Lemonade Icebox Pie and Breakfast Croissant Pie

When life gives you lemons...
Well, we make an Icebox Lemon Pie, of course!!

This pie has a very unusual crust...saltine crackers!!  Very Southern...  This style of lemon pie gets her roots from the coastal Carolina area... this is a popular lemon pie with a cracker crust up and down the Eastern coast of the USA.  I for one, am a big fan of this pie.

I made my version in a similar fashion to our Today Show Pi-Day winning Margarita Key Lime Pie... no eggs...fresh lemon juice, cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk!!  This Icebox Lemon Pie is a winner in my book too...

Lemonade Icebox Pie with Carolina Cracker Crust
Yields: 8-inch pie; serves 8-10
Karri Perry; Blue Ribbon Kitchen

Ingredients:
Crust:
1 sleeve saltine crackers (about 44 crackers)
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons melted unsalted butter

Filling:
1 brick cream cheese (8 ounces)-softened
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 ounces)
¾ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon lemon zest

Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Whip together on low speed until mixture begins to thicken. Turn to high until stiff peaks form.

Use an 8-inch pie plate. Crush the crackers with a food processor or by hand.  Create a uniform crumb of small cracker pieces (like coarse sand).  Add the sugar, salt and melted butter and mix until combined.  Press cracker crumb mixture into the pie plate. Use the flat bottom of a measuring cup to tamp down the crust. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 6 minutes. Allow crust to cool while preparing filling.

Filling: Using a food processor or hand mixer, blend the softened cream cheese until fluffy with no lumps. Add the sweetened condensed milk, blend until smooth.  Add the lemon juice and lemon zest.  Mix until combined.  Pour the mixture into the prepared cracker pie crust.  Refrigerate pie for 4 hours-overnight.  Top pie with sweetened whipped cream and serve.

Optional: add 1-2 drops of yellow food color for a more yellow pie
Sprinkle extra lemon zest atop the whipped cream as a garnish if desired.


This is the PERFECT brunch recipe...  I hope you'll love it as much as our family does!!

Western Omelet Croissant Breakfast Pie

Yields: 9-10-inch deep dish pie; serves 8

Karri Perry; Blue Ribbon Kitchen

Ingredients:

Crust:

8-10 small prepared (already baked) croissants from the bakery section of the grocery

½ teaspoon softened butter for pie plate

Filling:

8 large eggs

1 cup milk or half and half

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

½ cup diced or chopped ham

¼ cup green bell pepper diced

¼ cup red bell pepper diced

¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, center oven rack

Use a 9-10 inch pie plate, deep dish works best; or consider using a casserole dish with tall sides as a substitute. Butter the pie plate or casserole dish.

Place the croissants in the bottom and along the sides of the pie plate, creating a single layer.  Set aside.

Filling:

Crack 8 large eggs in a medium bowl and whisk, add milk, salt and pepper, whisk until combined. Set aside.

Top the croissants with the diced peppers (red and green) the diced ham and the shredded cheddar cheese. 

Slowly pour the egg mixture over the croissants-ham-cheese and peppers.  Let egg mixture sit for 1 minute.  The croissants will begin to soak up some of the egg mixture.

Bake pie in a preheated 350 degree oven, covered with foil for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake additional 15 minutes more until top of pie is puffed, golden and set in the center.

Remove from oven, let cool 15 minutes before serving.