by Victoria Gilbert
If there’s one dessert that I connect with my childhood, it’s pie.
I grew up in an area very similar to the setting for The Blue Ridge Library Mystery series and pies were a staple in my rural community. Fortunately, I come from a long line of excellent piemakers. My grandmother, who along with my grandfather managed a small family farm, could whip up several pies in the time it took most people to brew a cup of coffee. She had a marble-topped table that sat beside her stove that she used to roll out the pastry dough. I remember watching her roll the dough and expertly flip it into pie pans with graceful ease.
Her pies were delicious too. She made all kinds—apple and blackberry were favorites, but she also made lovely pecan and custard pies. My mother learned the art of piemaking from my grandmother, then passed these skills down to me.
Currently I don’t make a lot of pies, simply because most of the people in my family are trying to avoid excess sugar and calories. However, every now and then I will make a pie to mark a special occasion. Recently, I created a lemon meringue pie from scratch and was happy to see that I hadn’t lost my touch!
In the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series, I mention Aunt Lydia and Amy baking pies but I don’t actually include any recipes, so I thought it would be fun to provide one now!
Lemon Meringue Pie
1 9” baked piecrust: (Make ahead and let cool).
For the Piecrust:
1/3 cup plus 1 TBS shortening (like Crisco)
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp salt
1 TBS granulated sugar
2 to 3 TBS milk
Cut shortening into flour, salt, and sugar until particles are the size of small peas.
Sprinkle in milk, 1 TBS at a time, tossing with a fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl. (1 -2 more TBS milk can be added if needed).
Gather pastry into a ball, then flatten into a round on a large piece of lightly floured waxed or parchment paper.
Roll pastry with flour-dusted rolling pin – 2 inches larger circle than inverted 9-inch pie pan.
Gently tip pastry circle into pie pan, dough side down, then peel away the waxed paper.
Press pie dough circle firmly against bottom and side of pan.
Roll top excess to form rim around top of pie pan. Crimp top edges.
Prick bottom and sides of pastry in pan with fork.
Bake at 475 degrees F until light brown, (8-10 min.)
Cool.
For the Lemon Filling:
1 ½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup plus 1 TBS cornstarch
1 ½ cups water
3 egg YOLKS, slightly beaten
Grated peel of 1 lemon
½ cup fresh lemon juice
3 TBS butter or margarine
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a medium saucepan, stir together sugar and cornstarch. Stir in water gradually.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.
Boil and stir for 1 minute.
Gradually stir at least half of the hot mixture into the bowl holding the beaten egg yolks.
Blend this mixture back into hot mixture in saucepan.
Boil and stir for another minute.
Remove from heat
Stir in lemon peel, lemon juice, and butter or margarine.
Pour into baked piecrust.
For the Meringue:
3 egg WHITES (use reserved egg whites from earlier)
¼ tsp cream of tartar
6 TBS granulated sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
In small bowl, with mixer at high speed, beat egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy.
Gradually sprinkle in sugar, continuing to run beaters all the while until sugar is incorporated into the egg whites.
Beat until whites stand in stiff peaks.
Beat in vanilla
Spread over pie filling, making sure to seal all edges of the piecrust. Swirl points with back of spoon to make a pattern.
Bake at 400 degrees F for approx. 8-10 minutes or until golden. Cool away from drafts.
Refrigerate pie once meringue is cool.
Author Bio
Raised in a historic small town near the Blue Ridge Mountains, Victoria Gilbert turned her early obsession with books into a dual career as an author and librarian.
Victoria writes the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series and the Book Lover’s B&B series for Crooked Lane Books, and publishes fantasy with Snowy Wings Publishing.
A member of Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, Victoria is represented by Frances Black at Literary Counsel. She lives near Winston-Salem, NC with her husband, son, and some very spoiled cats.
You can find buy links for all her currently published, or soon-to-be-published mystery books here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/2199729/victoria-gilbert
