Scald the milk in a double boiler. Mix the sugar, flour, and salt and stir into the hot milk. Cook over the fire until the flour has thickened. Place in a double boiler and cook for 10 or 15 minutes longer. Beat the yolks of the eggs and add them to the mixture. Remove from the heat, add the flavoring, and pour into the baked crust of a pie. Make meringue of the whites of the eggs, cover the mixture, place in a moderate oven, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes.

59. CUSTARD PIE.--Custard pie is made with the usual proportion of milk and eggs necessary for thickening. A dash of nutmeg is considered to improve the flavor and it also makes the surface of the pie a little more attractive.

CUSTARD PIE

Beat the eggs slightly and add the milk, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Partly bake the crust for the custard, but remove it from the oven before it has begun to get crisp. Pour in the custard, place in a moderate oven, and bake until a knife will come out clean when inserted. The custard should by no means be overbaked, as the result will be the same curding that occurs in an ordinary baked custard.

60. DATE CREAM PIE.--Using dates for pie is a rather unusual means of adding them to the diet, but it is a very good one and produces an excellent dessert. If desired, more of the date purée may be added to the mixture that is given in the recipe. The result will be a filling that has more of the date flavor.

DATE CREAM PIE

Steam the dates in the water in a double boiler until they are soft. Rub through a sieve. Beat the eggs slightly and add them with the milk to the dates. Add the sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Pour into a partly baked pie crust, place in a moderate oven, and continue the baking as for custard pie.

61. LEMON PIE NO. 1.--A plain lemon pie that is comparatively inexpensive may be made by following the directions given here. More eggs, of course, will make a better pie and they may be added if desired. Grating the rind of the lemon adds flavor to the filling, but too much will give a bitter taste. Lemon juice should never be cooked with the corn starch, as the filling will gradually become thinner and the starch will lose its value as a thickening agent.