Friday, January 8, 2010

a pie for dad

My father's birthday is at the beginning of January. Dan and I don't usually spend New Year's Eve in Florida, so normally we send him gifts and a card by mail. But this year we were in town to celebrate, so naturally we had a little party with finger foods and festive banners and such.

My father and I are very alike. We are hard workers, enjoy birdwatching, have a serious affection for dogs, are graced with the exact same feet (only mine are slightly smaller, thankfully), and are generally big-hearted yet stubborn people. We also both love lemon meringue pie.

So instead of a birthday cake, I decided to make Dad a pie. First, I located a recipe online by someone whom I will not name (it rhymes with "Shmalton Schmown") that sounded promising. I made a tart-but-not-too-tart lemon filling, whipped egg whites into firm peaks, and baked the whole thing until it was golden and burnished on top. It chilled in the refrigerator overnight. I have to admit, I got a little excited.

But when I cut into the thing, the lemon filling pooled into yellow slop. The meringue broke free from the crust and floated around the center of the pie like a solitary island. Everyone averted their eyes. Luckily, I had made an extra chocolate pudding pie, which my Mom immediately started slicing up. Nothing to see here, folks! Back-up pies are always a good idea.

Nevertheless, Dad requested a slice of the lemon, so I cut him a wedge of crust and meringue and topped it with some of the filling. It slid around his plate, a soupy mess of a dessert. But he ate the whole slice with relish, proclaiming it delicious. Because that's what dads do.

7 comments:

Casey@Good. Food. Stories. said...

aw... I can't believe an AB recipe failed you, but it's so sweet that your dad ate it anyway. I'm sure it was delicious, even if a little messy. (maybe next time, just do straight lemon curd in a tart shell?)

Anonymous said...

That's what they mean when they say
make lemonade when life hands you
a bunch of lemons?!

Unknown said...

What a great story. This makes me miss my dad and wish that we didn't live 4,000 miles apart.

Way to make the best of it!

Lisa said...

Casey: Yes, I had that exact same thought after I cut into it. Next time, lemon curd all the way.

Anony: Maybe! Or pie sludge?

Nikkilooch: Thank you! I know how you feel, even though we're less far apart. Still miss him all the same.

Daniel said...

I really wanted to put this in some clear plastic bottles so that when airport security asked us what it was we could tell them it was pie.

Lisa said...

Daniel: I don't want to be locked away for terrorism via pie.

Megan and Butch! said...

Aw, happy birthday Fish! Any man who has the patience to make so many amazingly detailed bird carvings is not going to blink at a little soupy pie.

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