Make sure your lemon ice box pie or key lime pie is safe for the Easter holidays, warns LSU AgCenter nutritionist Dr. Beth Reames. "Eating raw or undercooked eggs is a risk for foodborne illness."

The warning holds true for lightly cooked eggs and egg dishes, the LSU AgCenter nutritionist adds, noting, "It is important for the cooking temperature to reach 160 degrees F to kill bacteria, including salmonellae."

To make key lime or lemon ice box pie safely, heat the lime (or lemon) juice with the raw egg yolks in a pan on the stove, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F.

Then combine it with the sweetened condensed milk and pour it into a baked pie crust.

Meringue-topped pies are safe if baked at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes. Substitute whipped cream or whipped topping in chiffon pies and fruit whips instead of using raw, beaten egg whites.

Make homemade ice cream and eggnog safely using a cooked base, Reames recommends. Heat the egg-milk mixture gently. Use a food thermometer to check the temperature (160 degrees F) or use a metal spoon (the mixture should coat the spoon).

Dry meringue shells that are baked in the oven are safe. So are divinity candy and 7-minute frosting, made by combining hot sugar syrup with beaten egg whites.

Cook egg dishes such as quiche and casseroles to 160 degrees F as measured with a food thermometer.

"Eggs should be cooked at low temperatures, because high heat and overcooking tend to toughen the egg protein," the LSU AgCenter nutritionist says, adding, "A greenish coating around the yolks of hard-cooked eggs indicates the eggs were cooked at high temperatures for a long time." The nutritional value isn't affected, but the eggs may look unappetizing.

To hard-cook eggs properly, never boil them. Place eggs in a pot and cover with at least 1 inch of cold water. Bring the water to its boiling point rapidly, but do not boil. Turn off heat and, if necessary, take the pan off the burner to prevent further boiling. Cover and let stand for 15-20 minutes. Rinse immediately with cold water.

Casseroles and other dishes containing eggs should be cooked to 160 degrees F as measured with a food thermometer.

Egg products can be used in baking or cooking (scrambled eggs, for example). They have been pasteurized, but are best used in a cooked product. Be sure that the internal temperature of the cooked dish reaches 160 degrees F. Egg products can be substituted in recipes typically made with raw eggs that won't be cooked to 160 degrees F, such as Caesar salad and homemade mayonnaise.

Although egg products may be pasteurized, it is best to start with a cooked base for optimal safety, especially if serving high-risk individuals, such as people with health problems, the very young, the elderly and pregnant women.

Reames says the term "egg products" refers to eggs that have been removed from their shells for processing. Basic egg products include whole eggs, whites, yolks and various blends, with or without non-egg ingredients, which are processed and pasteurized. They may be available in liquid, frozen and dried forms.

The LSU AgCenter nutritionist recommends contacting an extension agent in your parish LSU AgCenter office to learn more about cooking with eggs. In addition, log on to the Family and Consumer Sciences section under the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service at the LSU AgCenter Web site.