Page 154 - United States of Pie

Burnt Sugar Meringue Pie

In Kansas they know a thing or two about making creamy
desserts, and burnt sugar meringue pie is one of the best. Made with
pantry staples and treated with care, this recipe transforms ordinary
sugar into a deep caramel-infused custard. The meringue adds an
ethereal touch—and is also a smart way of using up the whites left

after separating the eggs for the custard.
I discovered this recipe in The Kansas Cookbook by Frank Carey
and Jayni Naas. The pie is credited to Twila Roenne of Osborne,
Kansas. Like so many families from the Midwest, the Roenne family
emigrated from Eastern Europe in the mid-nineteenth century.
According to Twila, her father first tasted this pie in 1928, when he
was working on a threshing crew at a neighbor’s farm and the

farmer’s wife served it to them on their lunch break. Twila’s father
liked the pie so much, he brought the recipe home to her mother,
who in turn taught it to Twila.
The original recipe calls for a traditional short crust, but I think that
the crumbly texture of a graham cracker crust is a more pleasant foil
for this dense pie. I also tempered the pie’s sweetness while

heightening its wonderful flavor of burnt sugar.

1 Graham Cracker Crust

For the filling
2½ cups whole milk
2 /3 cup plus ½ cup sugar
1 /3 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
3 large egg yolks, beaten