Ultimate lemon meringue pie

Recipe uploaded by

Angela Nilsen

31 ratings

Recipe by Angela Nilsen

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1. Video tutorial: Rolling out pastry

1. For the pastry, put the flour, butter, icing sugar, egg yolk (save the white for the meringue) and 1 tbsp cold water into a food processor. Using the pulse button so the mix is not overworked, process until the mix starts to bind. Tip the pastry onto a lightly floured surface, gather together until smooth, then roll out and line a 23 x 2.5cm loose-bottom fluted flan tin. Trim and neaten the edges. Press pastry into flutes. The pastry is quite rich, so don't worry if it cracks, just press it back together. Prick the base with a fork, line with foil, shiny side down, and chill for 1⁄2-1 hour (or overnight).
2. Put a baking sheet in the oven and heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Bake the pastry case 'blind' (filled with dry beans) for 15 mins, then remove the foil and bake a further 5-8 mins until the pastry is pale golden and cooked. Set aside. (Can be done a day ahead if you want to get ahead.) Lower the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.
3. While the pastry bakes, prepare the filling: mix the cornflour, sugar and lemon zest in a medium saucepan. Strain and stir in the lemon juice gradually. Make orange juice up to 200ml/7fl oz with water and strain into the pan. Cook over a medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and smooth. Once the mixture bubbles, remove from the heat and beat in the butter until melted. Beat the egg yolks (save white for meringue) and whole egg together, stir into the pan and return to a medium heat. Keep stirring vigorously for a few minutes, until the mixture thickens and plops from the spoon. (It will bubble, but doesn't curdle.) Take off the heat and set aside while you make the meringue.
4. Put the egg whites in a large bowl. Whisk to soft peaks, then add half the sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking between each addition without overbeating. Whisk in the cornflour, then add the rest of the sugar as before until smooth and thick. Quickly reheat the filling and pour it into the pastry case. Immediately put spoonfuls of meringue around the edge of the filling (if you start in the middle the meringue may sink), then spread so it just touches the pastry (this will anchor it and help stop it sliding). Pile the rest into the centre, spreading so it touches the surface of the hot filling (and starts to cook), then give it all a swirl. Return to the oven for 18-20 mins until the meringue is crisp and slightly coloured. Let the pie sit in the tin for 30 mins, then remove and leave for at least another 1⁄2-1 hr before slicing. Eat the same day.

Per serving

480 kcalories, protein 7g, carbohydrate 64g, fat 24 g, saturated fat 13g, fibre 1g, salt 0.53 g

Latest comments and suggestions

Results 21-40

• britinfrance

  16 November 2008

  britinfrance commented on this recipe

  The lemon curd and meringue were lovely...but my pastry basically melted in the oven and was far too short and crumbly. Has this happened to anyone else? I followed the ingredients exactly but it's as if there was too much butter for the flour or not enough water.... It all tasted great though!

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• britinfrance

  16 November 2008

  britinfrance rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Sorry forgot to rate it!

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• Khadija

  17 December 2008

  Khadija rated and commented on this recipe

  

  The curd was too tangy for me, and did not quite set like I hope it would. Next time I will reduce the lemon juice and water. I was also disappointed about the colour of the curd, using white caster sugar will give a nice yellow colour and snow white meringue. The meringue didn't go as firm as it should have, I'll follow Eileen's advise to use 2 teaspoons of cornflour instead of 2 tablesoons.

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• robyn256

  28 January 2009

  robyn256 rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I made this for my boyfriend's birthday. He considers himself a bit of a lemon meringue connoiseur, and said this was the best he'd ever tasted! I also cheated and used a pre-made sweet pastry case. I agree about the meringue being too soft though, wish I'd read the comments before baking it! However it still looked and tasted the business! Will definitely make again, I don't normally like lemon meringue pie but I loved this.

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• chem_j

  04 February 2009

  chem_j rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I have made this twice now and it has turned out great both times, despite being my first attempt. I think the meringue is better with two teaspoons of cornflour as someone suggested.

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• Blossom

  12 February 2009

  Blossom commented on this recipe

  I've done this twice now, it's lovely. It should definitely be two TEASPOONS of cornflour, not tablespoons. This is why the meringue didn't work too well for others. The recipe should be amended asap to avoid further disappointments!

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• Blossom

  12 February 2009

  Blossom rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Only gave this 4 simply because of mistake in recipe!

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• Michele

  12 February 2009

  Michele commented on this recipe

  I made this after a friend recommended it to me. It was every bit as lovely as she said. Very easy to make, it looks amazing and tastes wonderful. I followed the recipe without any problems. Definitely recommend. The only thing that I did differently was that I put the base in the freezer for an hour before cooking it. I always find that pastry shrinks a lot on cooking and then you don't get the lovely fluted edge. If you freeze it and then cook it, it retains it's shape.

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• Michele

  12 February 2009

  Michele rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Sorry, forgot to rate it, and also wanted to say that I used two tablespoons of cornflour which worked fine for me.

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• luzia

  24 March 2009

  luzia commented on this recipe

  hey, I had a problem with the meringue. It looked really nice when the pie was still in the oven, but as soon as I took it out, it sort of 'shrunk' and just ended up looking pathetic. Anyone know how I can avoid this?

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• Helen

  25 March 2009

  Helen commented on this recipe

  ahhh i made this recipe but made then into mini pies using a muffin tin. They went down a STORM and were very easy to eat. There were a bit fiddly baking the patty tin blind etc but well worth it if you get spare time. FAB recipe, highly recommend!!!!

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• Teenifer Beane

  04 April 2009

  Teenifer Beane rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Having presumed that a lemon meringue pie would be easy to make, I was pleasantly surprised by this easy to follow recipie! I took advise from previous reviewers and only used 2 teaspoons of cornflour in the meringue- a super suggestion. I have always enjoyed a tangy desert so I cheekily decided to add in the zest of an extra lemon, a worthwhile risk which paid off. Top tip: Whisking the egg whites by hand (although a chore!) allowed the fine control needed to produce a smooth yet fluffy meringue- just perfect. I noted the recipie says eat the same day- this didn't cause too much of a problem in our house..tee hee!

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• munchkin

  11 April 2009

  munchkin rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Fantastic result. used two teaspoons of cornflour in the meringue and also cooked it for longer than stated to get a meringue with crisp outside and soft marshmallowy centre. Might think about using ordinary caster sugar in the meringue as the golden caster sugar I used was a bit grainy. Made the filling and then reheated it before putting in the pastry case which worked fine. Chilled the pastry overnight and did not trim until after the case was baked blind which gives a good edge to the pastry case.

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• Jennie

  23 April 2009

  Jennie rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Looked great, tasted great, family all loved it! and thats hard to get in our house! This is the only recipe you will ever need for Lemon Meringue Pie!

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• Judi

  02 May 2009

  Judi commented on this recipe

  The fact that the meringue needs 2 tsp of cornflour and not 2 tbsp is very annoying. It felt wrong when I was making it! this recipe needs altering on the site. Also, big warning. I took the pastry case out of the tin before I filled it. I thought it would be easier to manage afterwards......the whole case collapsed in the oven. So, although it tasted fine it didn't look as good as it should have done.

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• Sarah Wilson

  27 May 2009

  Sarah Wilson commented on this recipe

  I made this for dinner with friends at my husbands request. The challenge was to make one as good as his mum's! My first ever lemon meringue pie was a huge success with compliments from our friends and my husband said it was fantastic! The only downside was that the lemon filling was not very deep compared to the huge meringue - next time I might increase the quantity.

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• becci

  16 June 2009

  becci rated and commented on this recipe

  

  Great recipe with excellent results. Note that the oven temperature recommended can be a bit fierce in new ovens, so watch it doesn't catch!

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• Winks

  17 July 2009

  Winks rated and commented on this recipe

  

  I used the meringue recipe from this pie to top another pie I was making. I hadn't used it before and did not read the comments beforehand. I used 2tbsp of cornflour and the meringue couldn't have been better so I'm not sure that it is a mistake.

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• Lucia

  18 July 2009

  Lucia rated this recipe

  

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• Danielle

  03 August 2009

  Danielle rated and commented on this recipe

  

  This recipe is nice and light after a big meal. I will put a little less lemon in next time though, it was a little too tangy.

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Ingredients

FOR THE PASTRY

• 175g plain flour
• 100g cold butter , cut in small pieces
• 1 tbsp icing sugar
• 1 egg yolk

FOR THE FILLING

• 2 level tbsp cornflour
• 100g golden caster sugar
• finely grated zest 2 large lemon
• 125ml fresh lemon juice (from 2-3 lemons)
• juice 1 small orange
• 85g butter , cut into pieces
• 3 egg yolks and a 1 whole egg

FOR THE MERINGUE

• 4 egg whites , room temperature
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 2 level tsp cornflour

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Difficulty and servings

Serves 6 - 8

Preparation and cooking times

Prep 1 hr 30 mins

Cook min 1 hr 45 mins

Ingredients

FOR THE PASTRY

• 175g plain flour
• 100g cold butter , cut in small pieces
• 1 tbsp icing sugar
• 1 egg yolk

FOR THE FILLING

• 2 level tbsp cornflour
• 100g golden caster sugar
• finely grated zest 2 large lemon
• 125ml fresh lemon juice (from 2-3 lemons)
• juice 1 small orange
• 85g butter , cut into pieces
• 3 egg yolks and a 1 whole egg

FOR THE MERINGUE

• 4 egg whites , room temperature
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 2 level tsp cornflour

Per serving

480 kcalories, protein 7g, carbohydrate 64g, fat 24 g, saturated fat 13g, fibre 1g, salt 0.53 g

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