Tropical Fruit Ice Box Pie

Ingredients:
2 3/4 diced fresh pineapple
2 cups diced kiwi
3/4 cup diced mango
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon butter

1 9-inch graham cracker crust


Directions:
In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of the mixed fruit, half of the juices and the sugar to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk together the cornstarch and remaining juice, set aside. After the mixture comes to a boil, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook 2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining fruit and the butter. Pour into the prepared pie shell. Refrigerate for about 5 hours or until set. Best served the day it is made.

My thoughts:

I am all for eating locally grown fruits and vegetables but there is something about tropical fruits that just screams summer to me. Luckily the the fruit I can get are super fresh and lush. This pie is pretty lush itself. It is also on the juicy side, so it really is best the same day you make it. It is tasty the next day but the crust does get a little soggy overnight. Honestly, though, I don't think you will have any problem finishing this pie off in a single day! It is fresh and fruity and I love the slightly crunch the kiwi seeds provide. It just tastes like summer!

Blackberry and Black Pepper Ice Box Pie

Ingredients:
5 1/2 cups fresh blackberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
juice and zest of 1 lemon


1 9-inch graham cracker crust


Directions:
In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of the blackberries, pepper, lemon juice, zest and the sugar to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk together the cornstarch and water, set aside. After the blackberries come to a boil, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook 2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining blackberries and the butter. Pour into the prepared pie shell. Refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours before serving.

My thoughts:

Our blackberry bush has been a strong producer this year! We have been getting berries steadily for about a month now. Last we got a lot but in mid-August which is the more typical blackberry season here. Not that I am complaining! Fresh berries are expensive even in season so to get some free is amazing. We have a thornless bush so the harvesting isn't too harrowing. But even freshly picked berries don't have the longest life so I came up with this pie to use up a bunch. The black pepper was my husband's idea and it was a good one. It added a spicy note that really played off the tart-sweetness.

Mango-Chile Ice Box Pie

Ingredients:
4 mangos (about 4 cups mango flesh)
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
14 oz sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup tequila
juice of 1 lime
zest of 1 lime
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder

1 9-inch graham cracker crust

Directions:
Place all ingredients (EXCEPT the crust!) in a blender or food processor (I used my Vita-Mix) and pulse until it is very, very smooth. Pour into the crust. Refrigerate until set, at least 2 hours.

My thoughts:

A mini-heatwave struck Baltimore this weekend bringing with it high temperatures and even higher humidity. While the weather was unexpected and unwelcome for so early in May, it did remind me that ice box pie season is here. As long time readers I know, I love ice box pies. Any dessert that doesn't require using my oven in my 1930s un-air-conditioned kitchen when it over 90� goes right to the top of my list. Over the last six years I've made and posted blueberry-ginger, kiwi-lemongrass, blackberry meringue, and perhaps the most popular ice box pie, key lime in both regular my brother's favorite chocolate pie (technically a freezer pie) and coconut versions. For this pie, I drew inspiration from spicy Mexican paletas which combine fruit or vegetables with spices for a frozen sweet-spicy treat.

Anyway! This is a super simple pie, just make sure you take the time to thoroughly blend the ingredients together, not only will the pie be smoother and more consistent but if you have a fibrous mango, you want to really pulverize it or the pie will be stringy. I loved the pie because it was creamy with a downright velvety texture without being rich and had a very pure mango flavor. The spice sort of hits you after you swallow your bite which I enjoyed but the spice phobic might want to halve the chipotle, it isn't blisteringly hot but I think a lot of people are not used to spicy pie! But please, try and make this pie, it is the best mango pie I've ever had!

Kiwi Lemongrass Icebox Pie

Ingredients:
4 cups diced kiwi
4 stalks lemongrass
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup water
juice of 1 lime
zest of 1 lime

1 9 inch graham cracker crust
cheesecloth + something to tie it shut with
extra kiwi for garnishing


Directions:
Cut off the tops of the lemongrass and discard. Chop up the fragrant bottom half. Place the chunks into a cheesecloth pouch and tie shut. In a medium saucepan, bring 3cups of the kiwifruit, lemongrass, lime juice and zest and the sugar to a boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar and spread the lemongrass flavor throughout. Meanwhile, whisk together the cornstarch and water, set aside. After the mixture comes to a boil, remove the lemongrass pouch, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook 2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining cup of kiwi. Pour into the prepared pie shell. Top with additional sliced kiwi if desired. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours or overnight before serving.



Note: I really wanted to make this with a mix of green and yellow kiwi but alas, yellow kiwi proved elusive. It would have been pretty!

My thoughts:

Oh, I love icebox pies. I don't make them nearly often enough. They require no baking so they are perfect for the hot steamy days that we have settled into. Since our house is of an icebox era vintage and thus has no air condition (though of course we don't depend on the ice man to help us keep our perishables cool) any sort of baking during the summer months is done at your own peril.

Now, a lot of icebox pies (the most popular being key lime) are creamy and a few are frozen, but I have decided I like the ones that are basically just-held-together fruit the best. Now, kiwi is one of those fruits that reacts adversely to gelatin (it just won't firm up) but it behaves just fine when introduced to a cornstarch slurry. In fact, the resulting pie is so sturdy and since it has to be refrigerated overnight, one could even pack a slice for lunch. Or have it for breakfast if so inclined. Why relegate it simply to dessert? It is 90% fruit after all! One kiwi has more than the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C. So that makes this pie practically health food, right?

So, keep your oven off! Let your pies set up in the fridge. Icebox pies are overdue for a comeback.

Blueberry Ginger Ice Box Pie

Ingredients:

5 cups fresh blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon butter
1 inch knob fresh ginger, grated
juice of 1/2 lemon
zest of 1/2 lemon


1 10 inch graham cracker crust*



*You can make your own graham cracker crust or you can cheat and use a prepared crust like I did- it was on sale for only $1. Frankly, I find that when it comes to a plain graham cracker crust it is a rare occurrence for someone to be able tell the difference between a homemade and store bought anyway, so when they are on sale, I stock up. Prepared crusts are great for when you (like I am today) are taking pies to parties-you don't have to worry about getting your pie plate back.

Directions:
In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of the blueberries, the ginger, lemon juice and zest and the sugar to a boil. Meanwhile, whisk together the cornstarch and water, set aside. After the blueberries come to a boil, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook 2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining 2 cups of blueberries and the butter. Pour into the prepared pie shell. Refrigerate for at least 6-8 hours or up to one day before serving.

My thoughts:

How much do I love ice box pies? So named because they require no baking and set up in the refrigerator (the ice box), they are perfect for summer. This blueberry pie shows off the flavor of the blueberries with a minimum of fuss-there isn't even a top crust to compete with the fruit. I actually like this version of blueberry pie more than the traditional lattice crust way for just that reason-more blueberry flavor. The ginger adds just a tiny bit of spice- a sort of refreshing side note to the blueberries' sweetness.

Coconut Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:
14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk (fat free is fine)
3 egg yolks
2/3 cup toasted coconut
1/3 cup key lime juice*
2 1/2 teaspoons key lime zest
9 inch round coconut crust or graham cracker crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl, using your electric mixer, beat the egg yolks, lime juice and zest until the eggs are creamy. Slowly add condensed milk and toasted coconut and mix until well combined. Pour into crust and bake 15 minutes or until the pie is "set" and no longer feels liquid to the touch. Cool on wire rack, refrigerate.



*Note: For an authentic pie, you need the juice of fresh key limes. Using a juicer is the most efficient way to extract the most amount of juice from tiny key limes limes. If you have to use bottled juice, make sure it is from actual key limes (the juice will be a pale yellow) and not just (Persian) lime juice with citric acid added to make it tart. Of course, you could just use regular lime juice but then it won't be a "key lime pie".

My thoughts:

I am lucky to live near several great grocery stores. This results in my having access to fresh key limes several times a year. My husband loves key lime pie so I came up with this recipe for him. I basically used the same recipe I usually use to make key lime pie and added coconut to it. I also baked it in a homemade coconut pie crust instead of a graham cracker crust. I bet some people reading this will think that it would be coconut overload to have coconut in the pie and into the crust, but I assure you, it isn't. The amount of coconut in the pie is just enough that it ties the flavors of the pie together.

Chocolate Pie

Ingredients:
8 oz Cool Whip, thawed
4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup dutch process cocoa
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

8 inch chocolate graham cracker crust


Directions:

In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and sugar. Add milk, vanilla, and cocoa and mix until smooth. Slowly fold in Cool Whip. Pour into crust and freeze at least 2 hours or over night until thoroughly frozen.

My thoughts:

I am a little ashamed to admit that I made a dessert using Cool Whip- it's really not my style at all- but it is so good! Very chocolate-y and creamy. It's a a refreshing warm weather dessert but my mom actually makes something similar at the Thanksgiving for people (like me) who do not like pumpkin pie. Any occasion can be made better with chocolate.

Key Lime Pie

Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:
14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk (fat free is fine)
3 egg yolks
1/3 cup key lime juice*
2 1/2 teaspoons key lime zest
9 inch round graham cracker crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl, using your electric mixer, beat the egg yolks and zest until the eggs are creamy. Slowly add condensed milk and mix until well combined. Add key lime juice and mix to combine thoroughly. Pour into crust and bake 15 minutes or until the pie is "set" and no longer feels liquid to the touch. Cool on wire rack, refrigerate.



*Note: For an authentic pie, you need the juice of fresh key limes. Using a juicer is the most efficient way to extract the most amount of juice from tiny key limes limes. I was able to yield 1/3 cup of juice from only 10 (2 inch diameter) limes using my juicer. If you have to use bottled juice, make sure it is from actual key limes (the juice will be a pale yellow) and not just (Persian) lime juice with citric acid added to make it tart.



My thoughts:
Who knew key lime pie was so easy to make? It's one of my husband's favorites so when I saw fresh key limes in the store, I couldn't resist. The bag came with a recipe, but I upped the amount of zest and juice it called for to yield a more tart pie. It came out as well if not better than the pies I've had from places that specialize in key lime pies.