Atlantic Beach Pie

Hello there! How is everyone?  I'm still here, just a little more quiet than in the past.  I hope everyone is having a great summer!  It's been a busy one for me.  I moved to North Carolina few months ago and I'm really enjoying it.  The area is beautiful, the people are nice, and the food is good!  I've always been a big fan of Southern food.  I've been instagraming a lot of the food I've been trying, so feel free to follow along at Wanderlustpig.  

I thought it would be suiting to bake a pie native to North Carolina for the blog.  I baked Atlantic Beach Pie using this recipe from Food52.  The recipe is from Bill Smith, a chef at Crook's Corner in Chapel Hill.  I haven't been to Crook's Corner yet, but I really want to.  

The pie was soo easy to make, which is exactly what I want during these lazy days of summer.  The crust is made up of crushed saltines, softened butter and sugar.  I was unsure if the crust would taste good, but it does!  The filling is simple as well: just egg yolks, fresh lemon or lime juice and sweetened condensed milk.  I topped the pie with fresh whipped cream and a sprinkling of sea salt.

The filling set up beautifully and tasted like key lime pie.  It's definitely not the prettiest pie you'll ever see, but it's refreshing and easy to make.

Lime in the Coconut Panna Cotta

Lime in the Coconut Panna Cotta
Ingredients:
3/4 cup milk
2 teaspoons granulated gelatin
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
3/4 cup coconut cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste)
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
Toasted coconut, for garnish

Directions:
Heat milk until hot; pour into a large bowl and whisk in gelatin until dissolved.  Whisk in yogurt, coconut cream, vanilla and lime zest until well combined.

Divide mixture into 4 ramekins; cover and refrigerate 1 hour or until ready to serve.  Sprinkle with toasted coconut when serving.

Makes 4 servings

Key Lime Pie Cupcakes

Key Lime Pie Cupcakes
Ingredients:
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup speculoos spread
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup cup whole milk

Key Lime Curd
2 large egg yolks
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated key lime zest
1/4 cup fresh key lime juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Frosting
8 ounces (1 package) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ounces white chocolate, melted
3 tablespoons coarsely chopped toasted macadamia nuts
1/4 cup toasted flaked coconut

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 12 muffin cups with liners; divide graham cracker  into bottoms.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.  In a large bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together speculoos, sugar, egg, oil, sour cream and vanilla until well combined - about 1 minute.  Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually beat in flour mixture, alternating with milk, until just combined.  Divide batter into cups.  Bake 15-17 minutes or until well risen, and light golden brown.  Cool 5 minutes before transferring cupcakes to wire racks to cool.

To make the key lime curd, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, lime zest and lime juice over a double boiler.  Whisk and cook until until mixture becomes thick.  Transfer curd to a medium bowl and whisk in butter until combined.  Cover and chill in refrigerator until cold.

To make the frosting, in a large bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese and butter until creamy - about 1 minute.  Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in confectioners' sugar, vanilla and white chocolate until combined.  Increase mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes, or until creamy.

To assemble the cupcakes, remove "core" from cupcakes using a knife (this is to make room for the filling).  Place the key lime curd in a piping bag and pipe into the centers of cupcakes.  Place frosting in a piping bag and decorate tops of cupcakes.  Sprinkle toasted macadamia nuts and coconut on top (optional).

Lime White Chocolate Macadamia Bars

Lime White Chocolate Macadamia Bars

Crust
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/3 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts, lightly toasted
1/4 cup white chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8x8-inch baking dish with foil; coat foil with cooking spray.

To make the crust, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter and confectioners' sugar until creamy. Reduce mixer speed to low; beat in flour and salt until pea sized lumps form - about 2 minutes. Pat dough into bottom of prepared dish. Bake 15 minutes or until light golden. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes.

To make the filling, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together granulated sugar, eggs and lime zest for 3 minutes or until doubled in volume and foamy. Beat in lime juice and vanilla until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour until just combined. Pour filling on top of crust. Bake 15 minutes; remove from oven and evenly sprinkle with macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips. Return to oven and bake an additional 5 minutes or until golden brown and just set.

Cool on a wire rack completely before lifting foil out of pan, slicing into bars.

Makes 12 bars

Key Lime Pie

I have a mountain of pictures on my computer just waiting to be edited and uploaded to Flickr. A mountain, I tell you.

But I have absolutely no motivation to do so right now. I'm tired. You know? Like, really tired. Like, I can barely keep my eyes open to write this post.

Since March, I feel like the last few months have been crazy and busy. And then I went to New York recently, and then, I went to France two weeks ago.

Key Lime Pie

Crust
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons granulated sugar

Filling
3 large egg whites + 4 yolks
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup freshly squeezed key lime juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lime zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

Topping
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

To make the crust, in a medium mixing bowl, stir together graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and 3 tablespoons sugar until well combined; press evenly into a 9-inch pie dish. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.

To make the filling, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on high speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form; gradually beat in 1/4 cup sugar until stiff peaks form. In an additional large mixing bowl, beat yolks, sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, lime zest, vanilla and salt until well combined - about 1-2 minutes. Fold egg whites into lime filling until combined.

Place filling into pie crust. Bake 18-20 minutes or until light golden brown on top and filling is set. Cool on a wire rack for an hour before chilling completely in the refrigerator.

When cool, make the topping: beat cream and 1/4 cup sugar, in a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on high speed, until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream evenly over pie.

Makes 8-10 servings

You Put the Lime in the Coconut-Ginger Cookies

Cookies made with crystallized ginger, sweetened flaked coconut, lime zest and macadamia nuts.

You Put the Lime in the Coconut-Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon finely ground sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated key lime peel
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons coconut oil, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon coconut extract
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted*
1/2 cup finely chopped cashews or macadamia nuts, toasted*

Directions:
Stir together crystallized ginger and turbinado sugar in a small bowl, and set aside.
Coat a large sheet pan with cooking spray, etc.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together lime peel, butter, coconut oil, and sugar, until creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs and coconut extract until well combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually beat in flour mixture until combined. Stir in coconut, and nuts, until combined.
Chill dough in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes, or until it's stiff enough to handle.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Shape cookie dough into 1-inch balls, using your hands. Lightly roll balls in ginger-sugar mixture, to coat. Place on prepared sheet pan and flatten slightly, using the palms of hands. Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes on pan before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

*To toast coconut, bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, or until light golden brown, stirring occasionally.

*To toast nuts, place in a dry skillet over medium heat and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring often, until golden brown and fragrant.

Yield: 22 cookies