Lemon Meringue Pie

Lemon Meringue Pie
Source: Maida Heatter's Pies & Tarts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 43.

This pie reminded me of the one my mother used to make. The filling is tart and although to me is has a somewhat chemical taste, I'm thinking this is quite normal as they all have that flavor. The jury is still out on that...

The trickiest aspect of lemon meringue pie is the meringue. It often separates from the side of the crust. Parts of mine did as well. Maida instructs that you be sure that the meringue touches all sides but even that doesn't assure it won't happen. The dreaded part for me is always the beaded moisture that often appears on top of the meringue. I remember my mother's pies did this sometimes. Maida mentions this and says that it is caused from cooling the pie in drafty areas. She suggests putting it in the dish cabinet. So, I did -

I think it worked because I didn't notice any moisture droplets. Hooray for that!

This pie is fairly easy to make and it doesn't take that long if you have all of your ingredients lined up. There is minimal stirring but you do have to be fast once you start the filling.

For the crust, I used my go-to recipe. You can, of course, use Maida's pie crust recipe or purchase a ready-baked one. Many recipes call for a cookie crumb type crust and I think that would be a nice option.

This recipe makes 1 9" pie. 

1 9-inch baked pie crust (she recommends her pie crust recipe here but you can use any crust you prefer, even a purchased one)

Finely grated zest of 3 lemons
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
4 egg yolks (reserve the whites for the meringue)
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, diced, at room temperature

Meringue

4 egg whites
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 400.

Combine the lemon zest and juice. Set aside. 
Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and also set aside.

In a heavy saucepan (at least 2-quart size), combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Gradually add the water and stir with a rubber spatula. Over medium heat, stir constantly until the mixture begins to boil. Continue to stir for 1 1/2 minutes. The filling will become very thick and develops an opaque appearance.

Add the butter.

 Stir until melted. Remove the pan from the heat.

Add a little of the hot mixture to the bowl of eggs and mix well. Add more until the egg mixture is hot.

Now add the egg mixture into the cornstarch mixture. Stir well.

Mix in the lemon juice.

Bring the pot to a boil again and boil for one minute, stirring constantly.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and proceed to the meringue.

To make the meringue, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt at high speed until soft peaks form. Reduce the mixer speed and add the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, beating 20 seconds between additions. Increase the speed to high and mix until stiff peaks form.

Apply the meringue while the filling is still warm. Use a spoon and make sure the meringue touches all sides of the crust. Do an upward sweep with the spoon to form peaks.

Bake for 7-9 minutes until the meringue is slightly browned. Let the pie cool in a draft-free area (she recommends the dish cabinet). Refrigerate after cooling.