Lemon Meringue Pie

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When I was eight, my mom remarried, and I gained another set of grandparents.  Grandma Mitchell was a phenomenal baker.  There was always a variety of homemade desserts and treats when we would go to visit.  I didn’t know it was possible to make so many things from scratch before I met her.  While her kitchen was her space, she always welcomed us in and shared  her recipes, often hand written many years earlier.

One of my father’s favorite desserts was my grandmother’s lemon meringue pie.  Over the years, I developed a love for it too.  A flakey pastry crust, a sweet-tart lemon layer, all topped with a light fluffy layer of meringue.  

This lemon meringue pie has a secret ingredient – bread!  From the stories passed down with the recipe, bread was used as a thickener because you don’t allow things to go to waste.  It was a way of using up bread that had started to go stale, and turn it into something new.  According to my grandmother, flour was also expensive during the depression, and what they did have was used to make bread or in the pastry crust itself where it was most needed.

I love this recipe because of how easy it is to throw together.  You don’t need to pre-bake the crust, nor cook a lemon curd separately.  A simple and delicious dessert that doesn’t take a lot of time to prepare.  Be mindful of the directions, however, you do have to change the oven temperature during the baking time.

Lemon Meringue Pie

1 pie crust
1 cup sugar
4 eggs yolks
1 cup of water
1 large lemon – zest & juice
2 slices of white sandwich bread

For the meringue:
4 egg whites at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of sale
1/4 tsp lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 425°

Prepare the pie crust, put it in your pie plate, and flute the edges.

Break apart the two slices of bread, and place into the bottom of the crust.

Beat the egg yolks, sugar, water, lemon juice, and zest together.  Carefully pour the mixture over the bread.

Bake 15 minutes at 425°, then lower the temperature to 350° and bake an additional 30 minutes.

During the last 5 minutes of baking, prepare your meringue.  Beat the egg whites, salt, and lemon juice in your mixer until soft peaks form.  Then slowly beat in the sugar until the meringue is glossy & you have stiff peaks.

When the lemon layer is finished baking, remove the pie from the oven, turn the temperature back up to 425°.  Using a spatula or butter knife, place some of the meringue around the edges of the pie and seal it all the way to the crust.  Then, pile the rest of the meringue on top so that none of the lemon is still showing.  Using your knife, make some peaks in the meringue.

Bake for about 8 minutes more, until the meringue peaks are lightly browned.  Keep an eye on it!  Meringues go from under cooked to over cooked very quickly, and how long it takes in your oven may vary.

Allow the pie to cool to room temperature, and then chill overnight before serving.

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Lemon Meringue Pie

Great Granny Anderson's Lemon Meringue Pie using bread as a thickener.

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Servings 8

Author Great Granny Anderson

Ingredients

• 1 pastry crust
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 eggs yolks
• 1 cup of water
• 1 large lemon – zest & juice
• 2 slices of white sandwich bread

For the meringue

• 4 egg whites at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• pinch of sale
• 1/4 tsp lemon juice

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°
2. Prepare the pie crust, put it in your pie plate, and flute the edges.
3. Break apart the two slices of bread, and place into the bottom of the crust.
4. Beat the egg yolks, sugar, water, lemon juice, and zest together. Carefully pour the mixture over the bread.
5. Bake 15 minutes at 425°, then lower the temperature to 350° and bake an additional 30 minutes.
6. During the last 5 minutes of baking, prepare your meringue. Beat the egg whites, salt, and lemon juice until soft peaks form. Then slowly beat in the sugar until the meringue is glossy & you have stiff peaks.
7. When the lemon layer is finished baking, remove the pie from the oven, turn the temperature back up to 425°. Using a spatula or butter knife, place some of the meringue around the edges of the pie and seal it all the way to the crust. Then, pile the rest of the meringue on top so that none of the lemon is still showing. Using your knife, make some peaks in the meringue.
8. Bake for about 8 minutes more, until the meringue peaks are lightly browned. Keep an eye on it! Meringues go from under cooked to over cooked very quickly, and how long it takes in your oven may vary.
9. Allow the pie to cool to room temperature, and then chill overnight before serving.