Lemon Meringue Pie

For Moises' birthday "cake" this year he requested a lemon meringue pie. I like to make mine with a graham cracker crust but I came across a pecan-oat pie crust recipe that seemed even better which, in my opinion was.

For the crust:

1 1/3 cup oats (not the quick cooking kind)
1 cup pecans
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon

When the oats are done, remove them from the oven. Transfer both the toasted oats and chopped toasted nuts to a food processor. Add the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and salt and drizzle in the melted butter.

Process until the oats and nuts are finely ground and the mixture is cohesive. Happily for us, this stage will be obvious — all the ingredients will be moist and stick together.

Remove the mixture from the food processor and press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9- or 10-inch pie plate (not deep dish) that’s at least 1-1/4 inches deep, or a similar tart pan.

Bake at 350 degrees until it’s just barely beginning to brown, 14 minutes. Remove from the over and set it on a rack to cool.

Lemon Filling:

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups tepid water
4 large egg yolks
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Meringue:

5 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Prepare the filling: Combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan. Slowly add the water, stirring until smooth. Place over medium heat and bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. Boil to thicken, about 1 minute; remove from the heat.

Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl. Whisking constantly, slowly pour about 1/4 cup of the hot sugar mixture into the yolks. Slowly pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan, whisking until smooth. Stir in the lemon juice, zest, and butter, then return the pan to the heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil to thicken for 1 minute; remove from the heat. Pour the filling into the prepared pie crust.

Prepare the meringue: Place the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt in a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer at low speed until soft peaks begin to form. Increase the speed to medium and add the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, beating just until stiff peaks form. Do not over beat.

Spoon the meringue over the filling decoratively, mounding it in the center and spreading it all the way to the outer edge, so it touches the crust.

Bake the pie in the center of the oven until the meringue is lightly browned on the edges, about 5 to 7 minutes. Do not allow the meringue to over color. Cool the pie on a rack. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.

*Some things I do to prevent the pie from weeping is to add a teaspoon of cornstarch to the sugar when beating your meringue. Make sure your filling is HOT before topping with the meringue, this will help it set properly as well. And finally, be sure to allow the pie to cool completely before putting it in the fridge.