K
ey lime pie is certainly a favorite at our house. Today, as Grayson was downing his second piece of pie he asked, “mom, if this is lime pie…why isn’t it green”? Why indeed. Grayson is a wealth of useless knowledge so I felt it my duty as his mother to add to this boys encyclopedia mind of rainy day facts…
Key limes were named after the Florida keys where they abundantly grow. But, unlike Persian limes, key limes are smaller, yellow and much more aromatic. They have a thinner yellow skin that makes them more perishable and harder to find in grocery stores year round (for this reason I often use Nellie & Joe’s bottled key lime juice). Key limes are more acidic. This acid is what created the chemical reaction in early key lime pies. In the early twentieth century sponge fishermen in Florida would live on boats for long periods of time. They often had limes, eggs, and canned milk. They learned that the acid in the limes would create a chemical reaction in the protein structure of the milk and eggs causing it to thicken without being cooked. Since they didn’t have a heat source to cook the mixture this was a very popular dessert.
Now, many people still use eggs yolks to thicken key lime pie. I however, don’t particularly feel comfortable feeding my family raw eggs so have come up with a recipe that thickens with very little cook time and has better flavor than its egg containing counterparts. I do zest regular green store bought Persian limes when I can’t find key limes in the store and you really can’t tell the difference.
We hope you enjoy this recipe and the useless knowledge of key limes that accompanies it!
Baking began early this morning as Thanksgiving is less than a week away. I asked Kennedy to go to the basement and grab a bag of dry beans. Why…do you need beans? Are you going to blind bake your pie? I looked at her a little shocked. How do you know what a blind bake is, I asked. Mom, I watch The Great British Baking Show. I laughed and tried to call her bluff. What temperature should the oven be set for a blind bake, I asked. Duh mom, 400° or 350° if your ovens because they are convection. I laughed so hard I cried a little.
watching The Great British Baking Show. Blind baking is baking or partially baking the pie crust before pouring in pie filling to ensure a flaky crust. Don’t feel bad if you didn’t know this…my husband walked in the kitchen while I was preparing to blind bake the shell and said, “what-cha making hun…a bean pie”? You can tell who shares my DNA and who doesn’t.
boys in our family get up early to play football. The much anticipated “Turkey-bowl” gets more hype than the Superbowl. It has become such an important part of our holiday festivities, that even before I get the bird in the oven, I get breakfast ready for my Thanksgiving athletes. When they return we eat breakfast while I listen to the stories of all their poultry glory. This post-game breakfast always includes these amazing pumpkin muffins. I often think that if we omitted the muffin paper they would more accurately be classified as cookies…but somehow calling them muffins makes me feel less guilty eating them for breakfast.
creates a light and airy cupcake that is still capable of holding a cream cheese frosting. Every year at Thanksgiving dinner, I am always surprised to have a couple guests who don’t like pie…not eating pumpkin pie on thanksgiving seems like an insult on the holiday itself. This recipe was created to embody all of the traditional pumpkin pie flavors without the density and texture that can often turn people off to pie. This year satisfy all of your guests with a cupcake that will rival even the best pumpkin pie at the table.
kids were never in any danger, they just didn’t know the difference between a cookie press and a gun. They thought it was the greatest thing in the world to pull the trigger forcing dough through the disk and releasing a perfectly shaped cookie on the cookie sheet. These little cookies are so simple and easy to make, yet look so professional. People will assume you bought them at a bakery. My kids are a little older now, but we still affectionately refer to the cookie press as the “cookie gun”. Try these addictive little cookies for your next holiday gathering. They are as much fun to make as they are yummy to eat…just ask my kiddos.
sweeterthymes.com 