Remember Amelia Bedelia? The children's book housekeeper character created by Peggy Parish who was absurdly literal? She was always doing things such as dusting the furniture (with talcum powder) and dressing the chicken (in clothes). Somehow, Amelia always managed to save the day, and very often -- or at least in my recollection -- she salvaged her job by baking a lemon meringue pie.
Well, dear reader, guess what comes next? An easy lemon meringue pie with a chocolate crust. This came about as the result of a recent clean-out the cabinet and fruit bowl frenzy which yielded a store bought ready-to-use chocolate graham cracker crust (note the tacky giveaway foil pan in the photo) , a can of sweetened condensed milk (lowfat to boot), and about three lemons that were slightly (!) past their prime.
The recipe is based on one in Joy of Cooking, the classic edition by Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker. If I had one cookbook to take with me to the moon, this would surely be it.
The original recipe is actually the key lime pie recipe -- and it does make a very good key lime pie too. But I use this one for lemon meringue as well (or even regular lime or a mix of lemon and lime, depending on what I have handy). It's much simpler than other lemon meringue pie recipes I've seen and the results are great. So with apologies and gratitude to the Joy of Cooking, here is my version of lemon meringue pie with a chocolate crust.
Lemon Meringue Pie with a Chocolate Crust
Store bought, ready-to-use chocolate graham cracker crust
1 can sweetened, condensed milk (14-15 oz.)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1. Mix the condensed milk, lemon juice, salt and the egg yolks (slightly beaten with a fork) until thickened.
2. Pour the mixture into the pie crust.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until very stiff, gradually adding the sugar.
4. Cover the mixture with the meringue.
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned.
I adore lemon meringue pie but have always been too intimidated to try a recipe. Thanks for this easy one! And yes, we worship Amelia Bedelia in our home too.
Posted by: Katherine | Tuesday, September 17, 2013 at 10:00 AM