Jean from Madison, WI (2017 Week 6: Botanical)

Baker

Jean

Location

Madison, WI

Baking Challenge

Citrus Meringue Pie

Give your botanical creation a clever name – and tell us about your recipe.

Lime and Toasted-Coconut Meringue Pie – Blimey! 3 sticks of butter, 10 eggs, coconut pastry crust, and billowing peaks of meringue! It was an all-day recipe in which the steps were done between sawing apart a large limb that had fallen into our rain garden. I had a blast and the kitchen was a shambles = success.

Any disasters? Did you take any risks? Proudest moment? Lessons learned the hard way? Tell us about it.

Every time I handled the pie, bits of crust fell off; next time, I’ll use a pan like the experts did on the GBBS. It is 11:15pm on July 23rd, and my pie has not cooled sufficiently. Tomorrow I’ll slice another piece to see if the filling is set all the way through.

How did you add a Wisconsin twist to your flavors or decoration?

I used all the limes from the Wisconsin CSA share we received. Flashlight in hand, I could not locate any blooming violets in our yard (wonder what the neighbors thought was going on) so I adorned the pie with Hyssop growing in the rain garden (happily it did not get crushed by the tree limb). Hyssop is an aromatic herb that attracts butterflies and bees. It can be made into an essential oil and is a medicinal plant.

How did you do?

Feeling humbled.