Lemon Meringue Pie

Well the past few weeks have been really hard on my family. My husbands grandfather has been in and out of the hospital with congestive heart failure. I guess we got used to him going to the hospital for a few days or a week or so to have the fluid pumped off and then have him come home again. We thought it would be the same thing this time. But it didn't work that way, he went into hospital his normal self. But his body started giving out on him really fast. The doctors gave him until the end of the weekend to live. Well he's lasted the week, but he's not doing good. Pops is in a lot of pain you can not hardly touch him and most times he's in a medicated coma. My husband Joe has been spending every night with him, watching him all night and being there for him on the occasional times when he's awake and able to tell Joe he wants something.  My daughter and I have spent the last 6 months getting to know Pops and just starting to get used to his sense of humor, so it's really sad that he's passing away now. But it is hardest on Joe who loves his grandpa dearly. So I have been trying to do my best in comforting my husband and his family. And today it made me think sometimes the best food when your down is comfort food. Which made me think of my favourite dessert... Lemon Meringue Pie.

Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 lemons, juiced and zested
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 4 egg yolks, beaten
• 1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked
• 4 egg whites
• 6 tablespoons white sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. To Make Lemon Filling: In a medium saucepan, whisk together 1 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in water, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Stir in butter. Place egg yolks in a small bowl and gradually whisk in 1/2 cup of hot sugar mixture. Whisk egg yolk mixture back into remaining sugar mixture. Bring to a boil and continue to cook while stirring constantly until thick. Remove from heat. Pour filling into baked pastry shell.
3. To Make Meringue: In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites until foamy. Add sugar gradually, and continue to whip until stiff peaks form. Spread meringue over pie, sealing the edges at the crust.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, or until meringue is golden brown.

Sorry my last two blog posts have just been recipes, there has been a lot going on with Pops going in and out of hospital, I hope to write a blog post soon on the differences between America and Australia... like Aussie in America sort of thing the culture shock, the food differences and so forth. So keep an eye out for up coming posts. Well God Bless and take good care of the ones you love!
*Note the lemon filling can be used as a lemon spread as well. Just follow the directions for the filling only  and put it in sterilized jars.... Yummo it's good on sandwiches and scones with cream