Lemon Buttermilk Pie

I made this pie Sunday afternoon to celebrate the recognition of Nick’s hard work in designing and building our kitchen addition. Vineyard Style Magazine is running a story on his ideas behind and execution of our small addition – read it here and see it here. He is a pretty crafty guy and we are so lucky to call him ours.

A few friends have mentioned how nice it is to see a small scale, thoughtful, self built project published in an Island magazine. I couldn’t agree more. Typically, the pages are filled with sprawling, impersonal homes that are empty most of the year. Yes, most year-round residents depend on the owners of those sprawling homes for many things but still…does anyone need 23,000 square feet?! Martha’s Vineyard is a funny place sometimes but I love it anyways.

LEMON BUTTERMILK PIE
Slightly adapted from Bon Appetit

Buttermilk Pie Dough
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup buttermilk

Filling
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 large egg yolks
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, cooled slightly
Whipped cream (for serving)

Buttermilk Pie Dough:

1. Pulse flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Transfer to a large bowl and add buttermilk. Mix with a fork, adding more buttermilk by the tablespoon if needed, just until a shaggy dough comes together.

2. Knead very lightly until no dry spots remain. Pat into a disk and wrap in plastic. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or in the freezer for 1 hour.

Filling and Assembly:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Roll out pie dough on a lightly floured surface to 14″ round. Transfer to a 9″ pie dish, allowing dough to slump down into dish. Trim dough, leaving about 1″ overhang. Fold overhang under and crimp edge. Prick bottom all over with a fork.

2. Line crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until crust is dry around the edge, 20-25 minutes. Remove parchment and weights; bake until surface looks dry, 10-12 minutes longer.

3. Meanwhile, blend egg yolks, eggs, buttermilk, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt in a blender until smooth. With motor running, add flour then butter. Fill into warm crust.

4. Bake pie, rotating halfway through, until filling is set around edge but center jiggles slightly, 55-65 minutes. Transfer pie dish to a wire rack and let pie cool. Serve with whipped cream.