Boppy's Knee-Slappin', Mouth smackin', Eyes roll back in your head it's so good Sour Cream Raisin Pie
Finalist
Ingredients & Instructions
CRUST: This makes 2 crusts ... one for now, an extra because you'll want to make it again VERY soon!
6 Tbsp. and 3 Tbsp. unsalted softened butter, divided
1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
3 Tbsp. granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup AP flour
3/4 cup (plus about 2 Tbsp. more) quick cook rolled oats
1/8 tsp of baking powder
1/8 tsp of baking soda
1/4 heaping tsp coarse kosher salt
Cream butter and both sugars with an electric hand mixer in medium sized bowl for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed until light and fluffy. (you can use a stand mixer, but dang! Why make the clean up harder?)
Add egg and continue to beat until pale and fluffy.
Add oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and beat until it's all mixed together good, about 1 minute. Turn oat mixture out onto a prepared cookie sheet (which you have either lined with parchment or a non stick silicone mat or sprayed Pam like the devil to cover the sheet) and press out until you have an even layer about 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick. (Basically, one big 'ole misshapen cookie ... looks right now are NOT important.)
Bake at 350 until it is just lightly golden on top, about 15 to 18 minutes ... you know your oven best, just keep an eye on it. Let cool on rack until completely cooled.
Once your "cookie" is completely cool crumble it up with your hands into a big bowl.
Add the other 3 Tbsp. of butter and a tablespoon of light brown sugar and mix it all together until it will stick together to form a crust. (Now's the time to split the mixture in half, one for now and one for "later". It freezes beautifully!)
Press mixture into a 9 inch pie pan, be it glass, tin, or ceramic. (Tins make the best pies, but I won't judge.) Work the mixture from the bottom up the sides until you have a full solid covering of crust in the pie pan interior. Just be sure to bring the sides up to the top edge of the pan ... you'll need to have it for the meringue to hang on to later!
FILLING:
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whole milk
3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
In a small saucepan, cover the raisins with just enough water and heat to a boil. Immediately remove from heat and set aside. (you are plumping them up!)
In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, cloves and cinnamon.
Stir in sour cream and milk until mixture is nice and smooth. Cook slow over medium heat until just thickened and bubbly.
Reduce heat to low; cook and stir for 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Now's when you get to temper the eggs!
Stir a small amount of your hot filling into egg yolks whisking like crazy to combine them ... you don't want the eggs to scramble! Once it your eggs have adjusted to the heat, you can now add them to the rest of the cooked mixture in the pan, stirring constantly while doing so.
Remember, you are on low heat ... bring it up in temp just a hair until it starts a low, gentle boil. (that stage between a simmer and too many bubbles) Continue to stir it and let that cook for a couple more minutes. Remove from the heat.
Drain your raisins, but reserve about 1/2 cup of the water you cooked them in and gently stir that in to your filling mixture. Then add your raisins and mix it all together. Pour this filling into your Oat Cookie Crust and get your oven back to 350 degrees.
Meringue:
NOW, you can haul out your stand mixer. But for gosh sakes, make sure your mixing bowl and whisk are clean as all get out ... just the least little bit of dust or food residue will cause your egg whites not to set up proper.
Put the three egg whites in the bowl that were left over from the filling recipe and add another for good measure ... maybe even a fifth if you want mile high pie meringue. It's up to you, but I vote for no less than 4 egg whites.
Wisk on high in your stand mixture and sprinkle in a little cream of tartar and a couple, two, or three tablespoons of granulated white sugar, adding gradually, until you reach stiff peak consistency. (Meringue sweetness is definitely a matter of personal opinion and this recipe is already pretty darned sweet, so I'd err on the side of DO MORE SUGAR! Nah, just kidding ... I think 5 tablespoons are plenty.)
Spread over hot filling, sealing the meringue edges to the crust.
Pop this beauty into your 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes ... the meringue should be gloriously golden and browned on the peaks. Let cool for at least 1 hour before serving and refrigerate what little, if any, that is left.
-Kay Weiderhaft