Graham Wafer Pie

The recipe for this pie used to be printed on the side of graham cracker boxes, long before the days of store-brand products. My sister-in-law, Shirley, made this often and it was always a hit. Today, while cleaning the shelves, I found a package of graham cracker crumbs left over from Christmas baking. I posted a recipe for this pie in 2008 on this blog but updated the amounts for my largest pie plate. It turned out so well that a repost of the recipe is warranted. 

 

Crust:  1-3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs, 5-6 tbsp melted butter, 3 tbsp sugar

Combine the ingredients thoroughly. Remove 1/4 cup of crumb mixture for topping. Press the remaining crumbs into a deep-dish pie plate. Bake for 12 minutes at 350 F.

Pudding:  2-1/2 cups milk, 1/3 c cornstarch, 4 egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tbsp butter

Whisk ingredients in a heavy saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Add 1-2 tsp of vanilla extract. Pour pudding into baked pie crust.

Meringue:  Beat 4 egg whites, 2 tbsp sugar and 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar until still peaks form. Sprinkle reserved crumbs on top of egg whites.

Place meringue on top of the pie and bake at 325 F for 12-15 minutes until the top starts to brown.

The pie needs to chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours before serving. 

Vegetable Bouillon Concentrate

Vegetable Bouillon Base (from A Veggie Venture)

5 ounces (150 grams) leeks, white and light-green parts only

Consistency in food processor

7 ounces (200 grams) fennel bulb, chopped
7 ounces (200 grams) carrot, chopped
3.5 ounces (100 grams) celery, chopped
3.5 ounces (100 grams) celery root (celeriac)
1 ounce (30 grams) sun-dried tomatoes
3.5 ounces (100 grams) shallot, peeled
3 medium garlic cloves
9 ounces (250 grams) kosher salt (about 1 cup)
1.5 ounces (40 grams) parsley
2 ounces (60 grams) cilantro

Method:

Chop the vegetables in chunks of an inch or less and add them to a food processor. I layer the vegetables and some of the salt as it helps liquify things faster. The food processor will not get the vegetables to a smooth paste, so I use my blender after processing the vegetables and adding all the salt. It is best to blend small batches at a time until smooth. The blender step is optional.

Consistency using blender as well

The finished product can be placed in jars or tubs suitable for the freezer. A single recipe makes about 3-1/2 cups of concentrate which is equivalent to about 40 quarts or litres of broth when used at a ratio of 1 teaspoon/cup of water. 

I love this vegetable combination, particularly the addition of fennel and celeriac, but other vegetables and herbs could be used. I would be careful to maintain the weight of vegetables to salt ratio. It is important to use a kitchen scale to measure the ingredients.