On one of our trips to Paris, we arrived at the apartment to widely flung French doors and a mammoth bunch of sunflowers on the coffee table. This was a greeting of pure joy, which announced loudly: you’re home, put your feet up, and enjoy life!
In floriography, the Victorian language of flowers, sunflowers symbolize adoration, loyalty and devotion. In a process called heliotropism, young sunflowers turn their faces to follow the sun. Therefore sunflowers carry the sentiment: “You are my sun”, and the message is “You light up my life”. So this July, bring some sunflowers into the house, or bring a sunny bouquet to a friend.
My memories of childhood and Key Lime pie in Florida are very vivid. A real treat was to go out for dinner to Aunt Catfish's near Daytona Beach. My menu usually included: white pop (black pop was forbidden), an array of delightful options from the salad bar (macaroni salad, ambrosia salad with marshmallows, Waldorf salad, cottage cheese, all under a ladle of thick blue cheese dressing. The meal was sealed with a slice of Key Lime pie. A child's dream. (Ok, sometimes I chose the Mudslide pie. But thats for another post.)
Key limes are basically joy and sunshine in a tiny green package. Recipes for Key Lime Pie are nearly identical, with the classic filling containing just three ingredients: sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and Key lime juice. They are blended together, poured into a graham cracker crust and baked for about 15 minutes. Voilà!
Key Lime pie was invented before refrigeration. Eggs and Key limes were abundant, but fresh milk spoiled, so tins of sweetened condensed milk were kept in the pantry. Someone eventually combined the three and discovered a magical pie.
It’s possible that this someone was “Aunt Sally,” who cooked for a wealthy family in Key West in the late 1800s. But in previous research I found that the recipe came from sponge fishermen who spent weeks at sea and relied on ingredients that didn’t require refrigeration. Fishermen whipping up pies seems unlikely to me, but who knows…
Here is the classic recipe with a slight twist:
1 graham cracker crust (recipe to follow)
1 can (300 ml / 14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks
½ cup Key lime juice
2 tsp finely grated lime zest
2 tablespoons creme fraiche or plain greek yogurt (optional, this cuts the sweet a tiny bit)
Freshly whipped cream for serving
Graham Cracker Crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs (or split 1 cup graham crackers, 1 cup butter shortbread cookies which I did this week - this was a hit)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
½ cup salted butter, melted
pinch salt
Preheat oven to 350* F.
Filling: Whisk egg yolks vigorously by hand until pale, about 2 minutes. Add in the zest. Whisk in the condensed milk, then stir in the lime juice and the yogurt if you are using it. Make sure the mixture is smooth and silky. Set this aside and let cool. It will thicken slightly.
Make the crust: Mix the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar and salt in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter until evenly moistened. Press firmly into the bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 10 minutes. Important: let cool completely before adding in the filling.
Pour filling into the crust and bake at 350°F (175°C) for about 15 minutes. Chill thoroughly before serving. Top with whipped cream.
SEARCHING FOR A MIRACLE CREAM?
Splurging is a life choice. We all choose to splurge on different things. I buy far too many books each month, mostly cookbooks, along with garden plants, and I love taking courses of many kinds simply to learn something new. But I won’t splurge on designer handbags or skincare.
I do however get facials, cleansing and hydrating….nothing invasive, but I won’t spend more than $40–50 on a moisturizer. That’s a firm rule for me. One treatment I do love is Kobido, the “Japanese facelift.” The practitioner combines rapid, sculpting strokes with lighter ones. All done with her amazing hands. I’m not going to lie - sometimes it hurts. But you do look visibly lifted once the treatment is finished. If you’ve tried it, leave me a message below. I’d love to hear about your experience.
Back to moisturizers. I don’t believe the active ingredients in expensive moisturizers have high enough concentrations to make a meaningful difference. I could be wrong, but this is my instinct on skincare companies. Instead, I buy a relatively inexpensive moisturizer and customize it myself.
This type of routine is natural for me, as I used to be a facialist in my twenties and would customize creams for each client. I generally add 2-3 drops of pure essential oils to a dab of cream. What I use depends on the season and I’m not overly attached to one formula. My goal is to balance my skin depending on it’s mood of the day…..dry, dehydrated, etc.
A little tip: Always mix the essential oils into the moisturizer in your palm just before applying it, so it’s made to order each day, instead of adding directly to the entire jar. This allows you to adjust your blend daily. Right now, my blend includes a combination of helichrysum, neroli, frankincense, fennel, wild carrot and cypress. Plus Derma-E creme. Sometimes I use Weleda Baby Face cream. Next year it may be something entirely different. Both of these face creams are under $20. They are mainly a vehicle for the essential oils. If you want to keep it simple, one drop of lavender, neroli, fennel, carrot or frankincense for mature skin.
That’s it for today friends. Thank you for reading. If you enjoyed this post, please tap the heart and please subscribe! Sending to friends is also a great way for people to find Design and Alchemy.
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