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😋 Lemon meringue pie: one of my favorite desserts
Seriously, who doesn't just LOVE lemon meringue pie! Personally, it's one of my favorite desserts (number one being the Paris-Brest), as it strikes the perfect balance between theacidity of the lemon and the sweetness of the meringue... Just writing this post makes my mouth water! A delicious shortbread crust topped with a homemade lemon curd, delicately layered with divine meringues: a real delight, as refreshing as it is delicious!
💙 Why you'll love this recipe
- A classic of French gastronomy, ultra gourmet
- For entertaining friends or as a gift when you visit their home, it's the perfect dessert to impress them.
- It can be kept for several days
✅ A recipe suitable for gluten intolerant/allergic people
If you're gluten intolerant or allergic, I recommend replacing the shortcrust pastry with a gluten-free shortcrust pastry, available in supermarkets or organic grocery stores.
Cornstarch, classic sugar, butter, water, eggs and lemons are gluten-free.
But beware of powdered sugar, which often contains starch. Fortunately, you can find gluten-free icing sugars on the internet.
🥚 Which eggs to choose?
Ideally pasture-raised organic. You can refer to the Eco Tips I've written on eggs to help you choose the right ones.
💡Tips
Measuring
As European, I'm used to working in grams and milliliters. For savory dishes, the American measuring system can work just perfectly most of the time. But for anything sweet, I really recommend using a digital scale, which is much more precise. That way, you'll be sure to succeed with your recipes.
The edges of your pie crust fall back when baking
I've had this happen to me many times, and it took me a long time to solve the problem, after numerous tests.
Before baking, I recommend putting your tart base in the freezer for 1 hour, and onlyputting itin the oven when it's hot. It's the thermal shock that ensures that the edges of the tart don't fall back.
How to color your meringue
This step is really optional; sometimes I want a meringue that's a little crisp and colorful, and sometimes not.
In any case, if you want to color your meringue, you have two options:
- You have a kitchen blowtorch and you use it to give a pretty color to your meringue.
- If you don't have one, preheat your oven to grill mode. Once hot, put your pie in the oven for 1 to 2 minutes, staying in front of it to make sure it doesn't burn (this happened to me because I wanted to do too many things at once, and it's a real shame to ruin everything at the last step).
😇 Frequently Asked Questions
If placed in the fridge and covered with aluminum foil or cling film, it will keep for 2 to 3 days.
You can enjoy it from January to September - it's a blast, isn't it?
📖 Recette
Easy lemon meringue tart
Ingredients
For the tart crust
- 1 shortcrust pastry
For the lemon curd
- ¼ cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- ¼ cup water
- 1 organic lemon zested
- ¾ cup lemon juice
For the meringue
- 3 egg whites if large, use 2
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Roll out the pastry in a tart tin and poke holes in it with a fork. Bake at 355°F/180°C on natural convection/static heat top and bottom for 15 minutes, until golden-brown, then leave to cool outside the oven.
- Next, prepare the lemon curd : mix the cornflour with the water. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, eggs and egg yolk (save the white for the meringue). Whisk well, then pour into a saucepan.
- Over low-medium heat, whisk the lemon curd until thickened.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the butter, coarsely cubed. Mix again, and once the butter has melted completely, pour the lemon mixture over the tart base.
- Finally, prepare the meringues : beat the egg whites until stiff. When they begin to stiffen, gradually add the powdered sugar.
- You then have two options. The simplest: pour the meringue mixture over your tart and use a spatula (or a large spoon) to make pretty undulations. If you'd like something a little more elaborate, pipe the meringue mixture into a piping bag and top the tart.
Notes
- As European, I'm used to working in grams and milliliters. For savory dishes, the American measuring system can work just perfectly most of the time. But for anything sweet, I really recommend using a digital scale, which is much more precise. That way, you'll be sure to succeed with your recipes.
- If you want to color your meringue, you can use a blowtorch or turn your oven to "grill" mode and let it color for 1 or 2 minutes. Stand in front of it to make sure it doesn't burn (grill mode is extremely fast).
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