I’m constantly amazed by the things I don’t know, despite having spent a lot of time trying new ingredients and recipes over the years.
One of my favorite discoveries over the past couple of years came from a random post I saw online about store-bought graham cracker crusts.
I’m sure I am the last person to discover this, but I never knew that you could use the plastic cover on a store-bought crust as a lid if you just flip it upside down.
Joey came in the kitchen last week, just as I was washing the plastic from my crust and looked at me like I lost it.
I’m sure he thought it was one of my strange money-saving schemes.
But when I placed it handily on top of the pie I just finished, crimped the edges of the pie tin down and slid it in the fridge, he was mildly impressed.
The pie recipe I tried comes from the blog “Bunny’s Warm Oven,” by Mary Bostow. You can find the original post at https://bunnyswarmoven.net/sour-cream-lemon-pie. I didn’t change anything other than omitting the addition of whipped cream once the pie was done.
Sour Cream Lemon Pie
Ingredients
- 1 nine-inch graham cracker crust pre-baked
- 3 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup sugar
- zest of one large lemon
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 cup milk
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1 cup sour cream
Instructions
- In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the cornstarch, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolks and milk. Stir well and heat over medium heat, stirring continuously.
- After about 10 minutes, the mixture will start to thicken. Keep stirring until it begins to boil, and then remove the pan from the heat.
- Stir in the butter until it’s fully melted and combined.
- Let the mixture cool for about 10 minutes and then stir in the sour cream.
- Pour the lemon mixture into the prepared crust, and refrigerate it a few hours (or overnight) until it’s completely cooled through. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.
This was just a bit sour and a bit sweet, and while you could definitely use a normal pre-baked pie crust for this recipe, I was especially happy with the flavor profile of the graham crackers pairing with the lemon filling.
If you’re looking for a new pie to try out or just need a quick dessert as the holidays come around, keep this one on hand. It was easy to make and was a really tasty, refreshing dessert, too.
And if you’re like me and quickly start to run out of space in your pie-shaped Tupperware containers during this time of year, at least you’ll have one dessert that comes with its own lid.
This piece first appeared in print on Nov. 3, 2022.
Spice Up Your Life is a weekly newspaper column written by Lindsey Young in south central Kansas. If you are interested in sponsoring this column, please contact us through the “Contact Lindsey” link at the top of the page.