Categories
Dessert

The holidays are the ‘zest’ time for refreshing lemon pie

Sour cream lemon pie is a refreshing dessert that is really easy to make, especially with a pre-made graham cracker crust.

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.

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Sour Cream Lemon Pie

Sour cream lemon pie is a refreshing dessert that is really easy to make, especially with a pre-made raham cracker crust.
Course Dessert
Keyword easy dessert, fresh lemon, graham cracker crust, lemon juice, lemon zest, pie, sour cream

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.

Categories
Dessert

No-bake pie is better chocolate than never

A small piece is the perfect serving size for this rich, chocolaty pie.

We recently had a get-together with my mom’s side of the family. As always, we had an amazing spread of way too much food and had lots of fun catching up.

I volunteered to bring a few pies for dessert, and my family is used to being guinea pigs when it comes to me trying out new recipes.

One of the pies I made was this week’s recipe—a no-bake chocolate truffle pie that was super easy to make. When I pulled it out of my Tupperware container, my cousin’s little girl gasped and immediately grabbed me around my middle.

She could barely wait to finish her lunch before diving into a piece of pie. If you’re wondering, Miss Avery gave it two thumbs up.

I found this recipe on the website “Kitch Me.” You can find it at http://www.kitchme.com/recipes/no-bake-chocolate-truffle-pie-5-ingredients. I added ingredients to make a homemade whipped cream to top it and used a graham cracker crust instead of the chocolate crust the recipe called for.

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No-Bake Chocolate Truffle Pie

A small piece is the perfect serving size for this rich, chocolaty pie.
Course Dessert
Keyword chocolate chips, graham cracker crust, no bake, truffle, whipped cream

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream divided
  • 1/4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 9- inch pre-made graham cracker or chocolate cookie crumb pie crust
  • about 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  • Combine the chocolate chips (save a few to decorate the top of the pie, if you like) and 3/4 cup cream to a microwave-safe bowl, and microwave 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between each time, until the mixture is smooth.
  • Set it aside and let the chocolate cool to room temperature.
  • Once the mixture is cooled, mix in the sugar and vanilla.
  • In another bowl, whip another 3/4 cup of cream until stiff peaks form, and then beat in the chocolate, a little at a time, until it’s all fully combined.
  • Spread the filling out evenly into the pie crust and refrigerate at least eight hours. Before serving, whip the remaining cream, one tablespoon powdered sugar and one teaspoon vanilla together until stiff peaks form. If the cream is not sweet enough, whip in a bit more sugar until it’s where you like it.
  • Top the pie with the whipped cream and some chocolate chips or chocolate shavings.
  • Refrigerate any leftovers.

Several people who taste tested this pie for me said they really liked the dark chocolate flavor and were surprised when I said it was made with only semi-sweet chocolate. Letting it set overnight really developed a deep flavor.

I’d also suggest cutting this into smaller pieces, because it’s a very rich flavor, and it’s tough to eat a big piece in one sitting.

I’m guessing I’ll need to work this recipe into my regular rotation—at least when bringing pie to my little cousin. The pie was delicious, but the big hug really made it worth it.

This piece first appeared in print on April 26, 2018.

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.

Categories
Dessert

You’ll pine for this no bake cheesecake

No bake pineapple cheesecake comes together quickly for that last-minute summer get-together.

It seems like barbecues and gatherings happen at a moment’s notice during the summer. As a lover of dessert, I often find that these gatherings are full of all kinds of delicious salads and entrees but are often lacking on the sweet side of the palate.

Obviously, I’ve taken it upon myself to fix this issue.

Unfortunately, making dessert quickly can sometimes be tough, so this week’s recipe is a great one to file away for a time when you need something sweet and don’t have a lot of time to make it.

And I even bought a pre-made graham cracker crust rather than making my own. I decided to

make this a true no-bake experience.

(Although you can easily make a graham cracker crust in the microwave with a glass pie plate if you want to. Just melt one-quarter cup of butter in a nine-inch glass pie plate in the

microwave. Stir in one-quarter cup of sugar and a cup of finely crushed graham crackers into the butter and then press the mixture into the pan. Microwave for about three minutes and cool before filling.)

This recipe for a no bake pineapple cheesecake came from the blog “The Shabby Creek Cottage.” You can find it at http://www.theshabbycreekcottage.com/pineapplecheesecake-in-a-jar.html.

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No Bake Pineapple Cheesecake

No bake pineapple cheesecake comes together quickly for that last-minute summer get-together.
Course Dessert
Keyword cheesecake pudding, crushed pineapple, easy dessert, graham cracker crust, no bake, summer dessert, whipped topping

Ingredients

  • 1 graham cracker pie crust
  • 2 3.4- ounce boxes cheesecake instant pudding
  • 20 ounces crushed pineapple in pineapple juice
  • 8 ounces whipped topping

Instructions

  • In a bowl, combine the instant pudding and pineapple (juice included). Mix well.
  • Fold in the whipped topping and then pour the mixture into the pie crust.
  • Smooth until it looks nice and refrigerate at least two hours or until completely set up.

If you want the pieces to come out of the pie perfectly, I’d suggest freezing the pie rather than just refrigerating it. We ended up with big, delicious globs of cheesecake on our plates rather than perfectly formed pie slices (but no one complained about that one).

This was a very refreshing dessert, and if you like pineapple, you’ll like this. I also wondered if placing just a few maraschino cherries on top wouldn’t be good, too, with its nod to pineapple upside down cake, but it doesn’t really need anything more to be absolutely perfect.

Also, if you can’t do the graham crackers, just make the filling and refrigerate it. It’s good all on its own, or you could put the filling out as a dip with graham crackers on the side if you wanted a smaller dessert option.

No matter what, you can’t go wrong with a yummy homemade dessert that you can make with almost no effort so you can go out and enjoy time with family and friends.

This piece first appeared in print on July 7, 2016.

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.

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