Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Key Lime Pie



2 each Sweetened Condensed Milk (14 oz. cans)
10 each Egg Yolks
2 each Lime Zest
1 1/2 Cups Key Lime Juice


Combine condensed milk and egg yolks together in a bowl.
Zest lime directly into the bowl. (see note)
Add lime juice. Strain and refrigerate mix for one hour. (see note)
After an hour, pour filling into prepared graham cracker crusts
Bake in 300ยบ F oven for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven (Should wiggle like jello) and refrigerate immediately.
Top with whipped cream and enjoy.
Note:
1. I always tell people to zest citrus directly into whatever bowl they are mixing their ingredients. When zesting citrus, oils from the rind are released. That oil is what will add flavor and aroma to whatever you are making. If you zest into a separate bowl, you are wasting all that flavor. Also, only zest the colored part of the rind. The white part is is very bitter, and will ruin anything you add it to.
2. Refrigerating your filling is very important to the end result of your pie. The citric acid in the lime juice begins to coagulate the proteins in the egg yolks the instant that they come into contact with each other. This in turn thickens the mix, an reduces the cooking time of your pie. I’m sure that there are other chemical reactions going on in there, but lets keep this simple. If you skip this step, you risk either scorching your pie or having it separate during cooking (not a pretty picture I assure you).
So, there you have it! I seriously doubt that this will give you the perfect Key Lime pie, but I promise you that it’s a damn good one.
P.S. If you are wondering where to get Key Limes or juice in Newfoundland, well you're not. A chef from Alberta recommends using 90% fresh lime juice to 10% fresh lemon juice for a close taste.

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