Lemon Truffle Pie
This pie has all the elements that I love in a dessert. First of all, lemon, which might just beat out chocolate for me if I really have to choose. A lovely, creamy layer (with lemon—even better!), and real whipped cream to top it all off!
This pie has all the elements that I love in a dessert. First of all, lemon, which might just beat out chocolate for me if I really have to choose. A lovely, creamy layer (with lemon—even better!), and real whipped cream to top it all off!
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 pre-baked deep dish pie crust 9 inches
- 6 ounces white chocolate
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream whipped and very lightly sweetened (should equal about 3 cups whipped cream)
- 3 cups lemon curd:
- 8 large egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons thick gel or clear gel modified food starch
- 1/2 cup lemon juice (microwave 2-3 large lemons for 30 seconds each-you;ll get a lot more juice for each lemon)
- 2-3 zest lemons
- Carbohydrate 19.7876874711419 g
- Cholesterol 3410.79280856249 mg
- Fat 92.5483092130128 g
- Fiber 0.048682857233473 g
- Protein 45.4564617333484 g
- Saturated Fat 38.2317397151278 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (359g)
- Sodium 237.817348182155 mg
- Sugar 19.7390046139084 g
- Trans Fat 4.68856841029478 g
- Calories 1090 calories
Step-by-step
- In a non-aluminum, non-reactive pan, blend the egg yolks with the Thick Gel and granulated sugar. Place over low heat and slowly whisk in the water and lemon juice.
- On medium heat, stir mixture constantly until it barely begins to boil. Let boil for 1 minute, stirring well to keep the bottom from scorching.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the lemon zest and butter. Stir well. Run curd through a sieve if needed to remove any bits of cooked eggs.
- Put all but 1 cup of the curd into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Push the plastic wrap down onto the surface of the curd to prevent a skin from forming. Place into fridge until needed.
- Take the reserved 1 cup of lemon curd in it’s original pan and add the white chocolate. Set on stove on medium-low and stir until the chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside and let cool to room temperature.
- Whip 1/2 cup of the heavy cream and set aside. Save the remaining 1 cup cream for the topping.
- Beat the softened cream cheese in a stand mixer until fluffy. Add the cooled lemon curd/chocolate mixture and continue mixing until well incorporated. Slowly fold in the reserved 1 cup whipping cream until well incorporated.
- Spread this mixture into the bottom of the prepared 9 inch, deep-dish pie crust. Even out the top.
- Add the remaining 2 cups lemon curd and spread out evenly.
- Let set at least three hours in the refrigerator with plastic wrap set onto the surface to keep a skin from forming on the curd.
- Just before serving, whip the remaining 1 cup heavy cream and top the pie. The pie in these photos was topped with a thin layer of whipped cream, and then decorated with cream using a decorators bag and a 2D tip. Start with a center swirl, and then fill in around it with more swirls out to the edge.
Many home cooks make the mistake of using aluminum cookware for citrus curds, resulting in a distinctly metallic taste. Non-reactive pans are mandatory here because the acid in fresh citrus juice strips free ions from reactive metals like copper, aluminum, or unlined cast iron. When you heat egg yolks with modified food starch and lemon juice, the starch granules hydrate and swell, forming a stable matrix that prevents the yolks from curdling prematurely. Maintaining medium heat while stirring constantly prevents scorching along the bottom surface of the pan. Straining the finished curd through a fine mesh sieve catches any coagulated egg bits left behind from the thermal threshold. Combining a portion of that hot curd directly with white chocolate melts the cocoa butter and solids smoothly without seizing. Softening the cream cheese thoroughly in a stand mixer before incorporating the chocolate-curd base ensures a lump-free emulsion. Folding in whipped cream introduces air bubbles that lighten the dense fat structures of the cheese and chocolate. Allowing the assembled pie to set in the refrigerator for at least three hours permits the modified starch to fully retrograde and firm up the sliceable interior. Pressing plastic wrap directly onto the cooling curd blocks surface evaporation and stops tough rubbery skins from forming.
