Mini Lemon Meringue Pies #minipiemarch

Inspired by one of my yoga teachers, Judi Moreno at The Space Studios in Sacramento, I am embarking on a #minipiemarch adventures. March is a great month to make pies because Pi Day (3/14) is in March. It also felt like the perfect month to rewatch the movie, Waitress.

I’ve loved this movie since I first saw it maybe 15 years ago when it first came out. It has since been made into a broadway musical set to Sara Bareilles’ music.

The movie follows a down and out Southern waitress who makes magical pies at a local diner - Joe’s Diner. The two things that really hooked me about this movie were #1 the pies, obviously and #2 it’s a movie about a woman’s experience in a man-centered world.

The first time I identified with a feminist consciousness was while reading the book White Oleander. The story of Astrid and Ingrid in this book struck a deep chord with me. Waitress did the same thing. This was before I was introduced to intersectional feminism. I could write another blog post about the lack of representation in the book and movie and how if a woman of color was the protagonist of either, the book and movie probably wouldn’t be written and wouldn’t have received all the accolades they did.

Nevertheless, for me, both White Oleander and Waitress gave me words and a framework for understanding what I had experienced in my life - the centrality of men - their desires, their wants, needs, at the expense of women’s lives.

The movie ends (SPOILER ALERT) with Keri Russell, who plays the main character in Waitress, giving birth and then immediately afterwards demanding a divorce from her horrible husband and breaking up with the doctor she was having an affair with. The movie shows how falling in love with her newborn daughter gave her the clarity she never had to demand what she really wanted.

I saw 17 when I first watched this movie. I remember feeling first a sense of righteousness when she ends her affiar and then a deep loss when she breaks up with the docotor whom she seemed so in love with.

Watching the movie 15 years later, I saw the ending differently. She said no both to a misogynistic and abusive partner AND a man who could not put her first. What I failed to see so many years ago was a life for Keri Russell (Jenna in the movie) in which what a man wanted was not the central, most critical piece. For me, this film makes a very powerful statement about de-centering patriarchy. I encourage you to watch it!

Recipe

Lemon curd filling:

1/3 cup lemon juice

lemon zest from 2 lemons

1 egg + 2 egg yolks

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons butter, room temperature

Crust:

1/2 cup butter, cold

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup almond flour

1/3 cup powdered sugar

Meringue:

2 egg whites

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar (optional)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

To make the curd, place a medium sized saucepan filled halfway with water on the stove and bring to a simmer. Combine lemon juice, sugar, eggs, and salt in a heat proof bowl. Place the bowl over the simmering pot of water and whisk constantly until curd has thickened. This will take about ten minutes. Just be patient and keep whisking. Remove from heat and place in fridge till fully cool.

To make the crust - preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a bowl combine flour, almond flour, powdered sugar, and salt. Cut butter into small pieces and add to flour mixtures. Using a pastry cutter, a fork, or your fingers combine flour with butter until a cohesive dough forms. Using mini pie pans or cupcake tins, press dough into bottom of pan and up the sides. I like to use the flat bottom of a glass or measuring cup to help me with this. Freeze the dough for 10 minutes. Remove from freezer and poke holes into dough with a fork or knife. Place in oven for 12 to 15 minutes until crust is slightly brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

Fill crusts with lemon curd and place in fridge.

To make the meringue topping, combine egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar, is using, in the bowl of a stand mixer, or a large bowl (if using hand mixer). Over the same pot of simmering water you used for the lemon curd, place the bowl. Whisk constantly until sugar has dissolved into the egg whites and the mixture is hot to the touch, or if you have a candy thermometer, until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F.

Remove from heat and using stand mixer, beat with whisk attachment until glossy and fluffy. Then add vanilla and stir. This will take anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes, so be patient here too. Now you can top your pies with meringue. I just plop it right on top of the lemon curd. I have a torch I use to get the meringue brown but you can also place in the oven on broil for about 5 minutes.