Bon Appetit Desserts (69 page)

Line crust with foil; fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until crust is set, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Continue to bake until edges begin to color, piercing with fork if crust bubbles, about 13 minutes. Cool crust on rack while making filling. Maintain oven temperature.

FILLING:
Whisk brown sugar, flour, coarse salt, cinnamon, and cayenne in medium bowl. Whisk eggs in another medium bowl to blend. Add golden syrup, sorghum syrup, melted butter, and vanilla to eggs and whisk to blend. Add brown sugar mixture and whisk until smooth. Mix in peanuts. Pour filling into cooled crust.

Bake pie 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Continue to bake until crust is golden and filling is set (center of filling may move slightly when dish is gently shaken), covering crust edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 40 minutes. Cool pie completely on rack.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover loosely; store at room temperature.

Cut pie into wedges. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Classic Lemon Meringue Pie

Fresh lemon juice and lemon peel add a nice pucker to the filling. A sweet cloud of meringue balances the tartness. When beating egg whites for the meringue, be sure to use a perfectly clean metal or glass mixing bowl. Using a copper bowl will result in an especially fluffy texture. Using nonstick aluminum foil (available at supermarkets) makes it easy to blind bake the crust; or simply spray regular foil with nonstick spray.
8 servings

1¼ cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

½ cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

2 tablespoons (or more) ice water

1 cup sugar

4 teaspoons cornstarch

⅔ cup fresh lemon juice

4 large egg yolks

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel

3 large egg whites, room temperature

Pinch of salt

½ cup sugar

CRUST:
Blend flour, sugar, and lemon peel in processor. Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Drizzle 2 tablespoons ice water over and stir with fork until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if mixture is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 20 minutes.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.

Roll out dough disk on lightly floured surface to 12-inch round. Gently roll up dough onto rolling pin and unroll into 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Press into dish. Fold dough overhang under, even with edge of pie dish. Crimp dough edges decoratively. Freeze crust until firm, about 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line frozen crust with nonstick aluminum foil. Fill foil with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until crust is set, about 15 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Continue baking crust until golden, about 10 minutes longer. Remove crust from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Let crust cool on rack while preparing filling.

FILLING:
Whisk sugar and cornstarch in heavy medium saucepan to blend. Gradually whisk in lemon juice. Whisk in egg yolks 1 at a time. Stir in lemon peel. Whisk constantly over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils, about 10 minutes. Spoon warm filling into crust; smooth top.

MERINGUE:
Using electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites and salt in large bowl until very soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar; continue beating until mixture is stiff and glossy. Using silicone spatula, spread meringue over warm filling, covering to crust edges and creating peaks and swirls. Bake until meringue is pale golden, about 15 minutes. Cool pie completely on rack and serve.

Lemon Macaroon Pie

The tang of the lemon juice and lemon peel balances the richness of the coconut in this bright, sunny pie.
8 servings

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

⅓ cup cake flour

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons (¾ stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

2 tablespoons chilled non-hydrogenated solid vegetable shortening, cut into ½-inch pieces

3 tablespoons (or more) ice water

3 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

¼ teaspoon salt

1¼ cups sugar

1¼ cups sweetened flaked coconut

¼ cup chilled heavy whipping cream

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons (¼ stick) unsalted butter, melted

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel

1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

¾ cup heavy whipping cream

2 teaspoons powdered sugar

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

8 thin lemon slices

CRUST:
Blend both flours, sugar, and salt in processor. Add butter and shortening; using on/off turns, cut in until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 3 tablespoons ice water and process until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 1 hour.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled. Let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.

Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Roll out dough disk on lightly floured surface to 12-inch round. Transfer to prepared dish. Trim dough overhang to ½ inch; fold under and crimp edge decoratively. Freeze crust 15 minutes.

Line crust with foil; fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until crust is set and edge is pale golden, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Cool crust completely on rack. Maintain oven temperature.

FILLING:
Using electric mixer, beat eggs, egg yolks, and salt in large bowl to blend. Add sugar and beat until mixture is thick and fluffy, about 1 minute. Beat in coconut, whipping cream, lemon juice, melted butter, lemon peel, and vanilla and almond extracts. Pour filling into crust.

Bake until filling is golden and set, about 40 minutes. Cool pie completely on rack, then chill until cold, about 3 hours.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and keep chilled.

TOPPING:
Beat cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla in large bowl until stiff peaks form. Fill pastry bag fitted with large star tip with whipped cream mixture and pipe around border of pie. Garnish with lemon slices and serve.

Coconut Cream Pie

This luscious version of the classic pie features a rich pastry cream filling and a triple dose of coconut flavor: in the filling, in the whipped cream topping, and in the toasted coconut flakes sprinkled atop the pie. The pie filling needs to chill overnight, so begin making this one day ahead.
8 servings

1½ cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons (¾ stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

3 tablespoons chilled solid non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening, cut into ½-inch pieces

4 tablespoons (or more) ice water

½ cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

3 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour

1½ cups whole milk

1½ cups sweetened flaked coconut

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

⅛ teaspoon coconut extract

⅔ cup sweetened flaked coconut

1¼ cups chilled heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

⅛ teaspoon coconut extract

CRUST:
Blend flour, sugar, and salt in processor. Add butter and shortening; using on/off turns, cut in until mixture resembles coarse meal. Drizzle 4 tablespoons ice water over mixture. Using on/off turns, process just until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic. Chill 1 hour.

Roll out dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap to 13-inch round. Transfer dough to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Fold overhang under. Crimp edges decoratively. Pierce bottom of crust all over with fork. Freeze crust 15 minutes.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep frozen.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line crust with aluminum foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 20 minutes. Remove weights and foil. Bake until golden and set, about 10 minutes. Cool.

DO AHEAD:
Crust can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap with foil or plastic wrap. Let stand at room temperature.

FILLING:
Whisk sugar, eggs, egg yolk, and flour in medium bowl. Bring milk and coconut to simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add hot milk mixture to egg mixture, whisking constantly. Return to same saucepan; cook until pastry cream thickens and boils, stirring constantly, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix in vanilla and coconut extracts. Transfer pastry cream to medium bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface to prevent skin from forming. Chill until cold, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Transfer filling to crust. Cover; chill overnight.