Margarita Pie + Door County

This week has been absolutely wonderful for my soul and being! Back to school has got probably all parents leisurely sipping coffee in luscious peace and quiet wondering why they need to have summer vacation anyway to be the best time for all parents. Having a kindergartner had me feeling like a back to school newbie. Watching my son get on the bus for the first time was a roller coaster of emotions, but I've stabilized and processed this new experience and feel just great! The cliches are true, they grow-up so fast. Bittersweet. 

And as fall is upon us I must post this completely summer-time recipe. I'm in denial. And anyway, its so humid today in Minnesota you could really believe it's still summer. 

This pie was made for my husband's birthday! He gobbled up every last morsel. He loves cold things....I can't stand them....all that teeth whitening has made my mouth overly sensitive to icy pies. 

This pie is tangy and tart, creamy, but light. It stays well in the freezer for unexpected company and is as easy to prepare as whirring your Kitchen-Aid for about 10 minutes and pressing some buttery crumbs into a throw-away pie tin - or buy a crust and make it even easier.

And in addition to birthday pie was Door County! I can't go another day without telling you about this quaint and charming area of the globe! Door County was on my husband's birthday itinerary; he thought riding in a retired lobster boat in the middle of Lake Michigan trying to catch salmon was a great way to celebrate your 41st year of life. I agreed.

Door county is located on the eastern side of Wisconsin situated on the tip of a peninsula. Its just a couple hours past Green Bay. The cities that make up the county are full of charm, ridiculously green farmland, and are surrounded by pine trees with a rocky coast. Cherries seemed to be abundant because most restaurants and gift shops offered all types of cherry delights. Cherry juice, cherry syrup, cherry wine - you can even go cherry picking! There are several cities with delicious restaurants, friendly campgrounds, motels and beautiful parks.

We enjoyed a six-hour fishing excursion and caught 14 steel-head trout and one salmon (something about the water temps had the salmon too deep and not biting - don't expect me to explain the science). Reeling those mamba-jambas in was tons of hard work and really, really fun! The boat captain was a real charmer and if you ever go to Door County YOU MUST book him! The boat really was a retired lobster catcher. The staff are very professional, highly skilled, hard-working and friendly. When we docked my husband thought it was an excellent idea to pay for their prime-rib dinners the captain had phoned in from the boat. Too bad they didn't have this pie for dessert.

Printable Recipe Here

Margarita Pie

serves 8

adapted from Stonyfield Organic Yogurt

1 graham cracker crust (recipe below)

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup liquid margarita mixer

Zest of one lime

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 cup Greek yogurt (vanilla or plain - if using plain add 1/2 teaspoon vanilla)

In a bowl of a standing mixer, beat cream cheese until soft and smooth. Add sugar, margarita mixer, zest and lime juice to cream cheese mixer and mix until blended. Add yogurt (and vanilla, if using) and mix until just blended. Pour into pie crust and freeze overnight or until firm. 

Graham Cracker Crust

makes one 9" crust

1 sleeve of graham crackers

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Place graham crackers in a large zip-top plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin until crackers resemble fine crumbs. Add sugar and cinnamon to bag and combine well. Pour crumb mixture into a 9" pie plate with melted butter and combine thoroughly. Press crumbs firmly with a large spoon into pie plate, pushing crumbs up the side to form a crust. Bake crust at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or freeze for 15 minutes.