Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe
Preparation Time: 1 hour 30 minutes / set aside: 5 hours
|Servings: 12
Ingredients
- Pastry
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
- 1/4 cup cold vegetable shortening or lard, cubed
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- ice water
- Lemon Filling
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 egg yolks, lightly beaten
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 3 tbsp butter, cubed
- Meringue:
- 5 egg whites
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/3 cup instant-dissolving (fruit/berry) sugar
Preparation
Pastry:
- Whisk together flour and salt in a bowl.
- Cut in cubes of butter and shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with a few larger pieces.
- In glass measure, whisk egg yolk with lemon juice; add enough ice water to make 1/3 cup.
- Whisk to combine, then drizzle over flour mixture, tossing with fork and adding up to 1 tsp more cold water, if necessary, until ragged dough forms. Shape into disc; wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes. (Or refrigerate up to 3 days)
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- On a floured workspace, roll out pastry to 1/8| thickness. Fit into 9" pie plate. If necessary, trim edge to leave 1" overhang. Fold overhang under and flute edge. Line pastry with foil; fill with pie weights.
- Bake on bottom rack for 15 minutes.
- Remove foil and pie weights; using fork, prick pastry all over. Bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool in pan on rack.
Lemon Filling:
- Meanwhile, in a saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch and salt; whisk in 2 cups water. Bring the mixture to a boil on medium-high heat, whisking constantly.
- Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer, continute to whisk constantly, for 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Gradually whisk the sugar mixture into egg yolks; whisk back into pan and cook on medium heat, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes.
- Remove from heat; whisk in lemon zest, lemon juice and butter until butter is melted.
- Scrape into bowl; let cool for 30 minutes.
- Scrape mixture into cooled pie shell, and smooth the surface.
Meringue:
- In bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form.
- Beat in sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, until stiff peaks form.
- Pipe the meringue evenly over the center.
Pie:
- Bake in oven preheated to 400°F until meringue is golden, 5 to 6 minutes.
- Let cool in pan on rack until completely set, about 5 hours.
- Servir!
