Butterscotch Pie - Week 4

In honor of National Pie Day, I wanted to choose a pie that was traditional, but yet something that would be a treat. This pie does not disappoint.  

I remember sometime in my childhood having this pie, but I know that it must be 25 years since I've tasted homemade butterscotch w/meringue.  So, I looked in one of my grandma's cookbooks to find an original recipe for the classic homemade butterscotch pie. Then, since I was inexperienced with meringue, I chose a recipe with a name that promised that it couldn't fail.

Ingredients - Butterscotch Filling:
1 Pastry Pie Crust, baked
¾ cup Brown Sugar
¼ cup Sugar
1/3 cup Flour
2 c. Scalded Milk
1/8 t. Salt
3 Egg Yolks, beaten
1 ½ T. Butter
1 t. Vanilla
Meringue

Directions:

In double boiler, combine sugars, flour and add hot milk (1). Add salt. Stirring constantly to make a smooth mixture. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened (2). Pour part of hot mixture slowly onto egg yolks, stirring constantly (3). Pour back into double mixture. Mix well and cook no more than 3 minutes, stirring almost constantly. Add butter, stir until melted. Cool (4). Add vanilla, and pour into shell. Cover with meringue and proceed as directed.

(Scalded Milk Note: You may heat the milk for 3-4 minutes in a glass container in a microwave with a bamboo or chopstick breaking through the surface.  This prevents the milk from super-heating and scorching)

Ingredients – Never Fail Meringue:

2 T. Sugar

1 T. Corn Starch
1/2 cup water

3 Egg whites

1/8 t. salt

1 t. Vanilla

1/3 c. Sugar

Directions – Meringue:

In small sauce pan, combine sugar and corn starch. Add water; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thick and clear. Cool. In mixer bowl, combine egg whites, salt and vanilla. Beat at high speed until foamy. Add sugar gradually, beating after each addition. Add cornstarch mixture. Continue beating until meringue stands in stiff peaks. Place on top of filling sealing to edges of baked pastry. Bake 12-15 minute at 350 degrees until browned.

I actually made two pies as I wanted to compare the homemade to a cheater instant pudding pie. Here are the prep ingredients:

And then compared the two, slice by slice:

And, the comparison is a difficult task because they're just not the same.  It is like comparing a Nacho plate complete with meat, salsa, and melted cheese to Nacho flavored Doritos. The homemade is so good with it's creamy goodness. This was my 11-year old son's first experience with homemade butterscotch and meringue. Afterwards, he just couldn't stop thinking about it. However, we still admitted that we enjoyed the cheater pie. Yes, it has a definite manufactured taste (similar to those Doritos), but it is still enjoyable. 

How did you celebrate National Pie Day?

And how do you like your Butterscotch Pie? 

Have you indulged in a cheater pie recently?