lemon meringue pie

King Arthur Test Kitchen’s lemon meringue pie combines a lemon-flavoured filling with a golden meringue top. Its selected crust uses vegetable oil and milk, and the publisher describes the filling as balanced between tartness and sweetness.

Flour and salt are combined with oil and cold milk to form a cohesive crust. It is rolled, fitted into the pie pan, pressed at the edges and pricked before baking until it begins to brown.

Sugar, cornstarch and water cook into a thick mixture, then some is stirred into egg yolks before returning to the saucepan. Butter, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla are stirred in off the heat.

The reserved whites from those eggs are beaten with cream of tartar and gradually added sugar until stiff peaks form. Vanilla finishes the meringue, which is spread over the hot filling right to the pan’s edges.

A final bake colours the meringue golden. The pie cools for several hours before serving, allowing the filling and topping to form the finished layered dessert.