World’s Best Lemon Meringue Pie
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Happy Pie Day!
While getting the boy ready for school today I received a text from my hubby wishing me a happy pie day. It had completely slipped my mind that today was pie day! 3.14
I have been wanting to post the recipe for my lemon meringue pie for quite some time now so after giving it real thought (about 20 seconds to be exact) I decided to quickly get to work making a pie to celebrate the day! Why couldn’t I have thought of this last night instead of at 7:00 this morning?
Making a pie is no quick task. I wondered how I would pull this off and present this recipe to you right here on pie day. Lucky for me, I had all the ingredients already; a friend had given me ripe lemons off her tree and in general I like to keep all the ingredients I’d need for a lemon meringue pie on hand because you never know when life is gonna throw you lemons and you’re gonna need to make lemon meringue pie, am I right?
Lemon meringue pie is hands down my all-time favorite pie. I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that this is the THE BEST lemon meringue pie you will ever eat. Trust me, I’ve tried a lot of lemon pies and they are all missing something. This is my grandma’s recipe and if you have paid attention to any of my other food posts you’ve noticed that I mention my grandma quite a bit. I should’ve just named that section of my blog after her, for all the good recipes she’s given me! Grandma was the master at taking a regular old recipe and doctoring it up to be something special.
Luckily, I perfected my lemon meringue pie skills when I was a young teenage girl, taught by my mom and grandma. My great-grandparents had a huge lemon tree and GG knew how much I loved to make lemon pie, so she always sent me home with fresh lemons. I always made one pie for me and one pie for them, leaving half of their pie free of meringue because GG didn’t like it. Grandpa loved it, though! Oh, the good old days!
There is a learning curve to making lemon meringue; it can be tricky. You have to worry about the filling setting up just right (you don’t want a runny pie!) and most people struggle with getting the meringue just right. Grandma taught me the secret to making meringue and I’m going to share that with you today.
Let’s get started!
Here’s an overview of what you’ll need:
The vanilla goes with the meringue; I put it in the wrong picture. Oops. You’ll also need cream of tartar for the meringue.
Before you get started on the pie itself, you need to make the crust. The crust for this pie has to be cooked first. So get yourself a pre-made shell or hop onto my post for my grandma’s foolproof pie crust recipe. Make sure that the pie shell is completely cooled before you fill it with any lemon filling!! This is really important. If you don’t let the pie shell cool completely first, you will probably end up with a runny pie. Trust me, I’ve made a few in my day. While we are talking about pie crust, I have to show you the cutest pie dish that Jeff got me for Christmas. I am a Rae Dunn lover. How cute is this?
Pie Filling
Once your pie crust is out of the oven and cooling, start prepping your ingredients. Juice fresh lemons; that lemon juice from the bottle won’t cut it. Freshly squeezed lemons is the only way to go. If you don’t have an electric juicer, do yourself a favor and get one! I put one on our wedding registry (planning ahead to make my pies!) and it’s been the gift that keeps on giving, almost 16 years later!
You will also need to grate the outside rind/peel of the lemon. I use a tiny grater because I don’t want big chunks of peel.
Separate your eggs; the yolks are for the pie and the whites are for the meringue. I like using an egg separator, but if you have a better way to do it, then go for it! Put the egg yolks in a glass bowl and keep the egg whites in a mug or glass cup and stick that in the fridge. You are going to want your egg whites nice and cold.
Cut your butter and then put the butter, juice, rind and eggs off to the side for later.
Measure your sugar and cornstarch and dump them into a medium sized pot. Stir the two together and then add your water. Over medium heat, cook the mixture until it starts to boil, stirring constantly.
You will notice that the mixture will start to gel. Don’t be alarmed when you see thick pieces floating around in your pot; that’s what is supposed to happen. Once it is all thickened and jelly-like, it will be at boiling point. Boil your mixture for one minute, and them remove it from the heat.
Now, pay close attention to this part. You need to merge the mixture with the eggs, but if you just dump the egg yolks in there, they will cook and you’ll have scrambled egg lemon pie. No Bueno. To mix the two together without cooking the eggs too fast, pour the hot mixture into the bowl of egg yolks one spoonful at a time, mixing as you go. Do this until about half the pot of boiled mixture is incorporated into the egg yolk mixture. At that point, you can add the egg yolk mixture back into the pot with the rest of the boiled mixture.
Turn the heat back on, bring the mixture back to a boil and cook it for one more minute, stirring constantly. Then, remove from heat and add your butter, juice and rind. Stir until the butter is melted and it is completely mixed through.
Now, pour your lemon filling into the cooled pie shell, spreading it evenly.
Meringue
Now I am going to share with you the secret to making meringue. There are two things that are helpful in making a successful meringue:
- Cold
- Patience
Let’s talk about #1: Cold. For some reason the meringue does better when it is cold. Remember when I told you to put the egg whites in the fridge? Put the mixing bowl in the fridge too. Yep, you heard me. Whatever bowl you are using, stick it in the fridge while you make your filling so that it’s nice and cold.
And now #2: Patience. It takes time for meringue to stiffen. Give it some time and don’t fret! I think some people give up too soon, thinking it’s flopped. It needs a good 5-10 minutes of mixing; closer to 10, really. And always mix on high speed.
Preheat your oven to 400 while making the meringue. Add the egg whites and cream of tartar to your mixer. Mix the two together until it is nice and frothy.
Once frothy, gradually add your sugar, one TB at a time.
Once it’s starting to thicken up, you can add your vanilla. Keep mixing on high speed until stiff peaks form. You can test that out by sticking a spoon against the meringue and if it stays standing up, it’s ready to go.
Spread the meringue across the pie, making sure to seal the meringue along the edge of the crust.
Form peaks with your spoon by lightly pressing down on the meringue and then bringing your spoon back up (just like you did on your test when you checked that the meringue was done).
Stick the pie in the oven for 6-8 minutes, until the tops of the meringue are golden brown.
Once out of the oven, make sure that the pie cools completely to room temperature before putting it in the fridge. Putting it in the fridge while it’s warm will cause your juice to separate. Be patient and let it cool first. Then, let it set in the fridge for a couple of hours before cutting into it.
And now the hardest part of all…trying not to eat it all up in a day!!! I could seriously live off of lemon meringue pie. Yum.
One more quick tip for you on how to cut the pie. I’ve spent many years struggling to get the perfect cut through meringue. For the longest time, the meringue would stick to the knife and it ended up looking pretty gross by the time I was done. Then I learned a trick for a clean cut: place a serrated knife in a mug of boiling hot water and leave it there for 30 seconds. Remove and wipe with a paper towel. Then slice! (Repeat if necessary between slices).
Let me know how it works out for you!
What’s your favorite pie? Tell me in the comments!!
| Servings |
slices
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- 1 pre-baked pie shell
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup cornstartch
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 TB lemon rind, grated
- 4 egg yolks, slightly beaten
- 4 egg whites, cold
- 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
- 3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sugar
Ingredients
Lemon Filling
Meringue
|
|
- First, prepare all of your ingredients. Pre-bake a pie shell and let cool. Juice and zest lemons, separate your eggs, and measure out your other ingredients. Put your egg yolks in a small glass bowl and set aside.
- Mix sugar and cornstarch in a pan. Then, add water. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil for 1 minute and then remove from heat.
- Add part of your mixture to the bowl with egg yolks, one spoonful at a time and stirring as you pour. Once you have about 1/3-1/2 of the mixture stirred in with the egg yolks, add the egg yolk mixture back into the pot. Stir until mixed through.
- Bring your mixture back back to a boil and boil for one more minute, stirring constantly. Then, turn off heat and add lemon zest, juice and butter. Mix until incorporated.
- Pour your filling into a cooled pie shell. Make your meringue.
- In a cold mixing bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed in a kitchen aid or with a hand mixer until frothy.
- Add sugar, 1 T at a time. Beat until stiff peaks form.
- Add vanilla.
- Spread over pie, forming peaks with the end of your spoon.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 6-8 mins.
- Let your pie cool to room temperature before refrigerating, then refrigerate for a couple of hours before serving.
My pie came out runny.
It tasted good and looked great but we had to eat it with a spoon. It cooked it for what seemed like forever!
Hi Runae! Did you make sure that the pie crust was completely cooled before pouring in the lemon filling? If the shell is warm at all, your pie will be runny. Also, did you make sure that once the filling hit the boiling point, that you let it boil for a full minute before removing it from the heat? Those are just a couple of thoughts on why it may have come out runny. I had a few runny pies back in my learning days…it takes a little practice 😉
Runae, I had the same problem and after doing some research found out that if you don’t let your pie cool completely to room temperature before putting in the fridge, the juice will separate.
You are absolutely right. I included that note in the bottom of my post 🙂
My tips brown really quickly and was only in the oven for about 3 1/2 min Is that ok as there are eggs in the Meringue
You could always try (next time) turning down your heat a little bit and see if that helps it to not brown as fast. I think that you will be okay though; if it’s browning then it’s probably cooking okay 🙂
Hi. I’m based in the UK. What size pie shell did you use? (So I know what size to make my pastry base!) thanks.
I used a 9″ pie shell 🙂
I love this recipe I followed it completely and it turned out perfect. Thank you so much for this recipe!
I’m so glad you love it!!! Thanks for giving it a try <3
Is the meringue supposed to be hardend all the way through or still sticky once you take it from the oven? I tried it as my first lemon meringue pie ever today! I havent even tasted one before! So I’m not sure what it’s supposed to look like!
Hi Sarah! It will kind of still be sticky inside. The tips should be a golden brown color, and that’s how you know it’s done 🙂 Hope it turned out good for you!
I have made this recipe 2x now. The first time was my first time ever attempting to make meringue. I make a lot of pies, in fact a young friend of mine calls me her Fairy Pie Mother but meringue has always intimidated me because I’m a perfectionist. If I can’t make it perfectly, I don’t make it. But since we’ve been social distancing due to Covid-19 in New York, I decided it was time to conquer my fear. So, here are a couple of thing I learned that made my 2nd pie closer to my goal. First, this is a great recipe but it’s important to read the step by step instructions in the blog post and not just the ones in the recipe. Second, if you ask 10 people the best way to make meringue you will get 10 answers. I know because first attempt was good but not perfect do I asked. Here’s what I learned that made my second attempt better. Most importantly, I recommend using caster sugar. It’s a very fine sugar. I got mine from a cake decorating store but you may be able to find it at larger groceries or maybe Michael’s. Next add it VERY slowly you’re going to whip your meringue at least five minutes so no need to rush. The first time I added 1 tsp at a time as per the recipe but I just kind of dumped them in one at a time. Drizzle the sugar in a little at a time instead. These two steps will keep your meringue from being gritty. As recommended cool your pie crust completely before adding the lemon filling and cool the completed pie for several hours before putting it in the refrigerator. If not it will get runny. Do all this and you really will have the World’s Best Lemon Meringue Pie!
Making meringue is definitely a learning curve. I haven’t ever had a problem with it being gritty once it’s done (it is while it’s being whipped), but I like your suggestion of caster sugar. I will for sure check that out! Thank you for your suggestions, and I’m glad you’ve perfected it <3
I followed your directions but while bringing the filling back to a second boil (after egg yolks were added) the filling burned.. badly. It doesn’t say to stir constantly or what temp to bring it to a boil at. Should I bring to a boil at a low temperature? My husband is running out to the store for more ingredients now. Thanks!
Hi Karen. Yes, you always stir constantly or it will burn. You just bring it back to a boil (it should still be very hot, so it shouldn’t take long to get it back to a boil) and boil it for one minute. You are basically just making sure that the egg is cooked all the way through. Hope it turns out for you!! <3
Perfect, thank you! Still waiting for it to cool, but it looks beautiful.
Great! I hope you enjoyed it!!
thank you for posting this in such detail! I was wondering, is there a chance of over beating the meringue? also, do you find that this recipe makes way more meringue than you need?
Hmm…to be honest, I am not sure if you can overbeat the meringue. I always just watch it and once it forms stiff peaks I know it’s ready. I have never overbeat it. And no, I don’t think that it makes too much. I always use it all and make a thick layer of meringue, but I suppose it depends on how much meringue you like on top! 🙂
I have an electric stove, will the meringue bake right? Or does this recipe only work with a gas stove?
Hi! I have never made it in an electric stove, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work 🙂
My pie came out great and was a big hit. The curd was firm and the entire pie was delicious. The only problem I had was that the meringue separated from the curd when serving. I think I let the curd cool too much before I put the meringue on top. Other than that, it was great. My late grandmother, who was an expert at making lemon meringue pies would have been proud !
I’m glad it was a hit!! Yes, next time you don’t need to let the curd cool. Put the meringue on right away and put it in the oven. Then, let it cool completely before putting it in the fridge. Hope that helps! 🙂
Like!! Great article post.Really thank you! Really Cool.
Made this pie today. I’ve made many lemon meringue pies through the years, but the explanations and directions with this pie made it easy – I learned some new tricks! Made it exactly as directed … but had to watch the meringue, as the “tips” got brown pretty quickly. Beautiful! Great recipe – Amazingly delicious. This will be my new “go to” lemon meringue recipe!! Thank you for writing and sharing such a great recipe.
Thank you for the feedback! I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
I just made this pie and I’m so excited to taste it. It’s the most beautiful pie I’ve ever made in my life. All the tips in the post were so helpful.
Thank you for sharing. Gotta love those grandma recipes from years past!
I’m so glad to hear this! Hope it tasted as good as it looked (I’m sure it did!!) Thanks for visiting my blog! <3
Hi
I was wondering how you keep the bottom of the crust from getting soggy. Also do you pour the boiling hot curd into the cooled crust?
Hi! Always let the pie crust cool before pouring the hot curd into it 🙂 And then let it cool to room temperature before putting it in the fridge. I’ve never had a problem with soggy crust.