Tangerine Meringue Pie

Whatever your favorite pie crust recipe is, make it and bake it ahead of time.

Start your kettle, so you will have the boiling water ready by the time you whisk up the first set of ingredients.

In a medium sauce pan, whisk together 1 cup of sugar, 6 tablespoons of cornstarch, 1/2 cup cold water, both zests and both juices. Whisk in the egg yolks. Add the butter and 1 1/2 cups of boiling water from your kettle.

Cook this mixture over medium-high heat, stirring almost constantly, until it begins to boil and thicken (usually takes 5-7 minutes). Reduce the heat and stir for another minute or so. Remove from the heat, but leave it in the pan while you make the meringue.

Preheat your oven to 325F.

Mix together the 1/2 cup of sugar and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch in a small bowl. Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar on high (preferably with a whisk attachment) until the mixture is fairly foamy. Add the sugar/cornstarch mixture 1 tablespoon at a time and continue to beat until you achieve beautifully stiff, shiny peaks.

Pour the filling into the crust. Immediately and in careful spoonfuls, mound the meringue on top of the HOT filling. This is a crazy trick I learned that supposedly helps the meringue adhere to the filling rather than allowing the unsightly slide-off that tends to happen with meringue pies. Crazy as it sounds, it has worked for me! Anyway, make it pretty any way you want (I use the back of my spoon and make little wisps upward). Bake the pie for about 25 minutes or until the meringue is wonderfully brown.

Allow the pie to cool to room temperature and then chill in the refrigerator for at least a couple hours.