Diana! Q. The premier pie from the Stockholm Bakery in Stockholm Wisconsin, the "West Coast of Wisconsin", Is the Double Lemon Chess Pie. Here is a link to a version of this pie from " pieloveyou.blogspot.com "
(For those north of the Mason Dixon line she provides an explanation of what Chess Pie is.) Note that she has 52 other pie recipes at the link!
Double Lemon Chess Pie
(adapted from Bubby's Pie Book) ** If making you would probably want to use very fine cornmeal rather than polenta cornmeal.
The poster of this recipe wrote:
" I was very happy about the taste of this pie. Lemon is one of my favorite flavors for all things savory and sweet and as a whole, this pie had just enough pucker for me to be pleased.
While I was cooking the pie, I thought about not even making the lemon curd (since it wasn't really like a typical for a chess pie), and then I thought I should just make it and just serve it on the side if people wanted it. Any way, at last minute (i.e. several hours before I served it), I decided to just put it on the top like the recipe called for and I'm so glad I did. I don't think that the pie would have been as good without it.
Also, just to note, I didn't think that this pie crust was great. What's surprising to me is that it's similar to so many crusts that I've already used but it was pretty bland. It's like there wasn't enough sugar or salt to make it interesting. So, I would recommend taking the tablespoon of sugar out and increasing the salt just a little bit; however, please notice that the recipe is written like I made it. "
Since its Spring here is
another sunny Lemon pie recipe from "pieloveyou.blogspot.com"
Shaker Lemon Pie Snip....." It's a simple pie: two whole lemons, sugar, eggs, and a crust.
I know that doesn't give you any insight on how I read about these pies a few weeks ago and became kind of obsessed looking all around the city for Meyer lemons. How I actually did a little jig in Whole Foods when I found Meyer lemons (when, I swear, they hadn't been there the week before). How I cut them with "master precision" for an hour while my visiting cousin waited (meaning, I spent over ONE hour slicing TWO lemons as thin as I could possibly get them). And then how I waited for TWENTY-FOUR hours for the lemons to soak in sugar so I could start baking."
1-Use Meyer Lemons. From what wikipedia told me, they are "a cross between a true lemon and a mandarin orange" which makes them much sweeter and less bitter so they must be used. Besides one reviewer, EVERYONE swears by Meyer Lemons. Use them.
2-Slice them as thin as possible: If you have a mandolin that can slice a lemon so it is paper-thin, go for it. However, many mandolins don't have a "Paper Thin" option. Personally, I took back my mandolin because I had it sitting, unused, in it's box for a month (and I don't have much space in my apartment for unused items) so I was without, and in the end, I think that was a good thing because I made some pretty thin cuts (for the most part).
Shaker Lemon Pie
The Filling:
(Adapted from Savuer Magazine)
2 large Meyer lemons
2 Cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs
4 Tablespoon butter, melted
3 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
Butter Pie Crust:
(Adapted from Epicurious.com) 2 ½ Cups all purpose flour
1 (heaping) Tablespoon sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
1 Cup (2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter
8 Tablespoons (about) ice water
(brush crust with cream and coarse sugar before baking) (Note....She said skip the cream, brush with egg white instead!)
Directions:
Filling: Thoroughly wash and dry lemons. Finely grate lemon zest into a bowl. Using a sharp knife, slice the lemons as thin as possible. While slicing, make sure to remove the seeds. Combine slices, zest, and sugar, cover and set aside at room temperature for at least 24 hours.
Crust: Combine flour, sugar, and salt and cut in cold butter until it resembles coarse meal. Add water and combine ingredients with hands until you can gather all the ingredients into one cohesive ball. Divide dough in half and form two disks. Wrap each in plastic and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 425°. Whisk eggs in bowl until frothy. Add butter, salt, and flour and whisk until smooth. Combine with lemon mixture. Roll chilled dough into two 12-inch rounds. Fit one round into a 9" pie plate and pour in filling.