Lemon ice pie is a cold, creamy, tart American dessert that requires no baking and is typically served during the hot summer months. It is a Southern favorite and can be easily made with the right ingredients and a crust. Variations include using lemonade or adding cream cheese, whipped cream toppings, or nuts.
Lemon Iced Pie is a cold, creamy, tart American dessert often credited with ingrained in traditional cuisine of the American South. The dessert traditionally includes filling ingredients such as lemon juice and condensed milk in a pressed crust. Typically, the pie requires no baking, with fillings left to sit in the refrigerator until firm. Typically, lemon ice pie bears a strong resemblance to key lime pie, substituting lemons or lemon juice instead of limes.
Ice cakes are cream-type cakes, so named due to the need to keep such cakes chilled in an ice box or refrigerator. Stories regarding the origins of lemon ice cake typically place the dessert’s creation somewhere in the Southern United States, although many recipes originated in other areas as well. Since the recipe calls for refrigeration, it is unlikely that any ice box cake recipe existed before the invention of ice boxes in the early 1800s and more likely after the invention of electric refrigerators in the early 1900s.
Variations on lemon ice box cake recipes are numerous. Some recipes use lemonade instead of lemon juice or add additional ingredients such as cream cheese, whipped cream toppings, or nuts or lemon bits and other citrus fruits. Regardless of the specific ingredients or recipe used, pies typically require continuous refrigeration to keep the filling from melting or separating at room temperature. Thickening agents, such as gelatin, are sometimes used to ensure that cakes are firm enough to cut and can withstand longer exposure to room temperature.
The recipes for lemon ice cake and similar desserts are favorites for young and novice cooks due to the ease with which such cakes can be made. All you need are the right ingredients, a way to whip up the filling, and a crust. Graham cracker crumbs mixed with butter are the typical crust for a lemon ice pie, requiring the maker to simply mix and press the crumbs into a pan. The fillings are poured into the crust after a short period of whipping. Once assembled, a lemon ice box cake takes only a short time in the refrigerator to set up enough to serve.
Since lemon icebox cakes and similar desserts are refrigerated, these desserts are most commonly served during the hot summer months. Indeed, the ease of preparation, lack of cooking required, and refrigerated serving needs illustrate why this particular dessert has enjoyed a long history as a Southern favorite. Before World War II, few Southern farms had electricity, relying on ice boxes and various fresh desserts to relieve the summers’ characteristic heat and humidity.
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