No matter how much recipe resource is available online, I always seem to turn to my cook books for inspiration. I haven't counted them all yet but I'd say that I probably own close to a hundred.
There's just something about holding a book in your hands and going from page to page that beats using a mouse. I love cook books with lots of pictures, preferably one for each recipe although that can add up in hours if you're shooting your own book.
But I think some sort of visual guide is really helpful when cooking. I'd love to take the credit for this spectacular meringue pie, but I can't. The recipe came from one of those 100 cook books that make my bookcase creak.
The book I'm talking about is The Pie and Pastry Bible, from Rose Levy Beranbaum. I've used this book a lot and even though I have a fair amount of experience in baking, I always find something that amazes me.
A meringue pie is one of those old time classics, and been on peoples dinner tables for years. It's fairly easy if you follow a few solid rules.
This pie from Rose was slightly different than what I've made before because of the powdered sugar added to the meringue, but it came out of the oven exactly how I wanted it. The top was hard, actually hard enough to tap with a spoon but underneath the surface still had that gooey meringue and I loved the little crispy, chewy chunks of powdered sugar.
The filling was a tart tasting blood orange curd made by using the fresh oranges I scored from my friends tree. Don't shoot me but I chose to use a frozen store bought pie shell.
I figure if you're making a fresh curd and mixing your own meringue, you should cut yourself some slack and buy a perfectly decent pie shell. There's loads of good ones available including gluten free and whole wheat.
This pie will keep at room temperature for a few days, if it lasts that long. It tastes so damn good it might disappear quicker.
Recipe from The Pie and Pastry Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum.
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