Lemon Meringue Pie

Ingredients

• 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (store-bought or homemade), fully baked and cooled
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

Method

1. Whisk the sugar, cornstarch, and water together in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking, until thickened and translucent, about 6 minutes.
2. Whisk about 1/2 cup of the hot mixture into the egg yolks to temper them, then whisk the tempered yolks back into the saucepan.
3. Cook 2 more minutes, then remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice, zest, and butter.
4. Pour the hot filling into the baked crust.
5. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar with a mixer on medium until soft peaks form, then add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form.
6. Spread the meringue over the hot filling, making sure it touches the crust all the way around to prevent shrinking.
7. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 12–15 minutes, until the meringue peaks are golden brown.
8. Cool at room temperature for 1 hour, then refrigerate at least 3 hours before slicing.

The Tale of Lemon Meringue Pie

Story updated September 19, 2026

Lemon meringue pie combines citrus, meringue and the English custard-pudding pie. Elizabeth Goodfellow, who ran a Philadelphia pastry shop and cooking school, is often credited with an early lemon pudding pie around 1806, but that recipe used whole eggs and had no meringue, and it was published later through her student Eliza Leslie. Lemon pies with a meringue topping appear in American cookbooks in the nineteenth century, and the name 'lemon meringue pie' is found in print by about 1871. By the late nineteenth century it had become one of America's most recognizable pies.