Lemon Raspberry Pie

The snow is almost all melted off my yard, so it seems like winter is on its way out. Finally! I made this dessert over Easter weekend, because even though the temperatures still felt like winter (I wore a wool skirt to church!), I needed a dessert that felt like spring! This fit the bill perfectly. A luscious lemon layer is topped with raspberries and then finished off with a fluffy cream cheesey layer. It is delicious.

You can use a homemade pie crust for this or a pre-packaged one. Roll it out, then place it in the pie plate and do whatever fanciness you desire to the edges. Then prick the crust generously with a fork.

Bake the crust for 9-11 minutes or until golden and then let it cool completely. Meanwhile, combine the sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Then add the butter, water

and egg yolk.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil and starts to thicken. Let it boil for 1 minute.

Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice.

Pour the lemon mixture into the crust

and then refrigerate for at least an hour.

For the cream cheese topping, combine the cream cheese, powdered sugar and lemon extract

in a small mixing bowl and beat until smooth. On low speed, beat in the whipped topping, and add the milk if you need to so that the mixture is a spreading consistency. Spread a thin layer of this topping around the edge of the pie.

Reserve a few raspberries for garnish and spoon the remaining berries over the lemon layer.

Top with the rest of the cream cheese mixture and carefully spread it over the raspberries.

Garnish with the raspberries and refrigerate the pie for at least 2 hours before serving.

Welcome, Spring!

One year ago: Ham and Snap Pea Risotto
Two years ago: Greek Chicken Pasta
Three years ago: Pesto Pasta Salad with Peas
Four years ago: Banana Oat Bread

Find more great stuff at Mop it Up Monday, Mix it Up Monday, Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Recipe Sharing Monday, On the Menu, Seasonal Inspiration, Tasty Tuesday, Tempt my Tummy, Totally Tasty Tuesday, Tasteful Tuesday, Tuesday Talent Show, Clever Chicks, What's Cooking Wednesday, Ingredient Spotlight: Cream Cheese and Fruit.

Lemon Raspberry Pie

pie pastry for one crust pie
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp. butter
1 egg yolk, beaten
1/3 cup lemon juice
6 oz. cream cheese, softened (low fat is ok)
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. lemon extract
1 container (8 oz) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 Tbsp. milk
3 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, (thawed if frozen)

Roll out crust and place in pie plate. Generously prick crust with fork. Bake at 400 for 9 to 11 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in medium saucepan, mix sugar and cornstarch. Stir in water, butter and egg yolk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice. Pour into cooled baked shell. Refrigerate 1 hour.

In small bowl, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar and lemon extract on medium speed until smooth. On low speed, beat in whipped topping until well blended. Beat in milk until topping mixture is smooth and spreading consistency. Spread thin layer of topping around edge of crust over cooled filling.

Reserve 8 whole raspberries for garnish. Arrange remaining raspberries over top of filling. Spoon and gently spread remaining topping over raspberries. Garnish with reserved raspberries. Refrigerate 2 hours before serving. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie. Serves 8.