a bittersweet goodbye: lemon pudding pie

     It's always a bittersweet experience to know you are sharing a meal with a friend that you know will be the last for a long while. My good friend Tim is moving all the way to Texas and he requested that I bake for him one last time - how could I say no?! So we looked through ALL of my cookbooks and recipes (yes, I mean all) and he chose a dozen or so recipes he was attracted to. After going through all of them I landed on this sour cream & lemon pudding pie - plenty of sweet to offset the bitterness of saying goodbye!

     Everyone at the farewell dinner loved it. To quote our friend Dave upon his first bite, "The feeling I feel right now is overwhelming, like congratulatory. Like when a friend has a baby." Thanks, Dave.

the crust foundation: crumbled butter cookies and melted butter

fresh crust out of the oven, a beautiful golden brown

     Tim and I have always been really big on food. Almost all of our hangouts revolve around it! He has also been my go-to for any sweet tooth desires, introducing me to the best places in the city to buy macarons, cookies, eclairs...the list goes on! It is crazy to think I won't see Tim for quite some time, but I like to think we shared one last amazing dessert together.

     This pie is perfectly sweet with a punch of lemon. It's decadent without being too much. To cut the lemon I put freshly whipped cream on top and to give it a savory touch a balsamic glaze drizzle and a sprinkling of sea salt. As with most goodies I bake, the original recipe for the pie itself came out of Tate's Bake Shop's Baking For Friends (only my favorite baking book ever!). Find the adapted recipe below!

Sour Cream & Lemon Pudding Pie
Adapted from Tate's Bake Shop's Sour Cream Pudding Pie, from Baking For Friends
Prep Time: 20 minutes + overnight resting in the fridge
Cook Time: 20-30 minutes, total
Servings: 8-12 slices

You Will Need:

• 2 cups french butter cookies, finely crushed
• 3 TBS salted butter
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1 cup whole milk, in 2-1/2 parts
• 3 large egg yolks
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 lemon, zest
• 1/2 cup lemon juice, fresh
• 1 cup sour cream
• 4 TBS unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 pint heavy whipping cream
• sea salt, for sprinkling
• 3 TBS balsamic vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt salted butter, then combine with crushed butter cookies in a food processor, pulsing until combined. Butter cookies will appear moist and more alive with color than before the butter was added (see above photo).
2. Press cookie crumb mixture into a 9 inch pie pan to form a crust as evenly as possible. Place in oven and bake for roughly 10 minutes, until appearance is golden brown and the crust is deliciously fragrant.
3. When done, remove crust from oven and let cool completely. 
4. Whisk together the cornstarch and one part milk until the cornstarch is dissolved in a medium/large bowl. Once dissolved, whisk in the egg yolks.
5. In a medium pot add the other part milk, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Turn burner on to low heat and stir constantly.
6. Once the sugar is completely dissolved it will soon simmer. Once it simmers, remove from heat and slowly pour it into the bowl of cornstarch/milk/egg yolks whisking the whole time.
7. Pour this mixture back into the pot and place on low heat, once again bringing the mixture to a simmer and stirring constantly. Once it comes to a simmer, let it bubble for about a minute, still stirring. The mixture will thicken quite quickly so don't be alarmed! This is meant to happen. Use your judgment and if it gets to a thick pudding like consistency then it is probably done. Remove from heat.
8. Mix in the sour cream and unsalted butter until butter is totally melted and everything is well combined. 
9. Pour the filling into the crust while straining as to remove any clumps that may have formed in the cooking process.
10. Cover tightly with plastic wrap, pressing on top of the pie, and refrigerate overnight.
11. Just before serving, whip the heavy cream with a hand mixer in a medium bowl. Spread on top of pie. You will most likely have some leftover whipped cream - serve in a small bowl on the side in case anyone wants extra!
12. Place balsamic vinegar in a small pot and cook on low/medium heat until thickened and syrupy (only a few minutes). Use a spoon to drizzle on pie as desired.
13. Use your hands to sprinkle sea salt on top.

What was the last treat you shared with a friend?