Luscious Limey Pie

It's August.  Really, it is.  This is it -- the Dog Days of Summer -- the days spent sprawled out (if we are lucky) in chilly air conditioned sweetness, or (if we aren't) under the forgiving cyclical breeze of a ceiling fan.  Days where the blistering bone-chilling temperatures of January almost seem like a welcome respite from the sweltering unmitigated hotness that is August in the Midwest. And it's during those sticky, slow days, when the air is so thick, that you swear you can actually see it -- its during that kind of a day that your soul needs lime pie.  Light, fluffy, and sweet, this is the pie that cries "summertime and the livin' is easy." And most importantly, it's sufficiently tarty to cut through the worst of late summer lethargy. Lime Pie is the pie of August.

This is August, but not that August.  At least for us in central Ohio, this August has been more reminiscent of cool autumn days spent hiking and apple picking than those spent laying around in a hot summer haze. . . and of that I (at least) am grateful.  But it doesn't mean that we should miss out on the sweet relief simply because we don't have to endure the torture that normally predicates it.  So make the pie. . . and enjoy it. . .it tastes delicious regardless of the temperature outside.

This one pan recipe is courtesy of my very fabulous friend Rachel, whose ability to cut down on the dishes is only one of the many things that I admire about her.

Lime Pie

Crust

One sleeve of graham crackers

1/2 stick butter, melted

2 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Filling

One can sweetened condensed milk

4 limes

4 egg yolks

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 in pan with nonstick cooking spray.  Crunch up the graham crackers with hands or a rolling pin while still inside the sleeve.  (Genius, right?  This was Rachel's idea)

 Pour crunched up graham crackers into the prepared pie pan, breaking up any larger pieces that got missed the first time around.  Add the melted butter and sugar to the pan and mix thoroughly, then pat firmly and evenly into the pie pan.  Bake 10 minutes. 

During this time, combine the egg yolks, condensed milk, and juice from the limes and mix until smooth.  You will know that the filling is ready to be baked when it thickens slightly. Pour the mixture into the baked crust and pop back into the oven for 15 minutes, or until the top is slightly wobbly, but set.  Cool on counter-top for a couple of hours and then in the fridge for at least another couple hours, but preferably overnight.

There it is, smooth enough to slice through the hottest day of  summer. . . or the coldest, as the case may be!