Guys, I have worked on my previous lemon pie recipe and simplified it. After eight years of baking experience under my belt some of the previous steps seemed unnecessary. I am currently on holiday in Spain and the niece of my husband is graduating from high school. She was in dire need of some pie during all of the study sessions. She actually requested lemon pie so I got to work on it. My previous pie recipe saved as the base. However, I knew right away that I had to adjust some things here and there. In the end I altered the pie dough, made a simpler lemon filling and also wanted a more stable meringue on the top.
For the pie crust, I used my beloved pie crust recipe. German pie crust usually has the ratio of 3 to 2 to 1. So you will have three parts flour, two parts butter, and one part sugar. This time I made the pie crust with Greek yoghurt as I had this on hand, but feel free to use an egg instead. I skipped the ground almonds though. For the lemon filling I thought it best to make a type of lemon curd. This means you are going to throw the ingredients together and slowly heat them while stirring before adding butter, lemon juice and zest last. It makes it easier and does not require any waterbath. Both the pie crust as well as the lemon filling can be made a day before and can be stored in the fridge overnight. You may even bake and fill the pie the day before. I would only recommend making the meringue shortly before serving. Here I decided to make it more stable by heating the egg whites with the sugar. This way the meringue will not weep for 24 hours and will taste amazing longer.
This simplified lemon pie is made with a simple pie crust, an easy lemon filling, and topped of with a stable meringue. For the pie dough weigh the flour and sugar into a large bowl. Add the cold butter in cubes and rub into small crumbs. Add the Greek yoghurt and try working into a ball. If the dough is too dry, add a bit of water. Cover airtight and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a large circle. Line a tart or pie form (around 23-24cm) with it, prick the dough several times with a fork and bake on medium rack for about 20-25min or until golden. Let cool. For the lemon filling combine all ingredients except for the lemon juice, zest and butter in a pot. Bring to medium heat while stirring. After about 5 minutes or so the mixture should start to thicken. If it doesn't, increase the heat a little bit. Once it has thickened, let simmer for about a minute while stirring. Add the lemon juice, zest, and butter until melted. Pour into baked pie crust, it is OK if both components are still warm. Let come to room temperature, then trasfer covered into the fridge. You can leave in the fridge like this overnight. For the meringue I recommend doing this shortly before serving. Combine all ingredients in a pot available for a waterbath. Heat on waterbath while stirring, if you rub the mixture between your fingers, you should not feel any crystals. Beat until cool, glossy and stiff. Then pile onto the pie. I used the back of the spoon to create a nice pattern. Heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius, then place pie on lower rack and bake meringue for 8-10 minutes. Keep a close eye on it, you only want it to brown lightly. You can also brown the meringue with a kitchen torch. Serve either chilled or at room temperature.Simplified Lemon Pie
Ingredients
Instructions
P.S. You may want to check out my 18 recipes with lemon and citrus fruits
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