Mile High Lemon Meringue Pie Food

MILE-HIGH MERINGUE PIE RECIPE - (4.5/5)

Steps:

• Pie crust: Whisk together the flour and salt. Add the shortening, working it in until the mixture is evenly crumbly. Add the butter to the flour mixture, and work it in roughly with your fingers, a pastry cutter, or a mixer. Don't be too thorough; the mixture should be very uneven, with big chunks of butter in among the smaller ones. Add 2 tablespoons of water, and toss to combine. Toss with enough additional water to make a chunky mixture. It should barely hold together when you squeeze a handful, though the remainder may look quite dry. Scoop the mixture out onto a piece of parchment or waxed paper, and flatten it out a bit. Take a spray bottle of water, and spritz the dry parts with the water. Using the parchment or waxed paper, fold the dough over on itself - first from one side, then from the other. You'll find that the dry crumbs are becoming incorporated with the cohesive dough. If there are still dry areas, spritz them with additional water, and fold the dough in on itself again. Keep folding and gathering until just a few dry crumbs remain unincorporated; this should only take a few folds. For a visual demonstration of this technique, see Pie, Any Way You Slice It. IMPORTANT NOTE: Instead of doing the spray bottle thing (too much hassle, as I've tried it before) I used my food processor by adding the shortening and pulsing until crumbly. I then added the butter (cut into small chunks) and the ice water and pulse a few times until the dough was "shaggy". I dumped the dough onto plastic wrap and molded into a round disk and refrigerated for at least 30 minutes. When you're "ready to roll," remove the dough from the fridge. If the dough has been refrigerated longer than 30 minutes, let it rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes before rolling, to allow the butter to soften up a bit. Roll the dough to the size needed (about 12" for a 9" pie). Place it in a pie pan, and refrigerate it while you prepare your filling. Fill and bake as directed in your recipe. Blind bake the pie crust: To bake an unfilled pie crust, preheat the oven to 400°F. Line the chilled crust with foil or parchment paper, and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake the crust for 20 minutes. Remove it from the oven, and gently remove foil or parchment with the weights or beans. Return the crust to the oven for 10 to 20 more minutes, until it's golden brown all over. If the edges of the crust start becoming too brown, cover them with a pie shield, or strips of aluminum foil. Remove the crust from the oven and cool completely before adding the filling. To make the filling: Mix the sugar, Instant ClearJel (or cornstarch), and salt together in a saucepan. Add the eggs and whisk well, then whisk in the juice. Heat the mixture over medium heat until it's very hot; it may come to a boil, or it may just "seethe" a bit, like it's trying to boil and not quite making it. Let it boil or seethe for 30 seconds. Stir in the butter, stirring until it melts, then pour the mixture into the baked pie shell. Rub a piece of butter over the surface to prevent a skin from forming (I didn't find this necessary. I gently pressed plastic wrap over the filling). Cover with plastic wrap, and chill for several hours before topping with the meringue. To make the meringue: Preheat your oven to 375°F with the oven rack in the lowest position. Whisk the meringue powder and water together, then beat until foamy. Add the salt, sugar and vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until the meringue is thick and shiny. Beat in the marshmallow. To finish the pie: Remove the pie from the refrigerator. Top it with the meringue, using a spatula to form peaks. Bake the pie for 18 to 22 minutes, or until the meringue has browned. Remove it from the oven, cool it, and refrigerate until serving. Store the pie, loosely covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days.

MILE-HIGH LEMON PIE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a thickness of 1/8 inch, and use to line a 9-inch pie tin. Crimp the edges decoratively. Chill until firm. In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and cream to make a glaze. Prick the bottom of the shell with a fork, brush the top edges with the glaze, and line with parchment paper. Weight the shell with pie weights or dried beans, and bake until the edges begin to brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove paper and weights; continue baking until golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes more. Let cool.
• To make filling, combine cornstarch, cake flour, salt, and sugar in a medium nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add 2 cups cold water. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly, about 4 minutes.
• Remove the pan from heat. Temper egg yolks by beating a small amount of hot mixture into the yolks before adding them to pan. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes.
• Remove the pan from heat, and whisk in the lemon juice and rind. Add the butter one piece at a time. Pour the mixture into a large bowl, and let cool.
• Pour the filling into the cooled shell and refrigerate, covered with aluminum foil, until firm, about 1 hour.
• To make the meringue, combine egg whites, sugar, and salt in a heat-proof bowl. Set over a pan of simmering water; beat until warm and sugar is dissolved. Remove bowl from heat; whip into stiff peaks.
• Spread the meringue over pie so that it touches crust all around. Broil until brown, about 2 minutes, watching constantly. Serve at room temperature.

BLUE RIBBON MILE HIGH LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• BAKE 9-INCH FLUTED PIE SHELL:.
• Preheat oven to 400°F (205°C).
• Fit the crust into a pie plate and flute the edge.
• Prick the bottom and sides of the crust with a fork.
• Bake at 400°F (205°C) for 5 minutes.
• Allow to cool while preparing rest of recipe.
• PREPARE LEMON FILLING:.
• In a medium-size heavy saucepan, mix 1-1/2 cups sugar, cornstarch, flour and salt.
• Gradually add water, stirring until well blended.
• Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly; cook 3 minutes.
• Remove hot mixture from heat.
• Slowly pour about half of mixture into slightly beaten egg yolks, stirring constantly.
• Slowly pour egg yolk mixture back into hot mixture, stirring constantly.
• Return saucepan to heat.
• Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook 3 minutes more.
• Add lemon peel, lemon juice, and butter.
• Cook about 2 minutes more, stirring with a rubber spatula in a circular motion. DO NOT LET MIXTURE STICK TO BOTTOM OF PAN. Filling will be very thick and spatula will leave a track when drawn through filling.
• Cover saucepan and remove from heat; keep warm.
• PREPARE MERINGUE:.
• Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
• In a large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy.
• Beat in 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Beat in vanilla extract with the last tablespoon of sugar.
• Continue beating until egg whites hold a soft peak.
• Set aside.
• ASSEMBLE PIE:.
• If filling has cooled, reheat, stirring constantly, before spooning into baked pie shell.
• Starting around the edge of pie, spoon meringue over filling, making sure meringue touches fluting on pie shell.
• Bake in preheated 350°F (175°C) oven 15 minutes or until meringue is golden brown.
• COOL 4 HOURS BEFORE SERVING:.
• Cool about 4 hours at room temperature before cutting.
• Makes one 9-inch pie.

MILE-HIGH LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• If using a hand-held mixer, you will need a very deep bowl, and should move the beaters vigorously when beating the egg whites for the meringue, to avoid underbeating the egg whites. This pie is best on the day it's made.
• FOR THE FILLING: Whisk sugar, lemon juice, water, cornstarch, and salt together in a large nonreactive saucepan until cornstarch is dissolved. Bring to simmer over medium heat. Whisk in yolks until comined. Stir in zest and butter. Bring to simmer and stir constantly until mixture is thick enough to coat back of spoon, about 2 minutes. Strain through fine-mesh strainer into pie shell and scrape filling off underside of strainer. Place wrap directly on surface of filling and refrigerate until set and well chilled, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
• FOR THE MERINGUE: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400°F Combine water and sugar in small saucepan. Bring to vigorous boil over medium-high heat. Once syrup comes to rolling boil, cook 4 minutes (mixture will become slightly thickened and syrupy). Remove from heat and set aside while beating whites.
• With electric mixer, beat in large bowl, at medium-low speed until frothy, about 1 minutes. Add salt and cream of tartar, and beat , gradually increasing sped to medium-high, until whites hold soft peaks, about 2 minutes. With mixer runnin, slowly pour hot syrup into whites (avoid pouring syrup onto whisk or it will splash). Add vanilla and beat until meringue has cooled and becomes very thick.
• Using rubber spatula, mound meringue over filling, making sure meringue touches edges of crust. Use spatula to create peaks all over meringue. Bake until peaks turn golden brown, about 6 minutes. Transfer to wire rack, and cool to room temerature.

MILE HIGH LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Unfold the pie crust and place in a 9-inch pie plate, pressing the crust firmly into the plate, then flute if desired. Bake the pie shell according to the package directions; let cool.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar, the cornstarch, and salt; mix well. Gradually whisk in the water and milk, stirring until the cornstarch is dissolved. Cook over medium heat, whisking until the mixture comes to a boil.
• In a medium bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks. Gradually whisk in about 1/2 cup of the milk mixture, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the saucepan. Simmer over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes,whisking occasionally.
• Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the butter and lemon juice. Pour the filling into the pie shell; set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 350. In a medium bowl, with an electric beater, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form, making meringue.
• Spread the meringue over the pie filling, sealing to the edges of the crust. Using a spatula or the back of a tablespoon, form peaks in the meringue, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the meringue is golden. Let cool, then slice and serve.

MILE-HIGH LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Make the crust: Pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor. Add the shortening and pulse a few times until combined. Add the butter and pulse just until coarse crumbs form. Add the vinegar and 3 tablespoons ice water; pulse until the dough comes together but is slightly crumbly. Pinch the dough - if it's too crumbly, pulse in more ice water 1 teaspoon at a time. Turn out the dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough, then flatten into a disk. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 13-inch round. Ease into a 9-inch pie plate. Fold the overhanging dough under itself, then crimp the edges. Refrigerate the crust until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 375˚ F. Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork, line with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Place the crust on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until golden brown around the edges, about 15 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights and continue baking until the crust is a deep golden brown on the bottom, 20 to 30 more minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool while preparing the filling but leave the oven on.
• Make the filling: Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl until smooth; set aside. Whisk the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium saucepan to combine. Whisk in the water and lemon juice and turn the heat to medium. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook, whisking, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Slowly whisk about one-quarter of the sugar mixture into the egg yolks. Whisk in another one-quarter of the sugar mixture until smooth, then pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Continue cooking, whisking constantly to keep the egg yolks from scrambling, about 1 more minute. Stir in the butter and lemon zest until the butter melts; remove from the heat.
• Immediately make the meringue while the filling is still hot: Combine the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes. Very slowly beat in the sugar; continue beating until firm glossy peaks form, about 4 minutes more (do not overbeat). Give the lemon filling a quick stir, then pour into the crust. Immediately spread the meringue on top of the hot filling, spreading it all the way to the crust; use the back of a spoon to make swoops and peaks. Bake until the meringue is golden brown in spots, 5 to 7 minutes; do not overbake to avoid weeping.
• Remove the pie to a rack and let cool 1 hour, then refrigerate until completely cooled before slicing, about 4 hours.

MILE-HIGH S'MORES PIE

Steps:

• Make the crust: Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter in a medium bowl until combined. Press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Bake until lightly toasted, about 10 minutes; set aside to cool.
• Make the filling: Heat the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat until almost simmering. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl to make a thick paste. Whisk about one-third of the warm milk into the egg mixture until smooth. Add this mixture to the remaining milk in the saucepan and cook, whisking constantly, until it starts to bubble and thicken, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, whisking, until thick like pudding, 1 to 2 more minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the chocolate until melted and combined. Whisk in the butter until combined. Pour the filling into the graham cracker crust and refrigerate until completely cool, about 2 hours.
• Make the meringue: Whisk the egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt in a large heatproof bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) until combined. Set the bowl over a medium saucepan with 1 inch of simmering water (don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water). Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture is just hot to the touch and the sugar is completely dissolved, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Remove the bowl from the saucepan. Add the vanilla. Beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff glossy peaks form, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the meringue to a pastry bag fitted with a 3/4-inch-wide tip. Pipe large marshmallow-size mounds on the surface of the pie, leaving a small border of the filling exposed. Pipe another layer of mounds on top in a slightly smaller circle, then pipe a third layer on top, using the rest of the meringue. Use a kitchen torch to toast the meringue (or toast under the broiler). Refrigerate the pie until cooled before slicing, at least 1 hour.

MILE-HIGH SUMMER BERRY PIE

Steps:

• Make the crust: Pulse the flour, granulated sugar and salt in a food processor. Add about one-third of the butter; process until incorporated. Pulse in the remaining butter until coarse crumbs form, 5 or 6 pulses. Add the vodka or vinegar, then pour in the ice water, pulsing quickly as you pour. Pinch the dough; it should just hold together. If it's too crumbly, quickly pulse in up to 2 more tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn out the dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap the dough, then flatten into a disk. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a 12-inch round. Ease into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim the excess dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold in the edges and crimp. Refrigerate the crust at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Line the pie crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until the edges of the crust are just golden and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 20 minutes. Remove the parchment and weights and bake until the crust is a deep golden brown all over, about 20 more minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
• Make the filling: Mash 1 cup of the berries in a small bowl with a large fork. Place the remaining berries in a large bowl and set aside. Whisk together the granulated sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the water until smooth, then stir in the mashed berries. Place the pan over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture begins to bubble and thicken, the cornstarch becomes opaque and the sauce turns a deep berry color, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve over the bowl of whole berries; fold the liquid and the berries together with a rubber spatula to evenly coat. Spoon the berry filling into the cooled pie crust in an even layer. Refrigerate until set, at least 1 hour.
• Make the topping: Beat the heavy cream and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes. Add the sour cream and beat until stiff again, about 2 more minutes. Mound the whipped cream on top of the pie; use the back of a spoon to make swoops and peaks. Slice and serve, or refrigerate for up to 1 day.

MILE HIGH LEMON PIE

Steps:

• Bake pie shell according to package directions for a refrigerated pie.
• In saucepan, stir together gelatine, 1 cup sugar and salt.
• Beat together eggs yolks, lemon juice and water.
• Stir into gelatine mixture.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture just begins to boil.
• Remove from heat.
• Stir in lemon zest and chill, stirring occasionally, until partially set.
• NOTE: You can make this in two 8-inch regular pie shells.
• In mixing bowl, add egg whites and beat until soft peaks form.
• Gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until stiff peaks form and sugar has dissolved.
• Fold the egg white mixture into the gelatine mixture until it becomes an even consistency.
• Pour into baked pie shell.
• Refrigerate and chill until firm (2 or more hours).
• Cut into small slices.
• If desired, dollop with whipped cream before serving.