Old Fashioned Custard Pie

Submitted by laurenpie

"Good old-fashioned comfort food. This has been my dad's favorite dessert for 80 years! The rest of us love it too. I actually prefer the taste with 1-2 Tbsp less sugar. but everyone else likes it best as written below. Any homogenized milk works great: non-fat, 1%, 2% or regular. I did try it once with fresh goat milk.. that ended up too weepy."

 

• Ready In: 30mins
• Ingredients: 7
• Yields: 1 pie
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 1 unbaked homemade pie shell
• 2 1⁄2 cups 1% low-fat milk (non-fat or regular milk also okay)
• 3 large eggs
• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1⁄4 teaspoon cinnamon or 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, for sprinkling

directions

1. Prepare pie shell and chill thoroughly, at least 30 minutes in the fridge.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
3. Scald milk over low heat. You can skip this step, but your custard will be a little “weepy.”.
4. In separate bowl, whisk eggs a little, then add sugar and salt and stir.
5. Beat in scalded milk, only a little at a time (to avoid coagulating the eggs), stirring constantly. Stir in vanilla.
6. Pour through strainer into chilled pie shell, removing as much foam as possible (foam makes the pie-top burn).
7. Sprinkle nutmeg or cinnamon on top to settle any remaining foam. Best to sprinkle by hand in order to get a super-light dusting over the top; avoid clumping.
8. Set pie at a lower height in your oven, not too close to the top.
9. Bake about 20 minutes, then cover crust with aluminum foil and turn oven down to 325 degrees. Continue baking for another 20-25 minutes, until you can insert a knife and it comes out clean, and filling's not too jiggly.
10. We prefer this pie eaten warm, but it’s also excellent cold. Let it set a little before cutting so that it will keep it’s shape.