You’ve spent considerable time perfecting your lemon meringue pie recipe. Through numerous iterations, you achieved a fluffy and toasted meringue topping. The filling is a delightful balance of sweetness and tanginess, providing a burst of flavor with every bite. Not to be overlooked is the crust, which is thick and flaky, adding a satisfying texture to each slice. Throughout this journey, you’ve generously shared your pies with friends and family, eagerly seeking their feedback to further refine your creation.
Through my experience, I’ve found that making lemon meringue pie can seem daunting at first. However, I’ve simplified the process by developing a tested and praised recipe. Alongside this recipe, I offer helpful demonstrations and notes to guide you through each step. Whether you’re celebrating Easter, a birthday, or simply craving a delicious dessert, this recipe has you covered with its delightful flavors and easy-to-follow instructions.
I prefer baking the meringue to ensure the egg whites cook properly, rather than broiling. It’s important to spread the meringue on the warm filling to seal the layers together and prevent separation.
Lemon Meringue Pie is the perfect dessert recipe for any season, with zesty and citrusy lemon curd and a fluffy layer of inside flaky crust. Make this lemon pie with buttery homemade pie crust or use store-bought if you are short on time. The lemon curd is rich and custardy with refreshing bold flavor from freshly squeezed lemon juice and zippy lemon zest. Each layer is satisfying to make, and you’ll love seeing the meringue expand into a cloud-like fluff. For more desserts made with meringue.
Ingredients
For crust preparation
- 150 gram graham cracker crumbs
- 50 gram powdered sugar
- 80 gram unsalted butter
For filling
- 200 gram powdered sugar
- 30 gram cornstarch
- 1.25 gram salt
- Water
- Fresh lemon juice
- 4 eggs yolk
- Unsalted butter
For meringue
- 4 eggs white
- Cream of tartar
- Powdered sugar
- vanilla extract
Let’s bake together
To achieve the perfect pie crust, start by preheating your oven to 425°F (218°C). While the oven is heating up, take your store-bought pie crust out of the package and follow the instructions provided for prebaking. This typically involves pre-baking the crust before adding the filling to ensure it’s fully cooked and has a crisp texture.
Next, lightly flour your work surface and roll out the pie dough into a 12-inch circle. This size allows for enough dough to fit a standard 9-inch pie dish with some overhang for crimping the edges. Carefully transfer the rolled-out dough into the pie dish, gently pressing it against the bottom and sides.
Once the dough is in place, use a sharp knife or kitchen scissors to trim any excess dough hanging over the edges of the pie dish. You can then fold the excess dough under itself and crimp the edges decoratively, if desired. This step gives your pie a neat and professional appearance.
After the edges are crimped, place the pie dish with the crust in the freezer for about 20 minutes. This chilling period helps prevent the crust from shrinking while it bakes and ensures it maintains its shape.
While the crust is chilling, prepare the oven for baking by preheating it to the specified temperature of 425°F (218°C). This high temperature helps the crust develop a golden brown color and ensures it bakes evenly.
Once the crust has chilled and the oven is preheated, it’s time to prebake the crust. Line the chilled pie crust with aluminum foil, pressing it gently against the bottom and sides, and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. The weights help prevent the crust from puffing up or shrinking during baking.
Place the pie dish with the foil-lined crust on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips, and transfer it to the preheated oven. Bake the crust for about 20 minutes, or until it turns a golden brown color. This indicates that the crust is fully cooked and ready for the filling.
Once the crust is baked to perfection, carefully remove it from the oven and allow it to cool completely before adding your desired filling. Whether you’re making a sweet fruit pie or a savory quiche, a properly prebaked crust provides the perfect foundation for your culinary creation. Enjoy your delicious homemade pie!
When your crust is baked, cool completely. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks. In a saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
In a saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Gradually whisk in water, lemon juice, and lemon zest until cornstarch is dissolved. Place the saucepan over medium heat. Whisk the mixture continuously as it heats up. After 5 minutes, the mixture should thicken and start to bubble. At this point, remove the saucepan from the heat to prevent overcooking. This lemony mixture is now ready to be incorporated into your recipe, adding a delightful citrusy flavor and acting as a thickening agent.
As you continue whisking, slowly pour 1 cup of the hot lemon mixture into the bowl containing the whisked egg yolks. This gradual addition helps to temper the egg yolks, meaning it raises their temperature gently without cooking them too rapidly or causing them to curdle. Tempering is crucial as it ensures a smooth incorporation of the eggs into the hot mixture without scrambling them. Additionally, this process helps blend the ingredients together seamlessly, preventing any lumps from
forming. It’s essential to pour the hot liquid slowly and whisk continuously to achieve a homogeneous mixture and maintain the desired texture for your recipe.
While whisking, slowly pour the tempered egg yolk mixture into the pot. Place the pot over medium-high heat. Keep whisking continuously until the mixture thickens enough that the whisk leaves a defined trace and the mixture starts to bubble, which usually takes about 2 minutes. Once thickened, remove the pot from the heat. Add the butter to the mixture and whisk until fully melted and combined. This step adds richness and creaminess to the filling, ensuring a smooth texture.
Pour the hot lemon filling into the pre-baked pie shell. Reduce the oven temperature to 177°C. In a mixing bowl, combine egg whites and cream of tartar. Using a mixer, beat the mixture on medium-high speed until frothy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until the mixture forms stiff, glossy peaks, which usually takes about 5 minutes. Once the meringue is ready, spread it evenly over the top of the lemon filling, ensuring it reaches the edges and touches the crust. Bake the pie for 15 to 20 minutes or until the meringue turns golden brown. This step adds a light and fluffy topping to complement the tangy lemon filling.
Conclusion of the recipe is that,
My recipe for homemade Lemon Meringue Pie is there! Needless to say, the pie turned out beautifully! I mean, it was almost too pretty to eat… well, almost too pretty to eat. Seriously, I could just make a picture of this pie my screen saver for the rest of time – although I think that could be considered a workplace hazard because it would most likely induce uncontrollable pie cravings all day long. Yeah, on second thought, for now, I think I will stick with my landscape pictures. Now, as happy as I was to make this pie for my dear friend’s Easter Dinner, I have to admit that it also made me very sad. Why? Well, because it meant that once it was all delicious and ready to go, she took the beautiful pie in all its glory with her… and I was subsequently left Lemon Meringue Pie-less. I’m not going to lie to you, I had a very hard time parting with this pie. When the time came, I almost called her and told her that I dropped it while trying to remove it from the oven after toasting the meringue… but in the end, I couldn’t do that to her. She is just too darn wonderful. But make no mistake, just because I had the willpower not to lie to my friend, doesn’t mean that it was easy – in fact, it may have been one of the hardest desserts I have ever had to part with. Note to self: when baking Lemon Meringue Pies for someone else, always bake another pie for me. Sweet lord, just talking about this pie is making me drool and I am seriously contemplating making another for Cole and me… hmm, a whole 10-inch pie for Cole and me to share… yup, this gives me an idea for tonight’s dessert. Please excuse me while I go make a very large pie for two! Happy Baking!
Importance of meringue:
Meringue is a fluffy mixture that is delicious on its own. It is also used to give mousses, macarons, and some buttercream frostings their light and fluffy textures. If you’ve never made meringue yourself, you might be surprised to learn that the main ingredients are simply egg whites and sugar.
FAQ’S
What is the nutritional value of lemon meringue pie?
“Lemon Meringue Pie (1 pie (9 in. dia)) contains 516.4g total carbs, 503.2g net carbs, 95.2g fat, 16.4g protein, and 2932 calories.”
What is a fact about meringue?
“It was invented in 1720 by the Swiss pastry chef Gasparini, although some sources say it already existed then and was only improved by this illustrious chef. French and Italian chefs each created their own version, so today there are three different types of meringue: French, Italian, and Swiss.”
How safe is the meringue?
“As a general rule, dry meringue shells, divinity candy, and 7-minute frosting are safe because they are made by combining the hot sugar syrup with beaten egg whites, so the egg whites are sufficiently heated. Meringue-topped pies and cookies will be safe when baked at 350 °F for 15 minutes.”
