Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie

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This classic lemon meringue pie recipe features a sweet and tart homemade lemon curd filling and a light and fluffy meringue topping. Bake this lemon meringue pie in the oven to insure the filling sets and creates a beautiful and impressive dessert with clear, sturdy, defined layers.

Welcome to #LemonWeek 2022 hosted by Rebecca from Devour Dinner and me! This week is sponsored by Rodelle and La Tourangelle. I may have received product samples from these sponsors to help in the creation of my recipes. All opinions are my own. Come join me and my fellow Lemon Week bloggers as we bring you recipes from appetizers to drinks to entrées and desserts!

Day 2 in Lemon Week 2022 might look intimidating, but hear me out…. I am going to help you make the most perfect lemon meringue pie. Don’t believe me? Well, believe me.

It took me some fails at this to get everything just right for you, so please know this easy lemon meringue pie recipe really is going to give you something you possibly never thought you’d be able to make.

I promise, you can do this!

Oh, and bonus points? We’re getting a two-fer here– this pie is May’s Pie of The Month!

Finally, it’s topped with a fluffy meringue which is one of those things that is simply a masterpiece if you get it just right. And guess what? I’m going to help you through that!

When it comes to traditional pie recipes, typically nothing is wasted– a curd or custard filling that’s made with just yolks is often topped with a meringue made from the leftover egg whites. Those egg whites get combined with a touch of sugar and beat into a light and fluffy meringue that is totally show-stopping.

The idea of minimal waste is even more so true of this bright, refreshing and classic lemon meringue pie with lemon curd than many other pies. It uses basic staple ingredients and avoids waste by using both parts of the egg, as well as both the rind and juice of fresh, ripe lemons.

It’s flavorful, simple, and nostalgic to the core.

Ingredients for Easy Lemon Meringue Pie

I’m pretty sure the popular adage “easy as pie” is based solely on the pie crust aspect, because the rest of the pie doesn’t always seem so easy. But the crust? Once you’ve had a few practice runs, this portion is a total cinch.

And hey, guess what? If you don’t want to go the homemade route, I’m not going to force you to. Feel free to use a premade crust instead!

I just recommend transferring it to a standard pie plate instead of leaving it in the foil pan. Those foil pans are pretty shallow, and won’t hold all of the delicious lemon curd filling and meringue that goes into this pie.

All of this comes together to make an incredibly dense, silky, beautiful layer of lemon curd. In fact, I’m totally drooling over it right now and I might need to sneak off and grab a slice.

You’ll also need some cream of tartar, a bit of sugar, and a touch of salt. This will give your meringue a thick, glossy texture that is absolutely perfect for topping a layer of warm lemon curd.

While there is some wiggle room within those components as to what kind of techniques are used to produce different results (Swiss meringue versus standard meringue, for example), all versions of the pie follow the same basic blueprint.

This recipe uses a homemade pie crust made with both butter and shortening, a lemon curd filling, and an airy meringue topping. Everything is baked together to set the layers and brown the meringue perfectly.

This is my take on the classic lemon meringue pie, made completely from scratch, although there are a few shortcuts and make ahead options you can take advantage of along the way.

In the meantime, let’s get started where all good pie recipes start off: the crust.

If you’ve been around here for any amount of time, you probably know which one I’m going to advocate for, right? Yes! Homemade always beats store bought, but of course I won’t judge you if you want to take a few shortcuts.

You see, with a totally from scratch recipe like this lemon meringue pie with homemade lemon curd AND homemade meringue, it just seems a bit odd to go with the premade crust. Do you see what I mean?

My homemade pie crust is hands down my favorite all purpose crust recipe. It works equally as well for savory pies (see my double crust chicken pot pie) as it does for sweet pies (like the popular coconut custard pie).

All you need to do is whisk together a few simple ingredients (flour, a little bit of sugar, and salt), cut in some ultra cold butter and shortening, and then add a little bit of ice water until everything comes together.

Once your pie crust comes together in a solid mass, divide it into two and shape each one into a disc. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let chill for at least 2 hours.

Then, when you’re ready to get started roll one half of the dough out, and fit it gently into a pie plate.

If that run down seems entirely too simple, don’t worry! I have an entire post dedicated to showing you exactly how to make a homemade pie crust with lots of pictures to show you all of the step-by-step instructions. So if you’re new to this, that’s totally ok. You’ve got this!

A blind bake is when you bake your pie crust for a super short period of time. This browns the crust ever so lightly, but mostly it is to ensure your pie crust bakes evenly after being filled.

It isn’t too uncommon for curd and custard based pies to have a short baking time. When pies have a shorter baking time, the crust runs a risk of not getting baked all the way through and can end up soggy.

To prevent this, we do a blind bake, which prebakes the crust before filling.

Then, we add in the prepared filling and add everything back into the oven for a second time. It sounds fancy, but it’s really quite simple!

To blind bake your pie crust, line it with parchment paper and fill the parchment with pie beads. This helps hold the crust down and prevents it from bubbling up and baking unevenly.

Bake your crust partially in an oven that has been preheated to 375°F (191ºC) for 15 minutes with the rack moved to the lowest position. Then, remove the pie from the oven and remove the parchment paper and weights. Return the crust to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Remove the partially baked crust from the oven and reduce the temperature to 350°F (171ºC). Set aside while you get started on the lemon curd filling.

Be sure to avoid metal bowls, as they can leave a metallic taste when they are used with acidic ingredients like lemon.

Bring the water to a boil, and then reduce to a gentle simmer.

Add the egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt in the top portion of your double boiler. Use a silicone whisk to whisk everything together. Like I mentioned with the metal bowl, you want to avoid a metal whisk to prevent a metallic tasting lemon curd.

Whisk the mixture continuously as it cooks, ensuring that you’re always keeping it moving. This prevents the eggs from cooking through or curdling. Whisking frequently keeps the heat even, and helps the lemon curd thicken up nicely.

Continue whisking over the double boiler until it becomes thick and foamy. This should take about 10-15 minutes, but it may vary a little in either direction. Your lemon curd should reach a minimum temperature of 160°F (71ºC), indicating it’s totally safe to eat.

Remove your double boiler from the heat, and add the butter, 2 pieces at a time (approximately 2 Tablespoons), whisking them in until mostly melted. Then, add 2 more pieces and repeat until the butter is fully incorporated.

Add the cream of tartar and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Then, increase the speed to high and beat until soft peaks form. This should take about 4 additional minutes, but the most important thing to do is watch for those soft peaks.

Soft peaks is just a fancy way of saying “the egg whites stay mostly standing when you pull the whisk out.” They will likely lean over a bit, or start to shrink back, but they will mostly stay in place. This is the exact point you’ll want to move onto the next step.

Add in your sugar and salt, and then continue to beat on high speed until the mixture turns glossy and stiff peaks form. This should take an additional 3-4 minutes.

Stiff peaks will stand up straight and stay in place when you pull the whisk up, in contrast with the soft peaks we were looking for earlier.

One thing to be sure of is to spread the meringue all the way to the edges. You want it to touch the crust, since it will then form a sort of seal and prevent the meringue from shrinking or the lemon curd from browning.

Baking the pie in this manner gives sturdy and distinct layers, without slipping and sliding of the meringue on top of the lemon curd filling.

Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe Easy tips for success

An important thing to note is that I want you to promise me you’ll only use fresh lemons. Ok? Pinky promise? Because it makes a difference. A BIG one.

Since we need both lemon zest and lemon juice to give the curd the best flavor possible, it just doesn’t make sense to try and skimp by on bottled lemon juice anyway. So… No excuses!

You’ll need about 3 large lemons to get enough zest and about ½ cup of juice. I always like to zest my lemons first, and then cut them in half and juice them. It’s a lot easier than dealing with a lumpy and wet lemon that has already been squeezed.

When the pie is done, remove it from the oven and place it on a wire rack. Allow it to cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour before transferring to the refrigerator.

After the chilling time is up, you’re all good to go ahead and slice and serve up a slice of this classic and refreshing pie.

This weeping generally starts after 12 hours or so, so if you’re looking to serve guests, I highly recommend making the pie the night before or the morning of.

This should give you plenty of time to get the pie all chilled and ready for slicing (and eating), without the meringue starting to weep.

While you’re at it, you can prepare some homemade pie crust and roll it out and blind bake it just before you’re ready to do your final bake and bring everything together.

To prepare the lemon curd ahead of time, follow the instructions in my homemade lemon curd post for storing the fresh curd.

The gist is basically that once you have made the curd, you must cover it gently with some plastic wrap. This involves pressing it down to meet the top layer of the curd, thus sealing it and preventing a film from forming. But there’s a lot more to it than that, so be sure to check out the detailed post for specific instructions.

When you’re ready to assemble your pie, you will need to gently reheat the curd. This will prevent your meringue from sliding around, and ensure that all of your layers are distinct and sturdy.

To warm up your curd, add it to a small saucepan and heat it gently over low-medium heat.

Then, add your warmed curd to the partially baked crust, and follow the rest of the instructions, including topping with meringue and chilling before slicing.

See? Easy peasy, lemon squeezy! See what I did there?

Tuesday #LemonWeek Recipes

• Betty Crocker Lemon Bars by Best Cookie Recipes
• Pink Lemonade Vodka Cocktail by The Fresh Cooky
• Lemon Ice Cream by A Day In The Life On The Farm
• Shaker Style Lemon Pie by Jen Around The World