Lemon Meringue Pie

 - American/Danish Recipe

Directions:

1. *(Recommended)* The day before, make the pie crust, the marzipan mixture, and the lemon curd.  

2. To make the pie crust, simply take all the ingredients and mix them together by hand until it makes a soft dough.

3. Cover in plastic and set in the fridge for at least 20 minutes. 

4. To make the marzipan mixture, begin by mixing the marzipan and the sugar thoroughly together. 

5. Add the butter and whip until fluffy and airy.

6. Add the egg and only mix until it is barely incorporated. 

7. Add the flour and mix together until it makes a smooth mass. 

8. Cover and set in the fridge (unless you will be using it soon, then it can sit on the counter). 

9. To make the lemon curd, combine the lemon juice, zest, and sugar in a medium sized sauce pan. 

10. Heat the mixture until it boils and then strain it so the zest is separated from the liquid. 

11. Mix the eggs, egg yolks, and corn starch together in a bowl. 

12. In the same sauce pan as before and over medium heat, combine the egg mixture with the lemon juice mixture. 

13. Mix constantly until the mixture begins to thicken. 

14. Remove the pan from the heat and mix the butter into the mixture to complete the curd.  

15. Pour the curd into a glass or metal container. 

16. Cover the curd with plastic wrap so the plastic is touching the surface and edges of the curd with the least amount of air bubbles possible. 

17. Place the curd in the fridge until it is completely chilled through. 

18. The next day, preheat the oven to 400 *F (200 *C). 

19. Roll out the pie crust on a floured surface so it is just bigger than oiled pie pan. 

20. Press the pie crust into the pie pan, cut the edges off, prick the sides and bottom a little bit. 

21. Pour/pipe the marzipan mixture into the pie pan with the crust and spread it out relatively evenly. 

22. Cover the edges of the pie crust with aluminum foil (this prevents the crust from becoming too dark). 

23. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the marzipan mixture is evenly golden brown. 

24. Take the foil off the edges and bake for a couple minutes more if you think the crust should be darker. 

25. Let the pie cool off until you can grab it with your bare hands. 

26. Evenly spread the lemon curd on top of the marzipan part of the pie. 

27. In a bowl, whisk together the sugar and egg whites on high speed, until the egg whites become quite stiff (this should take about 5 minutes if using liquid/pasteurized egg whites)- they should be stiff enough that when you remove the whisk or stick a finger in it, the egg whites (now called a meringue) make a peak that stands up then folds over like soft served ice cream (I will show a picture below). 

28. When the meringue is ready, spread or pipe it onto the pie in whatever pattern you like. 

29. With a kitchen torch or with your oven set to broil, brown the top of the meringue to your liking and decorate as desired. 

Notes:

- I have recently learned that when making the danish pie crust in america, depending on the butter you use, the dough can come out too soft and actually become sticky (this is due to the water content in the butter). The texture of the dough should be soft, not sticky; if it is sticky, add more flour until it no longer sticks very easily to your fingers. 

- This lemon curd is also great to use for many other things such as: a pancake topping, cake layer filling, donut or pastry filling, and more.  

- I do not recommend making the meringue ahead of time, it should be made right before you are going to use it. From my experience, the meringue begins to dry out or set up quite quickly after it reaches the right consistency. 

- It is important that you use pasteurized/liquid egg whites (they are egg whites that come in a container or carton in the grocery store) due to the stability they have and the time that will be saved; it will take no more than 5-10 minutes to whip a meringue with these types of egg whites. If you use egg whites that you have manually separated from the egg, it will take significantly longer (a half hour +). But, if you still choose to use regular, freshly separated egg whites, add a splash of lemon juice to them, this will help them whip better. 

- The meringue topping can be replaced with whipped cream that is sweetened with some powdered sugar and vanilla. 

- The finished pie can last in the fridge (loosely covered) for up to 3 days. 

- The pie crust dough can last in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. 

- The marzipan mixture can last in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 week. 

- The lemon curd can last in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 weeks or up to a year in the freezer. 

* Picture of how the meringue should look when it is finished whipping - it is the peak that is important to look it. You want a stiff peak that folds over slightly.