Lemon Icebox Pie I

"I took some of the previous review advice and it came out excellent: I used fresh squeezed lemon juice (it took about 3-4 lemons), a teaspoon or so of lemon zest, my mixer to beat the egg whites, to ..." See morewhich I added 1/4 tsp tartar along with the sugar. The pie was excellent. The only thing was, I wish I had waited until the next day, letting it set better before we cut it. I did wait a few hours, but the meringue was so perfect, I had to try it!! ( As a professional cook I can tell you the acid levels in the lemons are high enough to kill the harmful bacteria in the egg, and I will wash the outside of the egg with a little bleach water as an extra measure because the salmonella lives on the shell, not inside.)"

"I was hesitant to make this since everyone seemed to "tweak" the recipe. I made it EXACTLY like it said on the recipe, and the meringue would not stiffen, and the pie was VERY tart! I served it to my ..." See morefamily which consists of a chef, and I was so embarrassed. I did not even want to serve it after seeing it come out of the broiler with hardly any meringue, but my husband insisted. I wish people would rate the recipes according to the recipe, not what they did to make it better. It makes it very confusing for the amateur cooks."

"This recipe is a good one. When I make it I add about 1-2 tsp of fresh lemon zest. A little lesson for those of you that are not successful with meringues...the egg whites MUST be at room temperature,..." See more your bowl and beaters MUST be totally clean and free of any oily residue, and your whites MUST NOT have any yolk in them, otherwise you will not get the volume, etc you need. Beat the whites until they begin to stiffen, then add your sugar and cream of tartar, continue beating until peaks form. And, for those of you who are afraid of the raw eggs...you can bake this pie at 350 for 5 min, plus the lemon juice "cooks" the yolk. There is nothing to fear....make it again and enjoy!!!"