Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie with Cardamom
This Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe has the creamy lemon filling and airy meringue topping you know and love. But a secret ingredient – cardamom – adds an exotic touch that sets it apart from other recipes.
This is the Best Recipe for Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie!
Lemon meringue pie is a classic, nostalgic dessert that every home chef should make at least once. The timeless combination of rich, zesty lemon filling and fluffy meringue is hard to beat.
And feel free to leave it this way – it’s extraordinary as-is. But the recipe below has a subtle yet distinctive addition that adds a touch of magic – cardamom.
Cardamom is a spice used in Indian cuisine, and it has a complex and exotic flavor (but, you’ll probably be able to find it at any larger grocery store). It’s a warming spice used in both sweet and savory applications.
I don’t want to compare its flavor to any other spice because honestly, nothing else tastes like cardamom. But the little bit of cardamom in this meringue MAKES this pie.
The warm, citrusy undertones of the cardamom complement the lemon filling and add an exotic touch that sets it apart from any other lemon meringue pie recipe.
Why you’ll love Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie
- You can keep it completely classic or add the secret ingredient – cardamom – for a unique twist. It turns out amazing both ways.
- We’re using both lemon juice and lemon zest in the filling so our pie has the most enjoyably intense citrus flavor.
- From the crisp, buttery crust to the creamy lemon filling to the airy meringue topping, every bite has the perfect balance of flavors and textures.
What you’ll need for the Best Lemon Meringue Pie
- pie crust – this recipe was tested using Pillsbury roll and bake crust. Any store bought crust will work, including frozen. If using frozen, be sure to follow blind baking instructions on the package and cool before filling.
- eggs – we’ll be using the yolks to make the lemon filling, and the whites to make the meringue.
- granulated sugar – sweetens both the filling and the meringue.
- fresh lemon juice – provides the unmistakable tart and citrusy flavor that is characteristic of any recipe for lemon meringue pie. Squeeze fresh lemons, don’t use the bottled stuff.
- lemon zest – intensifies the lemon flavor of the filling.
- unsalted butter – adds richness and a creamy texture to the lemon filling.
- kosher salt – enhances the flavor of the filling and balances the sweeteness.
- cream of tartar – helps stabilize the egg whites in the meringue so that they can maintain their volume and structure.
- vanilla extract – adds flavor to the meringue.
- ground cardamom – this is an optional, special, secret ingredient that I add to my meringue. The warm aromatic flavor of this spice complements the citrus notes of the lemon filling to make the best lemon meringue pie ever.
How to make Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie
1. CRUST. Press the crust into a pie plate and flute the edges. Use a fork to dock the bottom of the crust.
2. WEIGHTS. Place a piece of parchment paper in the crust, and fill the crust with dry beans or pie weights.
3. BAKE. Transfer the crust to the oven and bake 12 minutes. Remove the weights and parchment, and cook 5 to 8 minutes longer or until crust is light golden brown.
4. YOLKS. In a bowl, beat the egg yolks until smooth.
5. CORNSTARCH MIXTURE. In a saucepan, cook the sugar, cornstarch and water, while whisking, until the mixture is very thick.
6. TEMPER. Whisk half of the cornstarch mixture into the egg yolks.
7. REINCORPORATE. Whisk the egg-cornstarch mixture into the remaining cornstarch mixture.
8. THICKEN. Bring this mixture to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, then remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice, butter, lemon zest and salt.
9. FILL. Pour the lemon mixture into the prepared pie crust, then set aside while you make the meringue.
10. BEAT. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. With the mixer running, add the sugar a tablespoon at a time until all sugar is incoporated.
11. STIFF PEAKS. Continue beating the egg whites until they are stiff and glossy. Beat in the vanilla, and the cardamom, if using.
12. SPREAD. Spread the meringue over the lemon filled pie.
13. TORCH. Use a kitchen torch to lightly torch the meringue.
Home Chef Tips for the Best Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe
- Using pie weights [affiliate link] or dried beans during blind baking prevents the crust from shrinking too much, and sinking into the pie plate.
- This recipe for lemon meringue pie was developed using a standard depth pie pan, not deep dish.
- If you don’t have a kitchen torch, you can bake the pie to toast the meringue. See Notes in the recipe card for all the info you need for this method!
WANT TO SAVE THIS RECIPE?
Enter your email below and we'll send it to your inbox.
How to store this Lemon Meringue Pie Recipe
Lemon meringue pie is best served same day. After about 8 hours, the pie will begin to weep, and become soggy. For food safety reasons, do not store pie at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
Does lemon meringue pie need to be refrigerated?
Leftover pie can be covered loosely and stored in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Can you freeze lemon meringue pie?
Yes. Hold off on making the meringue until the day you’d like to serve the pie. Cool the filled pie completely, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and freeze for up to one month. Thaw in the fridge overnight, make the meringue as directed, spread and torch.
Recipe for Lemon Meringue Pie FAQs
To prevent the filling from becoming watery, make sure to cook it until it has really thickened before pouring it into the crust. Don’t rush this step.
The three key rules for making a successful meringue are 1.) using room temperature egg whites, 2.) ensuring that the bowl and beaters are very clean and grease-free, 3.) gradually adding the sugar while beating the whites.
Meringue should be put on filling that is still a bit warm, but not HOT. That’s why we set the filled pie aside just a short amount of time while we make the meringue, so it will be warm but not hot when we top it. This helps the meringue adhere to the filling.
Spread the meringue over warm filling, and spread it all the way to the edges of the crust to anchor it in place.
Lemon meringue pie crust can become soggy if it is not blind baked before filling.
More Foxes Love Lemons Favorites
Recipe for Homemade Lemon Meringue Pie
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust:
- 1 refrigerated pie crust
For the Lemon Filling:
- 3 large egg yolks reserve whites for meringue
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ cups water
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice from about 2 large lemons
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For the Meringue:
- 3 large egg whites at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom optional
Instructions
Make the Crust:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Press crust into standard depth 9-inch pie plate; fold excess crust under and press together to form thick crust edge. Crimp edge with fingers or flute with fork.
- Use fork to gently prick holes across the bottom of the pie crust (this is known as docking). Place large piece of parchment paper over crust, then fill crust completely with pie weights or dry beans.
- Transfer crust to oven and bake 12 minutes. Remove from oven and remove pie weights and parchment paper. Return to oven and bake 5 to 8 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely before filling.
Make the Lemon Filling:
- In medium bowl, beat egg yolks until smooth.
- In medium saucepan, whisk together sugar and cornstarch, then gradually whisk in water. Heat to boiling over medium heat, whisking constantly. Boil 1 minute or until mixture is very thick, whisking constantly.
- Whisk half of hot cornstarch mixture into egg yolks, then whisk that mixture back into remaining cornstarch mixture. Heat to boiling over medium heat, whisking constantly. Boil 2 minutes, whisking constantly, then remove from heat.
- Stir in lemon juice, butter, lemon zest and salt. Pour into prepared pie crust. Set aside while you make the meringue.
Make the Meringue:
- In bowl of electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites and cream of tartar on high speed until foamy. With mixer running, add sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until all sugar is incorporated. Continue beating until egg whites are stiff and glossy. Beat in vanilla, and cardamom if using.
- Spread meringue over lemon filling. Use kitchen torch to lightly torch meringue (see Notes below if you do not have a torch). Pie is best served the day it is made; store any leftover pie in refrigerator.
Notes
- If you don’t have a kitchen torch, pie can be baked to toast meringue. In this case, you’ll want to prepare the meringue first, and then the filling second.
- The reason for this is that the heat from the piping hot filling will rise and begin to cook the meringue as soon as you spread it onto the filling. If you spread the meringue on cooled filling and then try to bake it, the filling will create steam as it heats up, causing your pie to weep prematurely and become soggy, and separate the meringue from the filling layer.
- So, spread meringue onto piping hot filling, being careful to spread meringue all the way to the crust to seal filling to prevent shrinking or weeping.
- Bake at 325 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes, or until meringue is golden brown, tenting loosely with foil if the meringue or crust browns too quickly.
Do I need to let the pue filling cool before I top with meringue?
Yes – but just a little bit. In fact, I would recommend putting the pie in the fridge to allow the filling to cool while you’re making the meringue. I should have included that in the recipe. I’ll add it right now!
I definitely feel like the cardamom was an excellent twist in a classic. This was an absolutely delicious pie recipe. I loved it!
These photos just pop!