Stella Parks Lemon Meringue Pie Food

THE BEST LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• For the pie crust: Pulse the flour, shortening, sugar, salt and vinegar in a food processor until the mixture looks like damp sand, about 10 pulses. Add the butter and pulse until you can still see large pea-sized pieces. Sprinkle in 3 tablespoons ice water and pulse until the dough begins to come together. Pinch the dough; if it doesn't hold together, add up to 3 more tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together when pinched. Lay out a sheet of plastic wrap and dump the dough onto the plastic. Using the edges of the plastic, press the dough into a disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and preferably overnight. (Freeze up to 2 months.)
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough out into a 13-inch round. Place in a 9-inch pie dish, gently pressing the dough into the edges and letting the excess dough drape over the sides. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Trim any excess dough with a paring knife and crimp the edges decoratively or press them down with the tines of a fork. Prick the dough on the bottom all over with a fork. Place a sheet of parchment paper inside the dough and fill with pie weights or uncooked rice or beans. Bake for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment and weights and bake until the crust is deep golden brown on the edges and lightly golden in the center, 10 to 12 minutes more. Let the crust cool to room temperature.
• For the filling: Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium saucepan. Add the lemon juice and 1 1/2 cups water and whisk to combine. Whisk the egg yolks in a separate medium bowl. Place the sugar mixture over medium heat and cook, continuing to gently whisk, until the mixture begins to bubble and is extremely thick. Temper the eggs yolks by slowly adding half of the hot sugar mixture to the yolks while constantly whisking. Add the tempered yolks to the saucepan and return to the heat. Bring the mixture back to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, for 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and lemon zest until completely melted and incorporated. Pour the filling directly into the pie crust and cover with plastic wrap pressed directly against the surface of the filling (see Cook's Note). Refrigerate while you make the meringue.
• For the meringue: Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment along with the sugar, cream of tartar and salt. Whisk together to combine. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water. Cook, whisking constantly, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture feels hot to the touch. Transfer the bowl to the mixer and add the vanilla. Whisk on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 5 to 6 minutes.
• Remove the plastic wrap from the pie and gently mound the meringue on top of the filling. Use an offset spatula to make sure the meringue completely covers the filling and meets the crust all around the edges. (This will seal in the filling and help prevent weeping.) Use the offset spatula to create swirls and peaks in the meringue. Toast the meringue using a kitchen torch or broil in the oven until golden brown, keeping an eye on the meringue if broiling, 1 to 2 minutes. Refrigerate the pie until the filling is completely cool and set, about 4 hours.

SUNNY LEMON BARS RECIPE

Steps:

• For the Crust: Adjust oven rack to middle position, preheat oven to 350°F (177°C), and line an 8- by 8- by 2-inch anodized-aluminum baking pan with a piece of parchment paper long enough to overhang the pan's edges. Combine flour, powdered sugar, salt, lemon zest, and butter in the bowl of a food processor; pulse to form a dry but pebbly meal, about 12 one-second pulses. Scatter into the prepared baking pan, press into an even layer, and bake until pale gold and firm, about 30 minutes. Use hot or set aside until needed, up to 48 hours at room temperature if tightly covered.
• For the Custard: Combine sugar, whole eggs, yolks, lemon zest, and salt in a 3-quart stainless steel saucepan, then whisk in lemon juice. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly but not vigorously, until warm to the touch, about 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium-low and continue cooking and stirring until thick and steaming-hot (custard should register 170°F (77°C) on an instant-read thermometer), about 8 minutes. Immediately strain into the prepared crust, smooth into an even layer, and cover with aluminum foil. Bake until smooth and firm, about 10 minutes. Remove foil and cool to room temperature, then re-cover and refrigerate until cold and firm, about 1 hour.
• To Serve: Loosen chilled custard from sides of pan with a bench or butter knife, then carefully tug loose and lift using overhanging parchment and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 16 two-inch squares, rinsing the knife clean between each slice. Serve plain, lightly dusted with powdered sugar, or topped with Lemon Chantilly and Crispy Citrus-Candied Pistachios. Store up to 1 week in an airtight container.

MOM'S 5-STAR LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Beat sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, lemon juice, and lemon zest together in a bowl until smooth; pour into pie crust.
• Beat egg whites with an electric mixer in a glass or metal bowl until foamy. Gradually add sugar and vanilla extract, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form. Lift your beater or whisk straight up: the egg whites will form sharp peaks; spoon onto the pie to cover completely.
• Bake pie in preheated oven until the tips of the topping begin to brown, about 3 minutes.

PATTI'S LEMON-MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Make piecrust: Sift flour and salt together into a large bowl. Blend in shortening with a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in ice water a little at a time until dough comes together.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll dough with a floured rolling pin into an 11-inch round. Transfer to a 10-inch pie plate. Trim edge to create a 1/2-inch overhang; tuck edge under itself. Prick bottom all over with a fork. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
• Place pie shell on a baking sheet; line with parchment paper, and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake shell, rotating sheet about halfway through, until edges of crust are just browned, about 15 minutes. Remove parchment and weights; continue baking until bottom of crust is just browned, about 5 minutes more. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.
• Make filling: Remove zest from 2 lemons with a vegetable peeler; finely chop zest (reserve lemons for juicing). Process zest with 1 tablespoon sugar in a food processor until finely ground.
• Whisk together remaining 2 cups sugar and the cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in 2 cups water; add zest mixture. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, 8 minutes (mixture will boil and thicken).
• Lightly beat egg yolks in a large bowl. Slowly whisk half of cornstarch mixture into beaten egg yolks. Return yolk mixture to cornstarch mixture in pan, and whisk together. Bring to a boil, and whisk constantly until very thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; add lemon juice and butter, and whisk until well combined. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface, to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until set, about 30 minutes.
• Pour filling into pie shell; set aside. Make meringue: Put egg whites and cream of tartar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until foamy. Beat in the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue beating until stiff, glossy peaks form. Beat in vanilla.
• Heap meringue on top of filling, making sure it touches crust (to prevent shrinking). Bake pie until meringue is pale brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack in a draft-free spot.