Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe

Matt requested Lemon Meringue Pie for Father’s Day, so I grabbed my Williams-Sonoma Cooking at Home cookbook and went to work researching homemade recipes! I’ve never made Lemon Meringue Pie before, so I was excited for the challenge. I love Williams-Sonoma’s pie crust recipe, it is simple and turns out every time. It’s made extra easy with the help of a food processor but can be mixed by hand as well. Topped with layers of lemon filling and meringue, this pie is beautiful to look at but not too pretty to eat!

I am not usually a citrus dessert type of gal, give me chocolate or give me death! This Lemon Meringue Pie is such a fun treat though, especially with lemon juice and zest from the lemon tree in our yard. I felt like the meringue was too salty, and my family agreed with me. The original recipe called for 1/4 tsp. salt and so I made it 1/8 tsp. instead. I may put just a pinch in next time just to see how it turns out, but definitely don’t go heavy on the salt in the meringue. The pie crust recipe, lemon filling, and meringue recipes are at the bottom of the post, make sure you print both!

Homemade Pie Crust and Lemon Meringue Pie Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon sugar (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cut into Tablespoon-size pieces
• 3-4 Tablespoons cold water

• 1 pie pastry, baked
• 6 Tablespoons cornstarch
• 5 egg yolks
• 1 ¾ cups sugar
• ½ cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
• ⅔ cup egg whites
• ½ cup superfine (caster) sugar
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

Homemade Pie Crust & Lemon Meringue Recipes

• Combine the flour, sugar, and salt and pulse a few times to mix. Scatter the butter over the top, then pulse until you have a mix of small, different sizes flakes, crumbs, and bits of butter the size of peas. Add 2 tablespoons of the water and pulse about five times. Add one more tablespoon of water and pulse three or four more times. Stop and feel the dough, it should be just damp enough to form a rough ball. If necessary, add more water by teaspoons, pulsing once or twice after each addition. The total mixing time should be less than 1 minute. Do not mix until the dough forms a ball, it should remain a rough, loose mass.

• Remove the dough from the food processor. With lightly floured hands, gently shape the dough into a smooth disc. The dough may be rolled out and used right away. Or, for easier rolling, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

• Lightly dust a work surface, the dough, and the rolling pin with flour. Place the dough in the center of the surface. Rolling from the center toward the edges in all directions, use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a round 2-3 in. larger than your pie dish. Using a scraper or offset spatula, lift and turn the dough several times as you roll to prevent sticking. Dust the surface in the rolling pin with flour as needed.

• Carefully roll the dough around the rolling pin, brushing off the excess flour with a pastry brush. Position the rolling pin over a pie pan or dish. Unroll the dough and center it in the dish. Gently press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the dish, making sure not to push or stretch it. 

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line the crust with aluminum foil and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes at 375, then remove the weights and foil and bake until deep gold, 8 to 10 minutes longer. Remove crust from oven and let cool completely on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

• In a small bowl, stir together the cornstarch and 1/2 cup water until the cornstarch dissolves. In a saucepan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and 1 cup water until well blended. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture, place over medium heat, and bring to a boil while whisking constantly (about 8 minutes).  Boil until the mixture thickens and looks clear, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest. Immediately pour the warm filling into the cooled pie crust. 

•  In a large, heatproof bowl, combine the egg whites and sugar. Set the bowl in a pan of simmering water (not touching).  Stir gently until the sugar has dissolved in the mixture is warm, 1 to 2 minutes. remove the bolt from the pan and add the cream of tartar and salt. using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, spread the meringue evenly over the filling, mounting it toward the center and spreading it out to the edges to seal the crust. Use the back of the spoon to form Swirls and Peaks on the meringue. Bake until the meringue is lightly brown, 12 to 17 minutes. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and let cool for 1 hour. Refrigerate until cold, at least 5 hours or up to overnight. Serve cold.

Other recipes from my site you might enjoy: Favorite Chocolate Cake, Brie & Bacon Quiche, Carnival’s Melting Chocolate Cake