April 2020 in the Twelve Months of Pie by Fran Joyce

For March, I made a Lemon Meringue Pie. Here is the link for the recipe I used from Simply Recipes.

https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/lemon_meringue_pie/

This recipe has wonderful step by step directions and helpful tips.

I had to make a few alterations to the recipe because I was low on cornstarch. Instead of using sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest, I added a 10.5 ounce jar of lemon curd and only 4 Tablespoons of cornstarch for the filling instead of the 6 Tablespoons in the recipe. It was a gamble, but the filling turned out perfectly – not quite as yellow as in the website’s photo, but it was the right consistency to hold the meringue.

I followed the recipe exactly for the meringue and it turned out wonderfully.

I used the basic vanilla wafer crust recipe with a twist. Instead of Vanilla wafers, I used a box of Meyer Lemon Cookie Thins from Trader Joe’s. The crust was delicious with a nice lemon flavor, but if I were making it again, I would cut the sugar in half because the cookies have enough sugar in them. The added sugar made the cooked crust more brittle and harder to cut.

Vanilla Wafer Crust

https://www.thespruceeats.com/vanilla-wafer-crust-3059181?utm_source=emailshare&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=shareurlbuttons

For April, I’ll be making French Silk Pie and I’ve been asked to use the Vanilla Wafer Pie Crust again. I have a box of Vanilla Wafers I’ll share my results in the May issue.

Send your recipes and original photos to Fran at This Awful Awesome Life. My email is fran.thisawfulawesomelife@gmail.com. On the subject heading of your email, Please include your name and Pie of the month: ex. Pat Jones - April: French Silk Pie. You can send them a month before the feature month or during the month and I’ll feature them in the next month’s issue. The sooner the better. If you love to bake, you can contribute each month. In December, we will select one lucky baker who will receive a gift from Pampered Chef.

The 12 Months of Pie

January – Cream pie: Banana or Coconut

February – Cherry Pie

March – Lemon Meringue Pie

April – French Silk Pie

May – Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

June – Razzleberry Pie

July – Blueberry Pie

August - Peach

September – Key Lime Pie

October - Apple

November – Pumpkin Pie

December – Pecan Pie