 Kitchen Window's
Emile Henry Pie Bake-Off
Claire Stanford's Margarita Pie
Pie Crust Ingredients
8 graham crackers, pulsed in a food processor (or closed in a Ziploc bag and beaten senseless by
a glass bottle), until fine crumbs OR 1 ½ c. store-bought graham cracker crumbs (I have yet to
ever see these in a supermarket, they’re elusive)
3 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (warm or cool)
Filling Ingredients
5 large egg yolks
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed whole milk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
½ cup fresh lime juice
1 ½ tablespoons fresh lime zest
1 tablespoon. tequila
Whipped Cream Ingredients
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons triple sec
2 teaspoons sugar
Extra lime zest (1 teaspoon), for garnish
Fleur de sel, to sprinkle over
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine graham cracker crumbs and sugar in a large mixing bowl (or, if you’re me, in the food processor – watch out for the blade). Add the melted butter (or, again, if you’re me, you’ll add the crumbs and sugar to the melted butter straight in the pot). Stir mixture until butter is mixed in thoroughly (all the crumbs should be slightly moist).
3. This is tricky: now you need to get this crumb mixture into the pie pan (9 inches, preferably). The way I did this was by pouring the whole thing into the center, and then spreading it out with my hands. I used the bottom of a juice glass to smash down the crumbs on the flat part of the pie pan, and the back of a spoon to do the sides. It worked pretty well; you could also probably use your fingers. The sides are the tricky part, and you can give up if you have to, but pie is better with side crust, of course.
4. Bake crust on the oven’s middle rack until it is dark brown. The sugar and butter should have melded with the crumbs to form a cohesive crust, which should take 15-20 minutes. Remove crust from oven and let cool. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
5. While the crust is baking, you can make the filling. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks with a whisk until they have lightened in color, about 1 minute (they will get slightly lighter; you will notice it, I promise). Add the condensed milk and 2 tbsp. of cream and stir until incorporated. Add the lime juice, tequila, and 1 ½ tbsp. lime zest, and stir until the filling has a consistently creamy texture, about 1 minute. It should be light yellow.
6. Let the crust cool about 20 minutes. Pour the filling into the crust. Bake on middle rack until surface is more set but still quivery, about 16 minutes (to check, pull the rack out of the oven, using potholders mind you, and give the pie a little shake; the middle should still quiver slightly, while the periphery should be more set). Cool for 30 minutes, letting the pie set completely.
7. Transfer to the refrigerator, where pie can cool completely, for at least 4 hours. Preferably eat within 24 hours, but it’s still fine 72 hours later. I wouldn’t recommend making it that far in advance, but leftovers and such still taste fine.
8. Before serving, whip 2 cups cream with 2 tbsp. triple sec and 2 tsp. sugar (it will be a little harder to whip because of the alcohol in there). Spread whipped cream over pie and sprinkle the additional teaspoon of lime zest over the top. Immediately before serving (you don’t want to let it dissolve too much), sprinkle a generous but careful serving of fleur de sel over the top.
9. Optional: serve with tequila, taking a shot of tequila and chasing it with the pie.
Makes one 9-inch pie
|
