The Perfect Lemon Meringue Pie

I’ve been longing for the perfect lemon meringue pie . This pie is my husband’s favourite pie , so of course , being a good wife that i am , i really wanted to make one that is perfect . I’ve made lemon meringue pie 2 times in the past few weeks , both times , there was always something that went wrong .. whether the filling isn’t thick enough , or maybe the meringue shrunk , or not enough filling ..

So .. last night , i decided let’s try to make it again , and this time , make it RIGHT !!

Well i think i did !! NO no .. i know i did well !!! So below is a somewhat a tutorial of how to make the perfect lemon meringue pie .

The Pie Crust , make this ahead , you need :

1 1/4 cup of all purpose flour

1 stick of COLD unsalted butter

pinch of salt

1 tbsp. of sugar

2 tbsp. of ICE COLD water ( you might need more just add by tsp. until you reach the right consistency )

I am using food processor for this , it saves me a lot of time , i am sure you can do it manually too . Mix the flour , sugar and salt , pulse until it blends well . . Then , add the butter ( cut in cubes before adding in ) pulse few more times until they mix , and resembles coarsed peas . Then add the cold water while keeping the processor running .Don’t overmix it , if it’s too dry add more water , don’t add too much or it will become too sticky .

Once they look like this , it’s time to stop pulsing . And form into a ball , flatten into a disk , wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes . You can do this a day ahead too .

When you’re ready , roll out your crust with rolling pin , transfer to the pie pan . Poke holes everywhere with fork , add parchment paper and then pie weights . Or used buttered foil , before adding pie weights .

For more details about the pie crust , go to my other recipe Pecan Pie , that has more details picture to make the crust . Bake the crust at 400 F , about 20 minutes then take out the pie weights , and bake extra 15 minutes . Take them out and let it cool .

For the Lemon Filling , you need :

1 1/3 cups of lemon juice , about 15-16 small lemons

2 cups of sugar

8 tbsp. of cornstarch

8 eggs (reserved the egg whites for the meringue )

In a small pot , whisk together the sugar and cornstarch . Then slowly pour the lemon juice , keep whisking until it’s all mixed well . Start cooking them , medium low heat . Beat the 8 eggs , on a small bowl , then start tempering the eggs . ( Add little bit of lemon juice sugar mixture that started to warm , and mix with the eggs , then pour the tempered eggs mixture into the pot , while keep whisking to prevent scrambling the eggs )This probably takes about 10 minutes , the mixture should be very thick . Remove from the heat , throughout the whole process try to keep whisking .

1, Mix the 2 cups of sugar and 8 tbsp. of cornstarch . Mix well .

2. Pour 1 1/3 cup of lemon juice into the mixture .

3. On medium low heat , keep whisking the mixture . Then beat 8 egg yolks , and temper the eggs to prevent scrambling . Then add the tempered eggs mixture into the lemon juice mixture . And keep whisking until the mixture becomes thick .

4. After 10 minutes your mixture should be thick enough and look like this . Remove from the heat .

After the pie crust has been cooling , immediately add the lemon filing in . If you stop at this step , it will be called Lemon Pie .

Now time to make the meringue .

For the meringue , you need :

8 egg whites , reserved from egg yolks earlier .

1./2 tsp. cream of tartar

12 tbsp. powdered sugar

In a large stainless steel bowl , make sure everything is dry , the bowl , the mixer , then start beating the egg whites and cream of tartar until it’s foamy .Add the powdered sugar little at a time , keep beating until stiff peak reached .

1.Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar til it’s foamy then add your powdered sugar little at a time .

2. This is when you want to stop beating them , this is what they call stiff peak , when you pull out your mixer and the tip stayed up straight . Do not overbeat .

Now , it’s time to add your meringue to the lemon pie .Spread your meringue , ALL THE WAY to cover up the crust , ( if you don’t cover all the edges of the crust your meringue will shrink later on )