Mrs. Vance's Abe Lincoln Pie

 

My family has a house on a lake in a very small town in Arkansas.  My great grandparents built the place in the late-1940's, and my dad has gone up there every summer of his life.  When my dad was a boy (1950's-ish) there was a one-room restaurant in the town called Vance's Villa.  Mrs. Vance, the proprietor, used her living room as the restaurant and cooked for patrons out of her kitchen.  This was her signature dessert - Abe Lincoln Pie.  Vance's Villa burned down in the late-1950's or early-1960's, but not before my grandmother coaxed the recipe for Abe Lincoln Pie out of Mrs. Vance.  My family has been making it ever since and it's my dad's favorite pie in the whole wide world.

 

MRS. VANCE'S ABE LINCOLN PIE

 

Recipe Notes

Recipe makes 2 pies.  I recommend using a pre-made graham cracker crust (can be purchased in just about any grocery store).  My grandmother noted in her recipe that it is better to freeze the crusts before adding the custard filling.

 

Ingredients

• 1 c. sugar
• 1 c. milk
• 3 eggs, separated
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 package plain gelatin (such as Knorr)
• 1/4 c. cold water
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 pint whipping cream, whipped until soft peaks form
• Graham cracker crusts - 2
• Unsweetened chocolate (for grating over the top)

Instructions

1.  Beat sugar, milk, egg yolks, and salt lightly in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat.  Allow the mixture to thicken and then set aside.

2.  Dissolve gelatin packet into cold water in a small bowl.  When fully-dissolved, add to hot custard.

3.  Add 1 tsp. vanilla.

4.  Allow custard to cool completely.

5.  When cool, fold in three egg whites, beaten stiff.  Also fold in whipped cream.

6.  Pour into two cold crumb crusts.  Grate unsweetened chocolate over the top.

7.  Refrigerate until serving.

 



Apple Butter Pie

I found this pie recipe in Southern Living, and it was actually so much quicker to put together than most pies.  The crust didn't even have to cool all the way before I could add the filling and finish baking our dessert treat.  This pie is a cross between an apple pie and a pumpkin pie - kind of a spiced custard pie that is great for fall.

APPLE BUTTER PIE

Recipe Notes

You can garnish this pie with whipped cream and/or crushed gingersnaps.  Southern Living tested this pie with Smucker's Spiced Apple Butter.  I used the plain old Kroger brand (and saved a couple of bucks) and it turned out great.

Ingredients

• 8 oz. gingersnaps (about 1/2 box), crushed
• 3 tbsp. butter, melted
• 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk (I used fat free)
• 1 c. spiced apple butter
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1-1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar

Instructions

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Mix crushed gingersnaps (I used my Cuisinart to crush them) and melted butter until well-blended.

3.  Spray a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.  Press gingersnap crust mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate.

4.  Bake crust at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Cool for 5 minutes.

5.  While crust bakes, whisk together sweetened condensed milk, apple butter, egg yolks, and cider vinegar.

6.  Pour custard mixture into prepared pie crust.

7.  Bake for 15 minutes more at 350 degrees.

8.  Chill for 2-24 hours and serve.

Lemon Cream Pie

We were having friends over for dinner last weekend and I wanted to do something different for dessert than just the standard "chocolate dessert".  Voila....lemon cream pie!  The gingersnap crust was a big hit.  Credit to Real Simple Magazine for this tasty pie.

LEMON CREAM PIE

Recipe Notes

I made a slight modification using fat free sweetened condensed milk instead of regular, which should alter the calorie and fat count considerably.

This pie takes awhile and needs some tender loving care to make it to completion....make the crust, bake the crust, make the filling, chill the filling, make the whipped cream....you get the idea.  So make this on a weekend when you've got some extra time.  No one said that tastiness was always fast!

Nutritional Information (per serving - serves 10)

421 calories - 22 g. fat - 49 g. carbs - 1 g. fiber - 6 g. protein

Ingredients

• 9 oz. gingersnap cookies (approx. 35)
• 6 tbsp. butter, melted
• 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
• 1 tsp. salt (divided)
• 2 large eggs
• 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk (I used fat free)
• 1 tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 c. lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. powdered sugar
• 1 c. whipping cream

Instructions
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  Combine gingersnaps, butter, 1/2 tsp. salt, and sugar in a Cuisinart, pulse until moistened.  Press crust mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate.  Use a straight-sided dry measuring cup to help.

3.  Bake for 16-18 minutes or until crust is dry and set.  Allow crust to cool completely.

4.  In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, sweetened condensed millk, lemon zest, and lemon juice, along with 1/2 tsp. salt.

5.  Pour the mixture into the crust and bake until set in the center (18-20 minutes). 

6.  Let cool and then refrigerate until firm (2+ hours).

7.  Using an electric mixer, beat whipping cream and powdered sugar until soft peaks form (2-3 minutes).  Spread whipped cream on pie and serve immediately.  Garnish with additional lemon zest if desired.



Strawberry Icebox Pie

This Cooking Light recipe is supposed to be made into a tart. I made it into a pie instead. If you want to make it into a tart, here is the original recipe from Cooking Light.

STRAWBERRY PIE

Recipe Notes

According to Cooking Light, you can assemble the crust and filling up to two days ahead and then top with the strawberry mixture on the morning of your event.

Nutritional Information (per serving - serves 10)

289 calories - 8.9 g. fat - 4.5 g. protein - 3 g. fiber - 48.7 g. carbs

Ingredients

For the crust

• 36 honey graham crackers


• 2 tbsp. sugar


• 2 tbsp. butter, melted


• 4 tsp. water
  

For the filling

• 2/3 c. light cream cheese


• 1/4 c. sugar


• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract


• 1/4 tsp. almond extract

For the topping

• 6 c. fresh strawberries, divided


• 2/3 c. sugar


• 1 tbsp. cornstarch


• 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice


• 2 tbsp. sliced almonds, toasted

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Prepare crust: place graham crackers in food processor and process until crumbly. Add butter, sugar, and water from crust ingredient list above. Pulse until moist.

3. Place graham cracker mixture in a 10-inch glass pie plate, pressing into the bottom and up the sides. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack.

4. Prepare filling: combine cream cheese (softened), sugar, and extracts. Stir until smooth. Spread mixture evenly over the bottom of the graham cracker crust.

5. Prepare topping: place two c. strawberries in a food processor and process until pureed.

6. Combine puree, sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low and stir for one additional minute. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

7. Combine remaining 4 c. strawberries with lemon juice, toss to coat. Arrange berries over filling and spoon half of the glaze over the strawberries. (I used more than half because the recipe otherwise does not use all of the glaze).

8. Sprinkle toasted almonds around the edge of the pie. Cover and chill for three hours before serving.