Lemon Pie Cups

It's that time of year when everything lemon sounds exceptionally delicious to me. Lemonade, lemons in my iced tea, lemon pies. I'll find any excuse to squeeze a little lemon into my life during these hot months. When I was younger, I wasn't the kind of kid who begged my mom for a candy bar at the supermarket checkout. It was the produce section she had to worry about because that's where my treat of choice sat. A heaping pile of lemons with my name written all over them. I'd find the fattest lemon in the stack, then take it home and eat it raw. I'm not sure if other kids had a lemon obsession or if I was just an oddball back then, but I sure did love my weekly lemon treat. The thought of eating a raw lemon now as an adult makes my cheeks pucker and teeth hurt, but I do always have fresh lemons on hand to add to my recipes these days.

Since I'm trying to support Jason in his weight loss journey (he's lost 10 pounds this month!), I've been steering clear of making full sized cakes and pies to reduce his temptation to over indulge. Mini tarts and hand pies have allowed for us to still be able to have desserts in the house, but are small enough where one can snack without going overboard.

One of my favorite treats are these mini lemon pie cups. Because they use a ready made pie crust, they don't require a lot of effort to toss together. If you don't have a ready made pie crust, you can definitely use your own favorite pie crust recipe, which I did on this last batch of lemon tarts. When you use your own pie dough, you can make the crust either smooth or flaky, depending on your own personal taste preference. But if time is an issue, by all means, store bought dough is perfectly acceptable here.

I found this recipe flipping though a cookbook at the library a few years back and jotted it down right quick, but forgot to make a note on the book title, so if it sounds familiar, someone please it to me. The description also makes mention of a chocolate and pecan version that I'd love to try because this lemon version is an all-time favorite here. I can only imagine that the chocolate and pecan pie cups are just as divine.

Yield: 12 Lemon Pie Cups

 

Lemon Pie Cups

 

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 package refrigerated pie crust
• all purpose flour for rolling out the dough
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 tbsp freshly grated lemon zest
• 1/3 cup fresh squeeze lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease the cavities of a 12 cup muffin tin.
2. Lightly flour countertop. Roll out the dough into a 12 inch circle. Using a 4 inch round cutter, cut out 12 circles from the dough and lightly press them into the bottom and up the sides of the muffin cavities. The dough will shrink during baking, so lightly crimp it so it overlaps the top of the cavity.
3. Make the filling: In a medium sized bowl, beat the egg yolks, condensed milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt at low speed until combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cups, filling 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the custard filling is golden and set. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan, then allow to fully cool on a wire rack. You may need to run an offset spatula or butter knife around the tarts before removing from the pan. 
4. Serve, or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

I have no problem eating an entire lemon pie cup on my own, but the custard filling sets firm so it's super easy to slice these in half without making a mess if you are just looking for a little taste to curb your lemon cravings. Take a break with a lemon pie cup, a hot cup of tea, and a good book for a little me time this summer. It's one of my favorite ways to treat myself!

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What was your favorite produce to snack on as a child?