Perfect Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe
If you’ve ever struggled with making lemon meringue pie–whether it’s a filling that’s too runny or a meringue that’s too watery–today’s recipe is for you! Honestly, I avoided this recipe for for too long. Like my red velvet cake (took me years to approach that one!), I neglected to develop a lemon meringue pie recipe simply because it was a dish that I just didn’t love. In my experience, this pie was never pleasant to eat; I disliked the loose, watery lemon filling and the weepy layer that always puddled between the meringue and the filling. The texture just threw everything off for me! But, as with that red velvet cake, my sister insisted I needed to share a version. So I got to work, and in the trenches (no, seriously, it felt like we were in the trenches), I discovered solutions for the common problems that pop up making lemon meringue pie. I now understand why the meringue is so often weepy–I can recall a particularly sad slice with a deflated, wet meringue that puddled all over the plate. Even Luke, typically aggressive with his dessert fork, wouldn’t dare touch this pie. “Mom, this is disgusting” he said. And he was right. It took a lot of pies gone wrong, tried-and-true pie recipes, and even my grandmother’s pie recipe carved on her pie plate (I was SO SAD that one didn’t work out–I even tried it several times just to be sure!) in order to arrive where we are today. But wow, was it worth it!
What to expect from my perfected recipe:
Flawless, tart, bright and easy filling with true, real lemon flavor (no box mixes). It’s firm enough to slice, but still soft enough to maintain that classic texture and melt in your mouth. Oh, and there’s no need to temper any eggs to make it! Plenty of meringue that billows beautifully over the pie layer. I designed my recipe to have a generous amount of meringue for making those gorgeous peaks and whorls over the pie, because what’s a lemon meringue pie without them? Absolutely no weepy meringue. This was so important to me with this recipe. Now you will have to roll up your sleeves and dirty an extra dish, but the payoff is worth it. It’s not ridiculous or complicated work, but it does require love. Good pies take some effort! Crisp, buttery crust. We can’t forget the crust! Blind baking the pie crust beforehand means there will be no soggy bottoms here, thank goodness.
Let’s get baking!
What You Need
My lemon meringue recipe sticks with classic, basic ingredients. Here are the most important ones we’ll be using.
Lemons. Fresh lemons are a must here–bottled lemon juice simply won’t cut it. Make sure you zest your lemons before juicing them. Eggs. We’ll be using 5 whole eggs in this lemon meringue pie recipe. The yolks will go in the lemon filling (it’s similar to lemon curd!) and the whites will go in the meringue topping (so no waste or leftovers!). Make sure when you separate them that you don’t let any yolk get into your whites, or you will have to start over. Also, using eggs that are at room temperature, as they tend to whip faster and higher than cold egg whites. Cornstarch. This works to help stabilize and thicken the base of the pie, keeping it from being too loose or runny. Cream of tartar. If you’ve made meringue cookies or macarons, you know how helpful cream of tartar can be for stabilizing egg whites. We’ll use it here for the exact same reason. Vanilla. Many recipes skip the vanilla in the meringue, but I think it adds an extra special, almost marshmallow-like touch. Pie dough. As always, I recommend making your own pie crust instead of using a store-bought crust. Even better, use my pie crust recipe! It’s not as easy as store-bought, but it’s so good and full of flavor. And it’s practically foolproof, since it comes together in the food processor.
SAM’S TIP: Even the tiniest drop of egg yolk can prevent your egg whites from whipping to stiff peaks, so be very careful when separating your eggs! Also, make sure the bowl and utensils you plan to use for your meringue are completely clean, dry, and grease-free. Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the end of the post!
How to Make Lemon Meringue Pie
Blind-Bake the Crust
Make the Lemon Filling
Since I made the meringue a tad more complicated, I wanted to find other ways to simplify the pie, and I was able to do this in the filling. My version comes together with no need to temper eggs (this method is similar to what I use for my pastry cream, and it works like a dream!)
Make the Meringue
To prevent the meringue from weeping and to help it hold its shape, we’re technically using a Swiss meringue (whereas most lemon meringue pies use French meringue like you’d find in my macarons or meringues). If you’ve made my marshmallow frosting or Swiss meringue buttercream, you’ve done this before; it’s not complicated and is a great way to stabilize the meringue so you don’t have to worry about undercooking it in the oven (a big weeping culprit). Swiss meringue also stands up better to humidity and other issues that trigger weeping! SAM’S TIP: Make sure the bottom of your bowl doesn’t touch the water when place in your double boiler; it should stay suspended! I often use my stand mixer bowl and a medium saucepan, then I can just dry off the bottom of the bowl and place it on my stand mixer with the whisk attachment to easily make my meringue. I know many of you have been looking forward to this recipe, and I can’t wait to hear how you like it! Enjoy! Let’s cook together! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on YouTube where I have over 500 free video tutorials! 💜
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