a boy and his pie
mum’s legendary lemon meringue pie
Mention that classic dessert, Lemon Meringue Pie and my thoughts turn instantly to my gorgeous not-so-little brother. For as long as I can remember Dom has been fanatical about his pie, think Homer Simpson and his devotion to beer or doughnuts and you’re not even in the same ballpark as to how much Dom loves LMP.
From when he was little, whenever Mum would give Dom the option of what to have for dessert there was only one answer. I can’t remember him ever having a normal Birthday cake, it was always LMP. One year, I think it was around his 21st, when Mum asked Dom what he would like as a birthday present he somehow convinced her to make him one pie a day for 21 days. So she did and not even that sort of over exposure was enough to dampen his love for the pie.
It’s a bit of family legend that Dom was so good at asking for his favourite dessert that he was able to get it out in just one syllable ‘lemeringuepie’. No mean feat for a small boy, try it yourself.
A few weeks ago when I was at the farm we had a bit of a belated Birthday dinner for my favourite (and only) brother and there was no question when it came to the dessert decision. It was my second attempt a recreating my Mum’s legendary LMP, using the recipe she had lovingly hand written into her little cook book. And while it came nowhere near close to looking like my Mum’s creation, I’m pretty sure for Dom it was better than no pie at all. Think rich lemony goodness in the filling balanced by light-as-air-sweet sweet meringue and you’re there….all good things
mum’s legendary lemon meringue pie
serves 1 if you’re my brother or approx 6 normal people
I’ve copied this across from my mum’s recipe book and this is exactly as she had it written down. Apologies if it seems a little confusing but it felt wrong trying to re-organise it.
I was always impressed that my mum went to the effort of making her own pastry, and one of my strongest memories is of her is how clever I though she was balancing the pie on hone hand while trimming the pastry edges with a knife. The sound of the knife rubbing down the ceramic pie edges still reminds me of her.
It seems a little sacrilegious to admit it, but I have always thought of the pastry as the weak link in her pie. If you’re looking for the crunch of a more of a classic short crust try my favourite sweet pastry recipe HERE. And bake blind for abour half an hour before filling.
Sift together 1C plain flour, pinch salt.
Rub in 2oz (60g) butter until like fine breadcrumbs. Add 2T water and mix well. Roll dough to fit and 8” pie plate.
Prick base lightly with a fork.
Bake in a moderate oven for 15mins only, cool.
Combine:
1 400g can Nestles condensed milk
1/2C lemon juice
grated rind of 1 lemon
3 egg yolks
Place in shell
Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually add in 1/4C castor sugar. Beat until dissolved.
Place meringue on top of filling.
Bake in moderate oven 15 minutes, or until golden.
lemon meringue pie in mum’s pie dish… it used to be all bright orange
May 5th, 2008 at 8:55 am
thanks so much for the recipe. i will try it for sure, and i think your homage to your mum’s LMP looks spectacular!
May 5th, 2008 at 9:36 am
I love LMP and this makes it sound quite straightforward.
will give it a try.
thank you
May 5th, 2008 at 11:10 am
It looks heavenly - I can almost taste it.
May 5th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
My sister has started baking (she’s 14) and she’s crazy for lemon/lime tarts. I think this would be a wonderful recipe to make with her.
May 5th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
I would be absolutely privileged to bake your mother’s lemon meringue pie.
Incidentally, I was looking for a dessert to bake for mother’s day. I promise to put all my heart and soul into making this, for you, your mother and my mother.
P.S, you’re a total web idol for me: an 18 year old aspiring to write a cookbook.
P.P.S, my best-friend-forever also play the game where we guess what the other one is having on the menu. Unfortunately most of the time, we’re way too starving to remember.
May 6th, 2008 at 12:40 am
Those pictures are so appealing I want to lick my screen. Yum!
May 6th, 2008 at 5:53 am
What a lovely memory of a delicious looking dessert!
May 6th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
Yummo Clance! My mum used to make LMP a bit too, I recall a winters evening when I was about 7, and I took a rather large mouthful only to discover mum had “accidentally” put too much lemon juice in! Needless to say, my mouth imploded and I have been wary ever since (but still very much in favor).
Maybe it’s time to try Mrs C’s recipe. I’ll try it out on book group again…
May 6th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
Beautifully done!
May 6th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Mmm…nice pie! That looks like it came out way better than mine! I love lemon meringue.
May 9th, 2008 at 4:30 am
Wow, I’ve never heard of anyone so obsessed with LMP. Did he really eat a pie a day for 21 days???
May 9th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
I have to be honest, not usually a big meringue fan, but you may have turned me around on this one. Your pictures are simply gorgeous, and darn it if I am not sitting here right now, wishing I had a slice of that pie to go with my morning coffee!
May 11th, 2008 at 9:19 am
hi jules, i’m back again to get this recipe as i’m planning to make it next weekend. just wondering if this version of lmp can be chilled for a few hours before serving.
May 11th, 2008 at 11:43 am
Well, no wonder your brother is mad for it. It looks perfectly set, with just the right balance of lemon filling and meringue. Beautiful.
May 12th, 2008 at 3:12 am
oh drool. I totally understand your brother’s passion.
Mum recipes are so special. Thanks for sharing.
May 12th, 2008 at 8:49 am
hi deborah
yes it’s fine to chill for a few hours. even the next day it’s still good the only thing is that the pastry goes a little softer
May 14th, 2008 at 8:31 am
thanks jules. i’ll let you know how i go!
May 21st, 2008 at 7:19 pm
This pie tastes every bit as delicious as the photos look, It didn’t last very long in my house-everyone lurved it!
PS. I made a graham crust for this, my preference with lemon pie.
May 25th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
You website is so beautifully presented, it actually makes me want to cook. Managed to find time today to make this recipe with my daughter , and it ended up looking fantastic - not as good as yours but much better then I usually do and it tasted even better. I now understand why your brother loves these lemon meringue pies so much.
March 22nd, 2009 at 7:27 pm
is it sweetened condensed milk, or unsweetened?? thanks
April 2nd, 2009 at 12:41 am
Madeleine,
Thanks for dropping by to let me know. So glad it worked out well for you.
Cathy
Thanks for the feedback. Am so glad that you’ve been inspired in the kitchen and even happier to hear that the pie worked out so well for you
planet
it is sweetened condensed milk. sorry in australia we don’t have the unsweetened version