss was about, and D2 decided to get in on some of the action too.  Since this school year began in August, D1 has come home and told me on more than one occasion:  "___ asked if you could make lemon bars" and "I want to give lemon bars to ___".

About a month ago, one of my bosses told me, "My mom said you're known for your lemon bars."  This was after he thanked me for the tray of lemon bars I brought to the office and the separate tray D1 gave his wife.  That same boss called me during the vacation and asked me for the recipe (claims his wife lost the paper copy I gave).  Of course I obliged. . .I like the guy!  D1's friend brought me a plastic bag filled with lemons from her tree so "you can make lemon bars or something".  Unbeknownst to me, she told her club advisor "D1's mom makes the best lemon bars."  This resulted in the club advisor asking me if he could independently verify this claim.  All this lemon attention just has me laughing.

And I don't mind.  I have the recipe memorized.  I have multiple pans (exactly the same) which allow me to make several pans at a time (no point in making just 1 pan).  Experience has taught me a lot about making and serving lemon bars. 

Kitchen mess is a huge issue for me.  I hate to look at a pile of dirty dishes.  It pisses me off and irritates me when dishes sit unwashed, and that is why I use the food processor to make lemon bars.  The crust and filling can be mixed in the food processor bowl, and the washing is done when the filling is made...no need to wash and dry the bowl between crust and filling.   And if you line the baking pans with foil, the pans will stay clean.  Another huge plus to lining the pan with foil---you will have a nice apron when you dust the bars with powdered sugar.

If I make lemon bars for myself, my preferred shape is the "finger", where the pan is cut into 3 long pieces, then each piece is cut into 10-12 pieces.  But if I am making the bars for an event or to give away, I will cut them into squares.  A 9 x 13-inch pan will yield 35 (5 x 7) squares which are perfect for the medium size baking cups.

I am now staring down the barrel at the 2nd half of the school year.  Over vacation, it occurred to me that perhaps I'm often asked to make lemon bars because people think that's the only thing I can make!  I may need to think of a game changer soon.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Lemon Bars

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Crust:  2 c flour
            2 tbsp sugar
            2 tbsp powdered sugar
            3/4 c butter

Combine all ingredients in a food processor until tiny crumbs form.  Press into a 9 x 13" pan.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Make filling while crust is baking.

Filling:  2 c sugar
              1/2 c flour
              1/4 tsp salt
              1/4 tsp vanilla
              1 tsp baking powder
              4 eggs
              5 tbsp lemon juice (may use up to 8 tbsp if you like it tart; adjust baking time accordingly)

Combine all filling ingredients in the same food processor bowl used for crust.  Process until smooth.  Pour over hot crust and bake 25 minutes.  Cool completely.  Dust with powdered sugar.  Cut into desired pieces.

One pan will make 35 squares or 30-36 "fingers".

Congratulations to LA & SN, who announced their engagement to the family on Monday evening.  We will definitely "save the date" (and buy SN a new shirt. . .gotta admit, the boy would look much better in purple & gold).  WOOF!!!

ten.twelve.fourteen

I overcame my frustration with knitting and have been going great guns.  I joined Ravelry and now have access to all sorts of patterns.  I am most delighted with the Noro Silk Garden Darkside Cowl and Beanie.  I started the cowl 3 times (dropped stitches).  The beanie was less annoying, although it is slightly too large for me.  I'm thinking this set will make a nice gift for someone.

Inspired by the Noro Silk Garden Beanie (and dissatisfied with a simple chunky hat pattern I'd been using), I developed my own beanie pattern to use with some chunky yarns, Feza Bogeta and Plymout Yarns Grandiosa.  I love the way the Feza Bogeta yarn worked out, but I'm sure the more economical Lion Brand yarns would work fine too.  Wal-Mart has them in all sorts of colors.  Click here for the printable beanie pattern, which is also available in free .pdf on the Ravelry site.

Note:  These are actually human hats, but I couldn't find a willing model.  Panda and Fat Dawggie had to sign a model release!

Panda in Feza Bogeta beanie

Fat Dawggie in Plymouth Grandiosa beanie

Lemon Cake (adapted from Barefoot Contessa Lemon Cake)

The first half of this week passed by in a blur.  After going to the doctor on Monday and being told to stay out of work for the next two weeks, I decided I really need to take it easy.  I missed out on a workshop on Tuesday and will be missing out on a parent meeting tomorrow. My home is no cleaner, but I'm grateful for the resting time.  I'm also grateful for getting out of another workshop, although if it wasn't for a workshop, I would never have encountered this heavenly cake. . .

This is a cake that has been taken everywhere . . . workshops, meetings, family parties, picnics, office snack table.  Its always well-received, and its one of those dishes where someone will always ask for the recipe.  In fact, that's how I got the recipe myself nearly a decade ago.

I attended a workshop in Honolulu and someone brought it as a contribution to the snack table.  Everyone requested the recipe.  We were told it came from the Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook, but it could also be found on the Food Network website here.

After making the cake (original recipe) several times, I decided there were some things I wanted to "fix".  First of all, I normally buy large eggs.  My Williams-Sonoma Food Companion said for 4 eggs, it really didn't matter if it was large or extra-large, so I tried making the recipe with large eggs.  If the quality suffered, I certainly couldn't tell the difference.  The other thing that always gave me problems was the icing.  Using the original recipe made the icing too runny for my taste.  It wouldn't just sit atop the cake and ooze slowly.  It would run off and be too thin.  The taste was fine, but in terms of aesthetics, the thicker icing made for a nicer picture.  Oddly enough, the picture of the cake in the book had a thicker icing than what you'd get by following the original recipe.

Several dozen cakes later. . .

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Lemon Cake

(adapted from the Barefoot Contessa Parties! cookbook)

     1 c butter, softened

     2 1/2 c sugar, divided

     4 eggs

     1/3 c lemon zest (optional)

     3 c flour

     1/2 tsp baking powder

     1/2 tsp baking soda

     1 tsp salt

     1 c lemon juice, divided

     3/4 c buttermilk

     1 tsp vanilla

     2 c powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour 2 8 1/2 x 4 1/2" pans or 5 mini loaf pans.  Line bottoms only with parchment paper.  Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.   Combine 1/4 c lemon juice, buttermilk, and vanilla.  Set aside.  Cream butter and 2 c sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time.  Add lemon zest.  Add flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to batter, beginning and ending with flour.  Divide batter evenly between pans, smoothing tops.  If using mini loaf pans, 3 #10 dishers goes into each pan.  Bake for 50-55 minutes (40 minutes if making mini loaves) or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Let cakes cool for 10 minutes in pan.  While cooling, make syrup by cooking 1/2 c sugar and 1/2 c lemon juice over low heat until sugar is dissolved.  Remove cakes from pans and place on a wire rack.  Spoon syrup over cakes.  Allow to cool completely.  Combine powdered sugar and 3 tbsp lemon juice in a small bowl, mixing with a wire whisk until smooth.  Pour over cakes and allow icing to drip down the sides.