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Home » Baking » Lemon Meringue Pie

March 18, 2012 By Janice Pattie 14 Comments

Lemon Meringue Pie

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Lemon Meringue Pie is a classic dessert. It combines a crisp pastry case with sharp lemon custard and billowing meringue peaks. It’s always popular and can be served as a dessert or with afternoon tea.

Lemon Meringue Pie

This is a recipe to show off your baking skills. Don’t let that put you off because I will take you through the process step by step. There are three elements to a good Lemon Meringue Pie.

First, you need a good blind-baked pastry case. The pastry is filled with a thick lemon custard with a good tangy lemon flavour. Finally, we come to the meringue which is crisp and chewy on top and marshmallow-soft underneath.

How do I choose a good lemon?

Choose an unwaxed organic lemon. I use the zest of the lemon in the Lemon Meringue Pie so you don’t want wax or pesticides in your lemon filling.

Pick up the lemon and hold it, it should feel heavy. A heavy fruit has a thinner skin and more juice it has. A ripe lemon is firm, with a fine-textured peel and a deep yellow color.

Eggs and whisk

What kind of eggs should I use?

The yolks from your eggs are used in the lemon custard and the whites to make the meringue. Use eggs that are 3-4 days old to get maximum volume in your meringue.  If you have your own hens or buy from a farm, make sure you keep the eggs for a couple of days before making the meringues.

Carefully separate the whites from the yolks, even a speck of egg yolk will stop your meringues from beating to glossing peaks.

Pinch of sugar

What kind of sugar should I use in my meringue?

Use caster or superfine sugar to make the meringue. The sugar should be dry and at room temperature, if there are any lumps, then use a sieve and sift the sugar into a bowl before adding to the beaten egg white.

rolling pin and pastry
Image by Conger Design from Pixabay

What kind of pastry should I use to make Lemon Meringue Pie?

Use shortcrust pastry to make the pastry case. Shortcrust is the easiest pastry to make and I take you through the steps to make light, crisp and crumbly pastry.

However, if you don’t have time or decide not to make your own pastry, then you can buy a ready-made shortcrust or a ready-made sweet pastry case.

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Lemon Meringue Pie

Lemon Meringue Pie

Janice Pattie
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Ingredients
 

Pastry base

  • 225 g plain flour
  • 150 g butter diced
  • 25 g caster sugar
  • 1 egg yolk

Lemon filling

  • 2 large lemons
  • 40 g cornflour
  • 300 ml water
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 75 g caster sugar

Meringue topping

  • 3 egg whites
  • 125 g caster sugar

Instructions
 

For the pastry base

  • Sift the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
  • Stir in the caster sugar, then mix to a dough with the egg yolk and a little cold water if necessary.
  • Wrap in clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
  • Roll out on a lightly dusted work surface and use to line a 9 inch loose-bottomed flan tin.
  • Bake blind, covering the base with baking paper or foil and fill with baking beans.
  • Bake in a preheated oven at 180C for 20 minutes.
  • Remove the beans and paper and return to the oven for 5-10 minutes until lightly coloured.

For the lemon filling

  • Grate the rind and squeeze the juice from the lemons.
  • Put the juice and rind in a bowl with the cornflour. Add two tbsp from the water and blend to form a paste.
  • Boil the rest of the water and pour onto the cornflour mixture. Put the mixture into a pan and bring to the boil stirring all the time, simmer for about 3 minutes until it is thick.
  • Remove from the heat and add the egg yolks and sugar, then return to the stove and heat through for a minute.
  • Remove from the heat and leave to cool for a minute. Then spoon into the baked pastry case.

For the meringue

  • Heat the oven to 160 C
  • Whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.
  • Add the sugar a teaspoon at a time, whisking in well after each spoonful.
  • Spoon over the lemon filling spreading right up to the edge of the pastry.
  • Bake for 30 minutes until the meringue is pale golden brown.
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Filed Under: Baking, Dessert Tagged With: lemon, meringue, Pie

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Donkey says

    March 18, 2012 at 8:53 pm

    looks really lovely – like lemon curd, I wasn't a fan as a kid, but i've grown up(not that my friends would agree) and will have to try this very soon.
    I also agree with you regarding the amount of work invovled, but it looks worth it 🙂

    Reply
  2. Andrew Davies says

    March 18, 2012 at 8:58 pm

    Along with Treacle Tart, probably my fave dessert ever, looks wonderful

    Reply
  3. Net says

    March 18, 2012 at 9:08 pm

    Check!

    Reply
  4. Helen T says

    March 18, 2012 at 9:20 pm

    Can't beat a great retro pudding, and this looks fabulous!

    Reply
  5. Garden Tea Cakes and Me says

    March 18, 2012 at 9:57 pm

    Lemon Meringue pie one of my favourites particularly in the Summer. Looks wonderful!

    Reply
  6. Susan's blog says

    March 18, 2012 at 10:07 pm

    Yum!
    Whats not to like about that, so love it! x

    Reply
  7. Baking Addict says

    March 18, 2012 at 10:12 pm

    It's a great M bake so thank you for entering! I LOVE lemon meringue pie but have never made my own. I really should or I'll just pop over to yours and get you to bake me one 🙂 X

    Reply
  8. Working london mummy says

    March 18, 2012 at 10:29 pm

    Meringue is always good in my book. This looks fab!

    Reply
  9. Chele says

    March 19, 2012 at 6:58 am

    This is my Granny's fave dessert. And what a beauty yours has turned out ;0)

    Reply
  10. TangolikeRaindrop says

    March 19, 2012 at 3:23 pm

    Mmm yummy! I ~love~ lemon meringue pie!

    Reply
  11. Grazing Kate says

    March 19, 2012 at 10:09 pm

    looks so good – I tried making 'apple meringue pie' last week and it was a bit of an 'epic fail' as my 10 year old son would say. Weird recipe – most of the apple disappeared and my meringue was nowhere near as good as yours. I shall consult your blog post next time!

    Reply
  12. A Trifle Rushed says

    March 20, 2012 at 12:45 pm

    How totally delicious. I can still remember the first lemon meringue pie I made with my mother, I must make one again soon. Yours looks so fabulous.

    Reply
  13. Karen S Booth says

    March 20, 2012 at 3:38 pm

    I LOVE lemon meringue pie and yours is a wee stunner Janice!
    Karen

    Reply
  14. cooking with curls says

    August 15, 2013 at 11:41 pm

    I absolutely love lemon! I have not made a lemon meringue pie in years. Yours looks so delicious I think that I should make one soon 🙂

    Reply

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Janice Pattie - Farmersgirl Kitchen

Hello, I’m Janice, I live on a farm and I love to cook and bake. My aim is to be your friend in the kitchen, providing simple and delicious recipes, friendly advice, inspiration, and honest reviews. Read more on my About page.

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