YWPWT: Martini Pie

This month Mary of The Food Librarian chose Literary Pie as the theme for You Want Pies With That? I had little trouble deciding what books I wanted my inspiration to come from, but I did have trouble coming up with a pie that would reflect that inspiration. After thinking about it for a few hours, it came to me. Martini! Duh. That's a no brainer when you consider who my favorite author is and the countless movies his books have inspired. Who is this author? Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, 007. I have read and own all the Bond books and I have seen and own all the Bond movies. It is quite the obsession. I figured making a martini pie would be such a perfect way to create a pie that represents such an iconic character. This pie is a basic lemon cream (recipe adapted from Dorie Greenspan) with a vodka whipped cream. Alex said the whipped cream was the best he'd ever had and I would have to agree. I wasn't sure if it would work, but it totally did. Everything together tasted amazing, but I will admit that this dessert would have been better as a trifle since you can't get a nice slice of pie cut.


Martini Pie
Yields two 4-inch tarts

Lemon Cream:
1/4 sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup lemon juice
5 Tbsp butter, at room temperature

Whisk together the sugar and egg in a bowl that can be set over a pan of simmering water. Add the lemon juice and continue stirring until the lemon cream reaches 180 degrees F. The cream will thicken the closer it gets to 180 degrees F. As soon as it reaches 180 degrees F, remove the cream from the heat and let the cream stand until it cools to 140 degrees F.

Pour the cream into a blender and slowly add the butter a Tbsp at a time. Pulse until the butter is completely incorporated. Pulse for another 3 minutes until the texture is light and airy.

Pour the cream into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the cream and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Graham Cracker Crust:
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp graham cracker crumbs
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat two tart pans with cooking spray and place on a cookie sheet.

Combine all ingredients until moist and crumbly. Divide the mixture into the pans and, using your fingers, press onto the bottom and along the sides of the pan.

Bake 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

Vodka Whipped Cream:
1/2 heavy cream
2 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vodka

Beat the cream until it holds soft peaks. Add the sugar and vodka and beat until cream holds firm peaks. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Putting it all together:
Spread some of the whipped cream over the crust. Then spoon on the lemon cream and top with more whipped cream.

Serve and enjoy!

So tempting.

The pie just couldn't hold up. And a picture of Boston's beautiful library.