This is, to say the least, a bit of an experiment.
My brother, lemon meringue pie enthusiast, is in town for a few days. For as long as I can remember, visits from my brother have been synomymous with some sort of lemon creation.
This time, I decided to change things up a bit, stray from mom's trusty lemon recipe and give a lemonade version a try.
Despite a few bumps, lumps, what have you, in the road- I think it's rather successful.
I adapted the recipe from a Taste of Home magazine I received in the mail.
3 eggs, separated I used jumbo
1 pkg (4.6oz) vanilla pudding mix
1 1/4 c. milk
1 c. sour cream I used 1/2 s. cream, 1/2 plain yogurt
1/3 lemonade concentrate
1 tsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
6 tbsp. sugar
1 pastry shell, baked
Place egg whites in a small mixing bowl; let stand at room temp. for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine pudding mix, milk, and sour cream- cook and stir over medium until thickened and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat, cook 2 minutes longer.
Remove from heat and gradually whisk 1 cup hot filling into yolks; return all to pan. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove from heat, gently stir in lemonade concentrate; keep warm.
*Note: This is where it all went horribly wrong for me. Instead of adding 1/3 cup lemonade- I poured the whole 12 ounces in. Fortunately, with the addition of a few obscenities and a couple tablespoons of Bird's Vanilla Custard Powder, I was able to turn my lemon soup back into some form of pudding.
Add lemon juice and cream of tartar to egg whites; beat on medium until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is disolved.
Pour warm filling into pastry; spread meringue over filling, sealing edges to pastry. Bake at 350 15 minutes or until meringue is golden brown. Cool, then refrigerate at least 3 hours.
The Verdict: A success! Turns out overdoing the lemonade element really worked for the overall taste, it added a certain freshness/tartness to the pie. Though, I will say this is not a lemon meringue for the weak of heart.
