It’s citrusy, and it’s salty, and it’s creamy, and it’s tangy, and it’s delicious. Ever heard of Atlantic Beach Lemon Pie? I hadn’t either.  I guess this pie had been a big deal back in North Carolina in the 50s (Crook’s Corner Restaurant), then died out, then became a big deal again when Chef Bill Smith talked about the pie on  NPR “All Things Considered” in April, 2013. I found this recipe in Food52’s “Genius” recipes. 

My neighbor has a lemon tree that grows over my fence, I love that lemon tree, so I had all the ingredients on hand…fresh lemon juice, sweetened condensed milk, saltine crackers, egg yolks, sugar and butter, and I even had the whipping cream to finish it off!  It takes longer to type the ingredients than to compile them into the pie! (There is some chilling involved, so the pie can’t be thrown together at the last minute, though.)

I chilled the pie about 24 hours before serving.  I cut a piece for my daughter and myself, and was amazed at how good it tasted.  I’ll admit to being a bit scared about the crust, but intrigued won out. Turns out using saltine crackers for the crust is a touch of genius!  I loved the saltiness of the crust next to the creamy, tangy, sweet lemon filling.  You just gotta make it and try it!  The pie is EASY.  Quick.

OH, like I was saying, my daughter and I each had a piece and thought it was great.  My next thought was, I have to share this.  My older daughter, who lives ten houses down, was having a pool party, so we took it down to her house for the party.  Yep, it was a hit.  About 11:15 PM that night, this was the exchange regarding my two daughters, who both wanted the leftover pie…

HANNAH to POLLY, July 24: That pie. Wow. Pie…..drooling…..

POLLY: Really? BTW…Abby wants to stop by and bring it back HOME!!!

HANNAH: What?!?! I thought it was MINE!!!

POLLY: Well, it was, but she decided she wants it back, LOL!!!

HANNAH: Um. Nope. She can’t have it…..I’m actually tearing up, sniff…

HANNAH: Absolutely not. Who does she think she is? Super Aunt?

POLLY: Ummm . . . .

HANNAH: Tell Abby that I spit all over it, and used my hands to eat it.

POLLY: Gross

HANNAH: And, therefore, I shall KEEP it.

POLLY: Ok. You win.

HANNAH: YES! Phew…I’m going to bed…and tell Abby that if she sneaks in our house to steal my pie, I have the fridge BOOBY-TRAPPED!

Need I say more? Here’s the recipe!

Atlantic Beach Lemon Pie

INGREDIENTS

For the crust

• 1½ sleeves of saltine crackers (about 6 ounces or 60 crackers)
• ½ cup softened butter
• 3 tablespoons sugar

For the filling

• One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk—the sweetened condensed milk is usually a dollar cheaper in the Mexican Foods aisle than it is in the baking aisle.
• 4 egg yolks
• ½ cup fresh lemon or lime juice or a mix of the two (I have only made this using all lemon juice)
• 1 cup whipping cream
• Sugar, to taste (2 -4 Tablespoons)
• Coarse sea salt, for garnish, optional 

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350° F.

1. Crush the crackers finely, but not to dust, using a food processor or a your brute strength 🙂
2. Add 3T sugar to the crushed crackers and, then knead in the butter, using a food processor, or a fork, until the crumbs hold together like very rough dough.
3. Press saltine cracker crust into an 9″ pie pan. Chill for 15 minutes.
4. Bake crust for 18 – 20  minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
5. While the crust is cooling—it doesn’t need to be cold—beat the egg yolks into the milk, then beat in the citrus juice. It is important to completely combine these ingredients.
6. Pour filling into the crust—it will only go halfway up the crust—and bake for 16 minutes until the filling has set.
7. Cool the pie and then put pie into the refrigerator to get cold. The pie needs to be completely cold to be sliced.
8. Whip the cream with about 2 – 4 Tablespoons sugar until the cream reaches desired consistency.
9. Pile the cream on top of the pie.  If desired, add a sprinkling of sea salt—I sprinkled the cream with salt once; never again!

Thanks for stopping by my “Southern Atlantic” kitchen today!  Where will I take you next time??? I’d like to go back to France…the south of France…to Nice…to San Tropez…for some Tarte de Tropezienne, mmmm. I fell in love with this cake a few weeks back and I can’t stop thinking about it! 

Well…I DID stop thinking about it when I was making, eating, sharing, and writing about Atlantic Beach Pie!