In years past, I used to mark the dark months with a series of social events which would allow for a certain pacing of time. Truly, I realize I am whining a bit here. For me these months include going to work in the dark, coming home in the dark, and since I work in a windowless bunker....Seeing daylight was more or less reserved for the weekends. I know that there are others who have less light this time of year. However. I still marked the time, all to be gotten through in the pursuit of SPRING! There would be a spaghetti feed around early November. The dreaded holidays were endured because of the annual Night of Beef. Robert Burns Night would then cap off January and into February we would coast. The spaghetti feed and RBN did not transpire this year (ah well).
What did happen this year was a lucky dinner party the other day and then a second dinner just yesterday which necessitated a dessert. Being surrounded as I am by the gluten avoiders, that was a requirement. And lo! in my fridge an abundance of lemons. What a cheery fruit!
I hauled out a recipe that my mother has made and began the riffing. Lemon Angel Pie, which I am certain she obtained from Sunset magazine, is a great homey standard. This consists of a meringue, baked in a pie plate with slightly scooped up sides---all the better to contain the filling naturally. Then there is a lemon curd which is folded with whipped cream and voila! A dessert that has the intensity of lemon, the coolness of the whipped cream and the sweet crispy crunch of the meringue, and a bit of marshmallowy goodness underneath. What is not to like?
The dinner allowed an initial riffing of adding dollops of curd and cutting them in to allow for pockets of curd. This has potential but the whipped cream is a little too delicate for this technique and it all looked a bit messy. Blame the cook. The second dinner really did the trick. I didn't want to make this large of a pie as there were only 3 of us. So I engineered the recipe to use only 3 eggs instead of 4 and then used larger ramekins to create Lemon Angel Tartlets. Or mini pies. Or whatever clever name I can think of. They were gorgeous to look at and even easier to consume.
Lemons: helping to pave the way from winter to spring. What a savior. And the sun is shining today, so that helps too!
Tartlets straight out of the oven, and then 10 minutes later, when they had collapsed.
Lemon Curd, cooled and ready to fold with the whipped cream
Finished Product!
Lemon Angel Pie or Tartlets
adapted from Sunset recipe for Tartlets
For the pie:
4 eggs, divided
1/4-1/2t cream of tarter
1 1/2 c sugar, divided
6T lemon juice
Zest of 2-3 lemons (at least 1 T)
1/4t salt
1- 1/2 c whipping cream (see notes)
Oven is at 275F. Use a pie plate, spray well or butter and set aside.
Make the meringue:
Beat the egg whites until foamy
Add the cream of tarter, keep beating.
Once the volume is starting to increase, slowly slowly add 1 c sugar.
Beat until you have firm peaks.
Spread into the pie plate and using a large spoon or spatula, work some of the meringue up the sides.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, until very lightly browned and firm to touch.
Let cool.
Make the filling: (see notes)
Combine the remaining sugar, lemon juice, zest and salt in a sauce pan, and cook over low heat, whisking constantly until thickened and mixture coats the back of a spoon. Temperature will be approx 160F.
Immediately remove from heat, scrape into another bowl and chill until ready to use.
Whip the cream until firm peaks.
If using more than 1 c, set aside approx 1/3 for topping. Using the rest, fold into the lemon curd--it will be easier to do this if you take a portion and fold/stir it first to break up the curd, then fold in the rest.
Scrape into the cooled meringue base and gently spread it out. If using extra whipped cream, apply dollops or spread on top. Chill x 2 hours at least. This is best not covered with plastic wrap but placed into a loose bag to not destroy the top.
Notes:
I saw several recipes online that used a whipped cream topping, creating sort of a triple layer pie. Worth a try.
If doing that, use the larger amount of cream.
There are several ways of making the curd: some use a double boiler to help with tempering the heat. I find that if you DON'T WALK AWAY keep whisking and use low heat that this is not necessary. The instant read thermometer helps too.
Garnishing with lemon zest is nice.
To make the Tartlets:
Use larger ramekins, and butter or spray well.
Use the same technique above.
When placing the meringue in the ramekins, make sure there is a fairly generous amount at the bottom or it will be hollow when done. Not that that matters, the filling covers all sins. They won't really look like there will be room for any filling, but they collapse in when they cool.
