Transform Your Lemon Pudding Into a Fluffy Meringue Pie.

Few dessert flavors evoke summer freshness quite like lemon. Honestly, lemon dessert is also a great break from winter spices and chocolate. Lucky for us, lemons are available all year round, so let’s try lemon again with a tangy dessert full of surprises. Be it summer, winter or any other time, try this Lemon Pudding Meringue Pie.

What is lemon pudding?

If I were to call this dessert something like that, it would be pie. There is a crust and a filling, so it is a pie. The filling just so happens to be my Insta- and TikTok-worthy lemon pudding cake recipe. If you haven’t had lemon pudding cake before, you’re in for a treat. I think the British call it a gravy pudding, which is a cake that has some sort of decadent sauce in it, in this case lemon pudding. To clarify, especially in this recipe, it is one thin dough leavened with egg whites that is baked in two layers. A layer of egg white is lifted and baked into a cake that floats on top of a pudding-like layer. In this case, it’s more like lemon curd. It’s divine and you can make a pie out of it.

How to turn it into a meringue pie

You can make lemon pudding as a large casserole, but here you add a lovely crust and a fluffy, toasted meringue filling. Besides, sometimes occasion just calls for cake.

The procedure for making the lemon pudding cake filling is the same as the original recipe above; the only changes are blind baking the crust and making a simple meringue filling. (If you want to learn more about blind baking, take a look here .)

Note that after blind baking, the crust is “sealed” with a light layer of egg white. This is because the pudding layer is liquid before cooking. If you apply a layer of egg white while the crust is still hot out of the oven, you will get a clear wall of cooked egg white. This will help prevent a soggy crust from forming. I tried the graham cracker crust, which as you may know is risky. The results were mixed: some spots were dry and others were sticky, as you can see in the picture. This didn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying the pie, however, if you prefer clean lines, I would recommend an old-fashioned freezer pie crust.

The resulting pie is best served chilled so that the pudding has time to set, but with a filling of freshly toasted meringue. Personally, I take this version of lemon pie over the classic Jersey Diner-style lemon meringue pie any day. Instead of attacking you with a chunk of sticky pudding and quickly deflating the meringue, this cake has a middle layer of cake that helps solidify the texture. You can store leftovers in the refrigerator, but know that the meringue won’t be the same, which means you have license to make it yourself. You know, for the sake of the pie’s reputation.

Lemon Meringue Pudding Pie Recipe

Ingredients:

For the pie:

• 1 pie crust, store bought

• 3 eggs, separated

• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

• ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

• ¾ cup flour

• ¼ cup sugar

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• 1 cup milk, room temperature

For the meringue filling:

• 2 egg whites

• ¼ cup sugar

• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

• ⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Blind bake the crust as needed, depending on the crust you choose.

2. Meanwhile, separate the filling eggs so that you have three yolks in a large bowl and three whites in another large bowl. Lightly beat the egg whites to break them up and place a teaspoon of whites in a small bowl. Have a pastry brush ready to “seal” the crust.

3. When the crust comes out of the oven hot, immediately use a pastry brush to brush a teaspoon of egg white onto the bottom and sides of the pie crust. Pay attention to where the bottom meets the walls. Set the crust aside to cool.

4. Add lemon zest, juice and oil to the egg yolks and mix thoroughly. In a smaller bowl, combine sugar, flour and salt. Slowly pour in half of the dry mixture, whisking vigorously to break up any lumps. Alternate between half the milk and then add the rest of the dry mixture and the remaining milk. It will be very liquid.

5. Place the pie crust in a large baking dish or, like I did, a large pie plate. Place a kettle of water on the fire so you can prepare a water bath before baking.

6. Beat three egg whites in a bowl until soft peaks form and gently fold the whites into the batter. Place the pie pan into a large baking pan and into the oven. Carefully pour freshly boiled water into the outer pan until it reaches the middle of the inner pie pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top is evenly browned and jiggles slightly in the center when moved but is not watery. Remove the cake from the pan and let it cool. Chill it in the refrigerator overnight if you’re not in a rush.

7. Prepare the meringue just before serving. Whisk the egg whites in a large bowl until foamy. Then add cream of tartar. Start beating again and slowly add sugar and vanilla. Beat the mixture until stiff peaks form but the meringue is still shiny. Spread it over the entire surface of the pie and toast it on the burner, or place it in the oven at 350°F for 10 to 15 minutes to toast the top. Serve immediately.

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