Bake Salé Lemon Meringue Pie Recipes

CLASSIC LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine flour and salt; cut in shortening until crumbly. Gradually add 3 tablespoons cold water, tossing with a fork until dough forms a ball. , Roll out dough to fit a 9-in. pie plate. Transfer crust to pie plate. Trim to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate; flute edge. Bake at 425° for 12-15 minutes or until lightly browned., Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, flour and salt. Gradually stir in water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. , Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot filling into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in butter and lemon zest. Gradually stir in lemon juice just until combined. Pour into the crust., For meringue, in a saucepan, combine 2 tablespoons sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in cold water. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is clear. Transfer to a bowl; cool., Beat egg whites and vanilla until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat in cornstarch mixture on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Spread evenly over hot filling, sealing edge to crust., Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until the meringue is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving. Refrigerate leftovers.

CLASSIC LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• For the crust: Preheat the oven to 400˚. Roll 1 ball of pie dough into a 13-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Transfer the crust to a 9-inch pie plate. Tuck the edges of the crust under to be even with the edge of the pie plate and crimp. Place the crust in the refrigerator for 60 minutes (or freezer for 30 minutes). Line the inside of the crust with parchment paper, then fill with baking weights or dried beans. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, until the edges of the crust are very lightly golden. Remove the pie weights and parchment paper, brush all over with heavy cream and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork, 6 to 8 times. Return to the oven and bake until the whole crust is golden brown all over, 12 to 14 minutes longer. Let cool to room temperature.
• For the lemon filling: In a medium saucepan whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, flour and salt. Gradually stir in 1 ½ cups cold water until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture boils, about 5 minutes. Boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly, then remove from the heat.
• Whisk the egg yolks in a small bowl. While whisking, slowly add 1/4 cup of the hot sugar mixture into the egg yolks. Gradually stir the yolk mixture from the bowl back into the remaining sugar mixture in the saucepan. Return to medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until a thermometer reads 160˚ to 180˚. Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the butter, lemon juice and zest, until the butter is completely melted. Pour the filling into the cooled pie crust. Let it cool for 15 minutes. Press a piece of plastic wrap onto the surface of the filling, then cool in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
• For the meringue: Place a medium saucepan filled with 1-inch of water over medium heat and bring to a simmer. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the egg whites, vanilla, sugar, salt, and cream of tartar. Place the mixing bowl over the simmering water and continue to mix, scraping the sides of the bowl frequently with a rubber spatula so that the egg whites don't cook, until the sugar has dissolved into the egg whites, 3 to 5 minutes. (When you rub some of the mixture together in your fingers, you should not feel any texture/sugar granules. If using a thermometer, the temperature should read around 160˚.) Transfer the bowl to a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk on medium-high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until the meringue is glossy and holds a medium-stiff peak. Dollop the meringue over top of the pie to completely cover the lemon filling and swirl with the back of a spoon to make decorative swoops and swirls.
• Toast the meringue with a kitchen torch or place under a broiler (about 8 inches from the broiler element heated to high heat) for 1 minute, until lightly toasted. Let cool completely to room temperature, then serve.

BAKE-SALé LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 450°F. Unfold pie crust. Press out fold lines. If crust cracks, wet fingers and push edges together. Sprinkle flour over crust. Place crust floured side down in 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Fold edges over; crimp decoratively. Pierce crust all over with fork. Bake until crust is pale golden, about 12 minutes. Cool crust completely on rack.
• Whisk 1 1/4 cups sugar, water, 5 tablespoons cornstarch, egg yolks, lemon peel and salt in heavy medium saucepan to blend. Whisk over medium heat until mixture comes to boil. Whisk over medium heat until mixture comes to boil. Whisk until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add lemon juice and butter; whisk until smooth. Cool completely, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix 1/3 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon cornstarch in small bowl. Beat egg whites in large bowl until foamy; add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Add sugar mixture 1 tablespoonful at a time, beating until stiff peaks form after each addition.
• Spread cooled lemon filling in crust. Spoon dollops of meringue around edge of pie atop filling. Spoon remaining meringue onto center of pie. Spread meringue to cover filling, mounding in center and sealing completely to crust edge. Using rubber spatula or spoon, swirl meringue decoratively, forming peaks. Bake pie until meringue peaks are light brown, about 12 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool completely. refrigerate pie until cold, about 1 1/2 hours. (Can be prepared 3 hours ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

EXTRA-LEMONY MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• Prepare the crust: On a lightly floured surface, and using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll pie dough into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Transfer to a 9-inch pie pan (not deep dish); fold the edges over and crimp them together. Prick crust all over with a fork and chill in freezer for 30 minutes until frozen. (Cover with plastic if freezing for longer than a few hours. Well wrapped, it will last in the freezer for up to a month.)
• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line chilled crust with foil, fill with pie weights or dried rice, then bake for 12 minutes. Remove foil, lower oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake until pale golden, 10 to 16 minutes longer. Transfer to a rack to cool while you prepare the filling. (Leave the oven on if baking the pie immediately.)
• In a heavy saucepan, whisk together egg yolks, egg and sugar. Stir in lemon juice, zest and salt. Add pieces of butter and cook, whisking constantly, over medium-low heat until the mixture thickens enough to coat a spoon, about 7 to 9 minutes. An instant-read thermometer should register 180 degrees. Inspect the filling: If you think there are any coagulated bits of egg, strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl.
• Pour filling into pie crust and return to the oven to bake until filling is set (it should jiggle only slightly in the center), about 18 to 40 minutes. (Pies prepared in glass and ceramic dishes can take much longer to bake than those prepared in metal dishes. Don't give up: The curd will eventually set.) Remove pie from oven and increase oven temperature to 400 degrees for baking the meringue.
• As the filling bakes, make the meringue: Fill a medium pot with 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Using a large metal bowl, whisk together egg whites, sugar, vanilla, cream of tartar and salt. Set the bowl with the egg white mixture into the pot above the water, and whisk constantly by hand until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm (160 degrees on an instant thermometer) and has thickened and lightened in color, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove bowl from heat.
• Using an electric mixer, beat on medium-low speed and gradually increase speed to high, until mixture is thick and fluffy, and stiff peaks form, about 5 to 8 minutes. Be careful not to overbeat.
• Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in lemon zest. Mix with care to not deflate meringue: A few strokes should do it. Spread the meringue over the hot filling, making sure it meets the edges of the crust. Using a knife or spatula, swirl in a design, if you like, and bake until lightly browned, about 8 to 12 minutes.
• Allow to cool completely and top with more lemon zest before serving.

ULTIMATE LEMON MERINGUE PIE

Steps:

• For the pastry, put the plain flour, butter, icing sugar, egg yolk (save the white for the meringue) and 1 tbsp cold water into a food processor. Pulse until the mix starts to bind - make sure the mix is not overworked.
• 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 the 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 30 mins-1 hr (or overnight).
• Put a baking sheet in the oven and heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/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. Lower the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• While the pastry bakes, prepare the filling. Mix the cornflour, golden caster sugar and lemon zest in a medium saucepan. Strain and stir in the lemon juice gradually. Make the orange juice up to 200ml 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 the 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.
• Put the egg whites in a large bowl. Whisk to soft peaks, then add 100g of the golden caster sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking between each addition without overbeating. Whisk in the cornflour, then add the remaining 100g of 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 30 mins-1 hr before slicing. Eat the same day.