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With a buttery graham cracker crust, bright lemon filling, and billowy toasted meringue, this lemon meringue pie has all the appeal of the classic. It’s easier to make, though, with no pastry dough to roll out or lemon filling to cook on the stovetop.
This lemon meringue pie recipe comes from my best friend’s mom, Myra Santoro. Originally from Snow Hill, North Carolina, Myra is a fabulous Southern cook. As a kid, I practically lived at her house and, with so many good smells coming from the kitchen, I was always trying to finagle a way to stay for dinner.
Myra’s lemon meringue pie has a buttery graham cracker crust and an easy filling made with sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and fresh lemon juice. It’s simple and delicious. I once made it and left it on the counter with a note for my husband and kids to try it. I came home to find it butchered with forks and almost entirely gone; they hadn’t even bothered to slice it!
“Phenomenal. Easiest lemon meringue I’ve ever made and the taste was fantastic.”
What You’ll Need To Make Lemon Meringue Pie
- Graham Crackers, Sugar & Butter: Make the simple press-in crust—no rolling or pie dough required. You can use store-bought graham cracker crumbs or crush whole crackers yourself.
- Eggs: The yolks go into the lemon filling and the whites are used for the meringue, so you’ll use all four eggs. Separate them while they’re cold, when it’s easier to keep the yolks from breaking.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: Gives the filling its creamy texture and helps it set. I recommend Eagle Brand here; I’ve found that some other brands can result in a runnier filling. Be sure you’re buying sweetened condensed milk, not evaporated milk.
- Fresh Lemons: You’ll use both the zest and juice, so zest the lemon before squeezing it. Freshly squeezed juice is important here; bottled lemon juice won’t give the filling the same bright flavor.
- Cream of Tartar: Stabilizes the egg whites so the meringue holds its shape and is less prone to collapsing.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Lemon Meringue Pie
Make the graham cracker crust: Mix the crust ingredients until the crumbs are evenly moistened; the mixture should resemble wet sand and hold together when squeezed. Press it firmly and evenly into the pan, then bake until just lightly browned and fragrant.
Make the lemon filling: Whisk the filling ingredients until completely smooth. As the lemon juice is incorporated, you’ll notice the mixture begin to thicken.
Make the meringue: Gently whisk the egg whites and sugar over simmering water until the mixture is very warm and the sugar is completely dissolved. Rub a little between your fingers—it should feel smooth, not gritty. Dissolving the sugar completely helps create a stable meringue that’s less prone to weeping.
Add the cream of tartar and whip until the meringue is thick and glossy with medium-firm peaks; when you lift the whisk, the peaks should hold their shape but curl at the tips.
Assemble and bake: Pour the lemon filling into the warm crust, then mound the meringue on top. Spread it all the way to the crust, making sure the meringue touches the edge all the way around—this anchors it and helps prevent shrinking.
Make decorative swirls and peaks with the back of a spoon, then bake until lightly golden, with the peaks a shade darker. Let the pie cool completely before slicing so the filling has time to set.
For another refreshing pie with a sweet-tart flavor, try my key lime pie, which combines fresh lime, sweetened condensed milk, and a graham cracker crust.
More Lemon Desserts You’ll Love
Lemon Meringue Pie (Easy)
Ingredients
For the Crust
- 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs, from about 12 whole crackers
- ⅓ cup cup sugar
- ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
For the Filling
- 4 large egg yolks (reserve the whites for the meringue)
- 1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk (preferably Eagle brand)
- 1 teaspoon packed finely grated lemon zest, from 1 lemon
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice, from about 3 lemons
For the Meringue
- 4 large egg whites
- 6 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs and sugar. Add the melted butter; stir with a fork first, and then your hands until the mixture is well combined. Using your fingers and the bottom of a clean drinking glass or measuring cup, press the crumbs firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a deep-dish (9 x 1.5-in/23 x 4-cm) pie pan. The crust should be about ¼ in (6 mm) thick.
- Bake for about 10 minutes, until just slightly browned. Let the crust sit on a wire rack while you prepare the rest of the pie. Lower the oven temperature to 325°F (165°C).
For the Filling:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Pour into the warm crust.
For the Meringue:
- Bring about ½ in (13 mm) of water to a simmer in a pot that's large enough to hold the bowl of a stand mixer without letting it touch the water. Reduce the heat to low. Put the egg whites and sugar in the bowl off the heat and whisk until frothy. Put the bowl over the pot and whisk gently but constantly until the whites are very warm to the touch, or about 115°F (the temperature does not need to be exact; the mixture should feel hot, but not so hot that you can't leave your finger in there) and the sugar is completely dissolved, 2 to 4 minutes.
- Remove the bowl from the heat and transfer it to the stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the cream of tartar. Beat over medium high speed until the egg whites form thick, glossy medium-firm peaks (they should hold their shape but curl at their tips), 3 to 5 minutes total.
- Mound the meringue onto the lemon filling. Using a soup spoon, gently spread the meringue over the entire surface of the filling, making sure to go all the way to the crust’s edge (it is essential that the edge of the meringue be anchored to the rim of the crust; otherwise it will shrink). Make decorative peaks and swirls in the meringue with the back of the spoon.
- (Be sure you've reduced the oven temperature to 325°F/165°C.) Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the meringue is lightly browned. Let the pie cool completely on a rack before serving, about 3 hours.
- Lemon meringue pie is best eaten the day it’s made, but leftovers will keep, loosely tented with aluminum foil and refrigerated, for 2 days. Just keep in mind that meringue gets quite sticky in the fridge. Do not freeze.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Made this and it was DELICIOUS and easy to make. Everyone loved it. It was even great the next day after being in the refrigerator over night. I think I actually prefer it chilled. I’ve made a number of your recipes and they ALL have been fantastic! Thank you! 😊
Does the filling set after it cools? Mine looks beautiful but its jiggly so should I cook longer?
Hi Darlene, I know I’m weighing in too late to help, but yes, the filling should firm up a bit as it sits. How did it come out?
Can this pie be made a day ahead of time? Love your receipes Jenn!
Hi Samantha, so glad you like the recipes! This is best on the day it’s made, but if necessary, you can make it and keep it refrigerated, loosely tented with aluminum foil. Just keep in mind that meringue gets quite sticky in the fridge. Hope that helps!
Jen – I have made this pie before and it’s amazing. My husband prefers a whipped cream topping in place of the meringue. If I were to forego the meringue and use a whipped cream topping instead, would I still use 4 eggs for the batter, and if so, would I use only the egg yolks or the whole egg? Many thanks!!!
Hi JG, Yes I would keep the pie filling the same with 4 egg yolks and reserve the whites for another use, like meringue cookies. Enjoy!
Never thought I could pull this off, but it was excellent. I love your recipes. I feel like a chef. Your instructions and pictures are clear. Every recipe I have made turned out well. My husband said it’s a definite make again.
Thank you for sharing recipes. We had an abundance of lemons from our tree and I gave your recipe a try. Simply Delicious! I followed the recipe the best I could and after reading the reviews cut back the sugar by 1/2 for the base as well as the meringue and it was perfect for our taste. We live in Australia so used digestive biscuits in place of the graham cracker base. I also ensured to only use 14oz of sweetened condensed milk & used the main brand available in the country (Nestle). I was nervous to do the meringue since it felt a bit intimidating, however, your step by step directions just made it feel easy. My family loved it. My husband thought it was the best lemon meringue pie he ever ate.
I followed the directions to the tee in every section of the process (including using Eagle Brand milk); my lemon meringue pie turned out perfectly! So much so, I made another seven pies for my neighbors. They want me to start a business . . .
This was incredibly easy. Haven’t tried it yet, as it came out of the oven at 8 am and this will be today’s Easter dessert. The filling tastes very lemony–which I love. I used a Marie Calendar pie crust for this, and I did use the Eagle Brand! I will let you know how it turns out but it looks amazing! I will share the untouched pie on Instagram! Thanks, Jenn!
Second times a charm! So I made this again, today using the correct sweetened condensed milk. I also used a 9×9 square glass pan to make them more like lemon meringue bars. I cooked them a little longer, about 26 minutes to get a more brown top. Came out awesome!!!!! They are pretty sweet so cutting them into pie “bars” worked beautifully! Thanks for the recipe!!!!
I have tried at least 4 lemon pies using pretty much this recipe except I didn’t do the meringue like you. My pies were awful I think I have cooked them too long trying to brown the meringue. Two I took to people and I think I didn’t cook them long enough. I’m going to try once more and prepare the meringue as you do and if it is a mess again I will not try anymore