If there’s one dessert that has no seasonality it’s lemon meringue pie. Lemons are available all year from California, Florida and elsewhere such as Mexico where they are widely produced. I prefer to get lemons from either Florida or California, the latter producing the most. Sometimes supermarkets will post origins; if so look for the USA label.
For a short time a few years ago, Hannaford carried seedless lemons from the California grower, Wonderful Seedless Lemons. I’ve not found them anywhere since Hannaford’s stopped carrying them. They were a pleasure to use without those pesky seeds. After further research, I discovered that the Stop and Shop stores in Massachusetts carry the Wonderful Lemons brand. I’ve asked the produce department at Hannaford if they’ll carry them again. No one knew for sure. Ask your local Hannaford, Market Basket or Shaw’s if they would carry them. Whole Foods never has. Maybe we can get them back in Maine. They are great lemons.
If not lemons are easily juiced. For the lemon curd in the lemon meringue pie, an electric juicer is a must have. Depending on size you’ll need at least 2 large lemons to yield half-cup juice called for in recipe. Use the best eggs available that you can get at your local farmer’s market. Separate the eggs first because you want the whites to reach room temperature before whipping into a meringue. By the time you’ve made your pastry and separated the eggs, the whites should be at the proper temperature; they whip best at room temperature.
Put the lemon curd into the prebaked pie shell
I like to use a pastry made with butter and lard. Since you need to refrigerate the pie for storage or to serve later, this pastry holds up best, retaining firmness and flakiness. All-butter pastries don’t survive as well from refrigeration. See the recipe below for the pastry recipe.
Bake the meringue to color and let rest before serving
Lemon meringue pie requires some effort and time, though nothing outrageous. Step by step it’s a fairly straightforward dessert to make.
Even after refrigeration the pie stores well
I’ve tried many recipes for lemon meringue. My first one was years ago from Craig Claiborne’s “New York Times Cookbook.” I’ve misplaced the book so I looked through my library, and the one found in Cheryl Day’s “Back in the Day” cookbook turned out to be a wonderful version. The yolks thicken fast for the custard. I’ve adapted it here. The pastry recipe is my own version
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Pinch salt
- 8 tablespoons butter, very cold
- 2 tablespoons fresh, very cold lard, in small pieces
- 1 egg yolk, beaten
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- Water (about 1/4 cup)
- 6 eggs, separated
- 1/12 cups sugar
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- Pinch salt
- 1/4 cup milk
- Lemon zest
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 6 egg whites
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- Pinch salt
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
Instructions
- Pastry. Start the dough several hours before you need it rolled out since it will need time for chilling and freezing before prebaking.
- Put the flour and sugar into the workbowl of a food processor. Pulse until well combined. Add the butter and lard and pulse 6 to 8 times until large and small pieces remain. In a glass measuring cup, beat the yolk with a whisk; stir in vinegar and add enough water to measure 1/4 cup. Stir to combine.
- Add this to the flour mixture and pulse a few times until the mixture comes together and is slightly moist and leaves the sides of the workbowl. It should be more wet than you think, making it easier to roll out. Add more water by teaspoons if necessary.
- Turn out onto a board and pat together to form a mass. Knead once by pushing a small portion of of the dough with the heel of your hand and fold back together. Wrap in plastic, pushing down on the dough until you have a disk. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Roll out and fit into an 8- or 9-inch metal pie plate (do not use glass). Make a decorative rim if you wish. Dock the dough and put in the freezer for 1 hour or until completely frozen solid; prebake by lining the pan with parchment and filling with pie weights, rice or beans all the way to the top.
- Place the dough on a cookie sheet lined with parchment and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Carefully remove parchment and beans and put back into the oven for about 5 minutes or until the pastry is lightly golden. Reserve and fill with lemon curd.
- Lemon curd.In a small bowl lightly whisk the yolks. Set aside
- In a heavy saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and pinch of salt. Set the pan over medium heat and add gradually 1 1/4 cups water and milk, whisking until smooth. Continue to whisk until the mixture begins to boil, about 4 to 5 minutes, then whisk constantly until the the mixture begins to thicken.
- To temper the eggs, add about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture, whisking vigorously so the yolks don't curdle; then pour the warmed egg yolk mixture into the rest of the milk mixture left in the pot and set over low heat.
- Whisk in the lemon juice and zest, then simmer over medium-low heat, whisking until the custard is thick and glossy and has the consistency of pudding, about 6 to 8 minutes. The custard was ready before that time but the cooking time is variable. Don't worry about the mixture curdling since the cornstarch will prevent that from occurring. Though be careful about overcooking the custard--it will burn and curdle if the heat is too high. Remove from heat and stir in the butter, mixing until it's thoroughly incorporated. Pour the custard into the prebaked crust and set aside while you make the meringue.
- Meringue: In the bowl of a stand mixture fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the whites, cream of tartar and salt over low speed until the mixture is frothy. Gradually add the sugar, beating at medium to medium-high speed until the mixture is thickened to soft peaks. Add the confectioner's sugar and beat at medium-high to high speed until the meringue is stiff and glossy. The meringue should hold stiff peaks when beater is lifted from mixture. Use immediately.
- Coat the pie with the meringue, piling it high in the middle and using a spatula to form big, luscious swirls.
- Bake at 375 degrees until the meringue is lightly browned and the peaks are lightly browned.
- Remove from the oven, set on a rack and allow to cool for at least 1 hour before serving; the curd will firm up nicely. It can be refrigerated, covered in plastic wrap, to store for several days. But serve the pie on the first day, chilling the rest for future enjoyment.
