Icebox pies
the antidote
to an overheated kitchen
In the heat of summer, baking is all about finding

easy-to-make recipes and then finding shortcuts to help you escape the kitchen before you melt into a puddle.

If you like making desserts, it's hard to stop just because the temperature outside is almost as hot as the temperature inside your oven. And as the cookout season unfolds, invitations to block parties, backyard barbecues and potluck family reunions mean you need to come up with ideas for something to take.

That makes old-fashioned icebox pies a necessity for your recipe box. Most require little, if any, actual baking, which reduces the amount of time your oven is heating up the house. They are easy to assemble. And they are deliciously cool when you're looking for a refreshing

dessert on a humid day.

And since it's summertime and the living is supposed to be easy, we're encouraging you to take shortcuts. Our

Lemon-Blueberry Cream Pie uses a homemade grahamcracker

crust, which tastes great and isn't hard to make, but does require baking for 8 minutes. If you'd rather use a store-bought corporate-graham-cracker shelland this also goes for the pastry dough used in our Mango-Lime Icebox Pie it will be almost as good and will save you time and hassle.

And while homemade whipped cream, one of the finest foods ever discovered by humans, takes just a minute or two to make, your kids, mate and guests will surely not complain or probably even notice-if you skip dirtying up your electric mixer's beaters and just use Cool Whip as a topping instead.

That goes triple for the

meringue

on the

M a n g o L i m e

Icebox Pie: If you're feeling fancy, own a candy thermometer and have a few minutes and a smidgen of patience to fool around with getting sugar syrup to the proper temperature and consistency, have a go at it. If not, don't worry: We'll never tell, and you'll still get to enjoy glorious pie. LEMON-BLUEBERRY

CREAM PIE

This is a little like a lemon cheesecake, but with none of the fuss about water baths and preventing cracks. Mix it up, pour it in, let it chill and enjoy. If you're making grahamcracker crumbs from graham crackers, place them in a resealable plastic bag and then inside another plastic bag before crushing them with a rolling pin.
.
  1-2/3 cups graham-cracker crumbs
.
  1/4 cup sugar
.
  1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
.
  1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
.
  1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
.
  1/4 cup powdered sugar
.
  1 (3.4-ounce) package lemon instant pudding mix
.
  2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
.
  1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
.
  1 pint fresh blueberries
.
  2 tablespoons blueberry preserves
.
  1 cup whipping cream
.
  Garnishes: lemon slices, fresh blueberries

Stir together first 3 ingredients; press evenly in bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate.

Bake piecrust at 350 degrees for 8 minutes; remove piecrust to a wire rack, and cool completely.

Beat cream cheese, milk and powdered sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add pudding mix, rind and juice; beat until blended. Spread half of lemon mixture evenly into prepared crust.

Stir together blueberries and preserves; spread evenly over lemon mixture. Spread remaining lemon mixture over blueberry mixture; cover and chill two hours or until set.

Beat whipping cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form, and spread around outer edge of pie, forming a 3-inch border. Garnish, if desired, with lemon slices and blueberries.

Makes 1 9-inch pie. -Southern Living magazine MANGO-LIME

ICEBOX PIE

Look for mango nectar in the Latin-foods section of your supermarket. The egg whites used to make the meringue are heated to 238 degrees, making them safe to eat.

If making meringue seems like too much hassle, whip 2 cups heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer until soft peaks form, then smooth over top of pie, or spread with Cool Whip instead.
Crust:
.
  1 9-inch piecrust or 1/2 (15-ounce) package refrigerated
pie dough (such as Pillsbury)
Filling:
.
  1 cup mango nectar
.
  3/4 cup sugar
.
  1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 4 limes)
.
  1/4 cup cornstarch
.
  1/4 cup fresh orange juice
.
  2 large eggs
.
  2-1/2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons grated lime rind
Meringue:
3 large egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
Grated lime rind (optional)

Prepare and bake single piecrust in a 9-inch pie plate. Cool completely in pie plate on a wire rack.

To prepare filling, combine nectar and next 5 ingredients (nectar through eggs) in a large saucepan, stirring with a whisk. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat, stir in butter and 2 teaspoons rind. Spoon mango mixture into a bowl; place bowl in a large icefilled bowl for 10 minutes or until mango mixture comes to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Remove bowl from ice; spoon mango mixture into prepared crust. Cover and chill 8 hours or until firm.

To prepare meringue, place egg whites and salt in a large bowl. Beat with a mixer at high speed until soft peaks form. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and water in a saucepan; bring to boil. Cook, without stirring, until candy thermometer registers 238 degrees. Pour hot sugar syrup in a thin stream over egg whites, beating at high speed until stiff peaks form. Spread meringue over filling; garnish with rind, if desired.

Serves 9 (1 9-inch pie).

-Cooking Light