My lemon tree was dripping with fruit — beautiful orbs of sunshine yellow citrus tucked around dark green leaves.
It was time to make that delicious aperitif limoncello. Looking for other ways to use the generous harvest, I stumbled on an old favourite recipe given a modern makeover by Australian foodie Donna Hay. The Impossible Pie, the origin of the name was a play on the word impossible because it is so easy to make — the pie part comes from the sort of crust it forms in baking.
The recipe appears to have originated in the 1970s. More than likely an American invention, it became a dinner party/Sunday lunch special because of the ease of putting it together. There’s no pastry to make nor any creaming of ingredients needed. The only requirement is gathering the ingredients and whipping them together in a food processor, blender or mixer. If you have don’t have any of these, a hearty hand whisk will do the trick.
I’d forgotten how delicious it is — and served with lashings of custard, cream or ice cream, so yummy and comforting. It’s the kind of pud that can be made the day before or on the day. The ingredients are store cupboard staples. If things like coconut milk throw you off, simply replace with the same amount of milk, or use a non-dairy replacement.
If you don’t like desiccated coconut, leave it out. What it does need is a generous helping of finely grated lemon zest which adds a real freshness and sparkle to the pudding, and fresh lemon juice, not the bottled variety. If you don’t have lemons use oranges or naartjies for a spin on the flavour.
It needs an oven to bake. I made it soon after power had been restored following load-shedding — and just in time before the next outage — and it helped to brighten a grim, dark and cold night.
Try it. I bet it will become a favourite you make over and over again.
RECIPE | The impossible pud that’s ridiculously easy to make
Way easier than making a malva, this 1970s fav is the perfect antidote to dark days and chilly weather
Image: Hilary Biller
My lemon tree was dripping with fruit — beautiful orbs of sunshine yellow citrus tucked around dark green leaves.
It was time to make that delicious aperitif limoncello. Looking for other ways to use the generous harvest, I stumbled on an old favourite recipe given a modern makeover by Australian foodie Donna Hay. The Impossible Pie, the origin of the name was a play on the word impossible because it is so easy to make — the pie part comes from the sort of crust it forms in baking.
The recipe appears to have originated in the 1970s. More than likely an American invention, it became a dinner party/Sunday lunch special because of the ease of putting it together. There’s no pastry to make nor any creaming of ingredients needed. The only requirement is gathering the ingredients and whipping them together in a food processor, blender or mixer. If you have don’t have any of these, a hearty hand whisk will do the trick.
I’d forgotten how delicious it is — and served with lashings of custard, cream or ice cream, so yummy and comforting. It’s the kind of pud that can be made the day before or on the day. The ingredients are store cupboard staples. If things like coconut milk throw you off, simply replace with the same amount of milk, or use a non-dairy replacement.
If you don’t like desiccated coconut, leave it out. What it does need is a generous helping of finely grated lemon zest which adds a real freshness and sparkle to the pudding, and fresh lemon juice, not the bottled variety. If you don’t have lemons use oranges or naartjies for a spin on the flavour.
It needs an oven to bake. I made it soon after power had been restored following load-shedding — and just in time before the next outage — and it helped to brighten a grim, dark and cold night.
Try it. I bet it will become a favourite you make over and over again.
RECIPE | Putting Christine Capendale's Hertzoggie slice recipe to the test
THE IMPOSSIBLE LEMON PIE
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
350ml (1 ⅓ cups) milk
1 x 400g can coconut milk (or replace with extra milk)
60g (¾ cup) desiccated coconut. I found toasting the coconut in a dry pan added a pleasant toasty depth of flavour
50ml sunflower or canola or use same amount of butter or baking margarine, melted
10ml (2 tsp) vanilla essence
3 large eggs
125ml (½ cup) cake wheat four
200g (1 cup) caster sugar
12.5ml (1 tbsp) finely grated lemon rind
125ml (½ cup) fresh lemon juice
Icing sugar for dusting
Method:
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