You Silly People!

Did the trauma I suffered over this failed lemon pie matter naught to you?  Geesh, I'm amazed you asked for the recipe after my tale of woe in serving it.

Okay, it was delicious.  And I have to admit that the pieces I cut and served today (I told you we'd eat it all) did come out of the pan without looking as though they'd been run over by our tractor.

So if you insist, here is the recipe.  Even though the "shortbread" crust was quite tasty, I'm sure the lemon filling would lend itself to a graham cracker crust very well.  And that would (should) come out of the pie pan with ease while still remaining attached to the filling.

The recipe is labeled Lemon Sour Pie, but that's a misnomer since there's nothing sour about the lovely, smooth, lemony flavor.  Here goes:

Lemon Sour Pie

For the impossibly recalcitrant crust, combine 1 cup flour and 1/4 cup sugar.  Melt 1/2 cup butter and pour over dry mixture.  Combine thoroughly with a spoon, dump into a 9" or 10" pie plate.  Using the back of the spoon, press mixture evenly on bottom of plate and up the sides.  (I ended up using my hands to finish this process.)

Place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 10 minutes.  Cool the crust.

For the filling, in a saucepan combine 1-1/4 cups sugar, 1/3 cup cornstarch and 1/4 teaspoon salt.  

Beat 1-3/4 cups water with 4 egg yolks.  Add to sugar mixture and blend. 

Stir constantly (does anyone actually do this?) over medium heat until thick and boiling.  Boil 1 minute.

Remove from heat, add 1 tablespoon butter, 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel (I used all the grated peel from one lemon), and 1/4 cup lemon juice.  Stir until butter is melted, then stir in 1/2 cup dairy sour cream, blending until smooth.

Pour into crust and chill 2 to 3 hours before serving.

In ending this post, I say best of luck to you if you choose to attempt this pie with the shortbread-like crust.

Actually, in the comments section of the original pie post, I think Anonymous - A Reader in Philly had a really good idea.  She suggested baking the recipe in a square pan lined with a long piece of buttered parchment paper, cooling it and lifting the dessert out by the ends of the parchment paper and cutting it into squares.  I thought of baking it in a square pan and then scooping it out as one would do with a pudding . . . and who would care if the bottom crust came out crumbled.  

Where there's a will, there's a way, eh?   Go for it.