Thanksgiving is nearly here and I have had desserts on my mind for weeks! I simply cannot imagine a dessert table without a lemon meringue pie. (Is that a staple for everyone or just my family?) That luscious citrusy tartness and fluffy cloud-like meringue has made an appearance every year for as long as I remember! This year, I want to maintain tradition, of course but mix it up a little. To me, lemon just screams summer and I wanted to make something a little more fall-centric.
I use orange zest and juice in a lot of my fall and winter cooking and baking. It just goes so well with warm spices and flavors, so to me, orange just has more of a fall feel. This orange meringue pie comes with the tartness we know and love with some added sweet and juicy orange notes!
There are three steps to this pie and timing is key.
Unfortunately this meringue pie doesn’t really stand the test of time. So that is something you need to factor into your holiday prep. It really does need to be enjoyed the within a few hours of completion. The French meringue will begin to break down and collapse shortly after.
About timing: The filling needs to still be hot when you top it with the meringue. This will keep the meringue from weeping when it cools. When you bake a meringue, the topmost layer cooks easily because it is exposed to the heat, but the bottom layer of the meringue is far from the oven’s heat, preventing it from cooking through before the top is browned. Once it comes out of the oven and begins to cool, the undercooked bottom layer of egg whites and sugar turn into a syrup and begins to pool on top of the filling. To prevent this from happening, make sure the filling is still piping hot when you top it with the meringue.
I find the best way to time out the bake is to first begin blind baking the pastry. Then, while it is in the oven, make the meringue. It can sit at room temperature while you make the filling. When the pastry comes out of the oven, both the meringue and the filling are ready to go.
Here’s what you need for the crust:
If you don’t want to mess with making pastry, store bought is fine.
I too am not a fan of making pie pastry. It can be one of the most stress-inducing activities. So, if you have a good quality pre-made crust you want to use, by all means use it! Just skip ahead to the blind bake!
This time, for this pie, I’m going for it. If you are going for it, make sure you have all your ingredients prepped and ready to go and make sure your butter and shortening are really, really cold.
Cut the cold fats into the dry ingredients.
Pulse the flour, salt and sugar in a food processor until well combined. Add the butter and pulse a few times to break it up. Add the shortening and pulse a few more times until the dough is crumbly and mealy. While pulsing, drizzle in the cold water and pulse until it is incorporated but still loose.
Dump the pastry dough onto a work surface. Use your hands to work it into a firm disc as quickly as you can, The warmth of your hands can melt the fats, which will prevent the crust from becoming flaky later.
Refrigerate the pastry for an hour to relax the gluten and let the fats become cold once again.
Roll the chilled dough on a floured surface out to a circle measuring 12 inches in diameter. I use a silicone baking mat like in the one in the photo. It helps get my pastry dough the exact right size every time. I would be lost without it.
Use a bench scraper to help you roll the dough circle around your rolling pin. Lift it over your pie pan and unroll. Gently ease the dough into the pan, making sure it reaches the corners of the pan. Try to avoid stretching the dough, because that will cause it to shrink while baking. Tuck excess dough around the edges of the pan under itself, forming a sort of thick pastry “log” all along the top.
Use your index finger one one hand to push the excess dough through the index and middle finger of the other hand to create a fluted edge.
Place the prepared crust, unbaked, into the freezer for 30 minutes. This will lock it into place and will also help prevent shrinking while it bakes.
Blind bake the crust.
While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Before baking, line the dough with a sheet of parchment, then fill it completely with dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the parchment and beans. Use a fork to ‘dock’ the bottom of the crust. Poke holes with the tines of a fork for steam to escape through while it bakes. This will prevent the crust from puffing up. Bake for an additional 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350.
While the crust is baking, make the meringue and the orange filling.
Make the meringue.
A French meringue is made by adding granulated sugar to whipping egg whites until they reach soft or stiff peaks. Superfine sugar dissolves more quickly, preventing the meringue from having a grainy texture, and keeping it from weeping after baking. Making superfine sugar is easy. Simply mince the granulated sugar in a food processor for several seconds until it is, well, superfine.
Whip the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until they become foamy. Turn the speed to medium-high and whip to soft peaks. The bubbles will become tighter and the meringue will start to gain volume. You will know it has reached soft peaks when the meringue on the tip of the whisk attachment will form a peak when lifted out of the bowl, then slowly collapse back on itself.
As soon as soft peaks are reached, begin adding the superfine sugar, a spoonful at a time, until all of it is in. Then, continue to whip until stiff peaks are formed after another few minutes. When you lift the whisk upward, the meringue peak attached to the tip will hold its shape and not collapse back.
Make the filling.
At this point, the meringue is hanging out to the side and you likely have the crust in the oven for the second bake.
In a medium saucepan, whisk together the zest and citrus juices, cornstarch, sugar, water, salt and vanilla. Turn the heat to medium. After about 5 minutes, the mixture will begin to thicken up. Keep whisking for a couple minutes until it is smooth, thick and glossy. Turn the heat to medium-low.
Have the egg yolks in a separate bowl to the side. Drop spoonfuls of the hot, thickened citrus filling into yolk and whisk to gently cook the yolks while whisking. Pour the tempered yolks into the saucepan with the remaining custard. Whisk to combine then turn off the heat. Stir in the softened butter.
Pour the hot filling into the pre-baked crust and use a rubber spatula to spread it out evenly. Top immediately with the meringue. Spread the meringue all the way out to the edges of the crust and use a spoon or spatula to create decorative swirls.
Bake the pie for 20 minutes. The meringue will be golden brown and set. Try not to overcook as that can cause the meringue to sweat as it cools.
Allow the pie to cool completely at room temperature (about 1 hour) before placing it in the refrigerator. Chill for at least 3 hours before serving! Enjoy!
Other recipes to try:
Orange Meringue Pie
Ingredients
For the crust
- 1.5 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter very cold, cut into cubes
- 1/4 cup shortening very cold, cut into cubes
- 4 tbsp ice water
For the filling
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 3/4 cup orange juice
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 5 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp room temperature butter
For the meringue
- 5 egg whites room temperature
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
Make the crust
- In a food processor, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Add the butter and pulse a few times, then add the shortening and pulse a few more times but do not over mix. While pulsing, drizzle in the cold water. Dump the dough onto a work surface. It will still be very loose. Work the dough together with your hands into a flat disc. Wrap with plastic and place in the refrigerator to rest for at least 1 hour.Unwrap and roll the pastry out to a 12 inch circle. Use a bench scraper to roll the dough around your rolling pin, then unroll it over a 9 inch pie pan. Gently work the dough into bottom of the pan and up the sides. Tuck excess pastry at the edge of the pan into itself to make a sort of 'log' around the top of the crust, then use your index finger on one hand to push dough through the index and middle finger of your other hand to make a fluted edge. Place the prepared pastry into the freezer for 30 minutes. Turn the oven on to 375 degrees. Remove the pastry from the freezer and place it onto a sheet pan. Line the inside of the pastry with parchment and fill with dry beans. Bake dough for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and carefully remove the parchment and beans. Use the tines of a fork to 'dock' the bottom of the crust. Place in the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes.Remove the pan from the oven and turn the temperature down to 350 degrees.
Make the meringue.
- Pour the sugar into a food processor and turn it to high for about 30 second to make superfine sugar that will dissolve better into the meringuePour the egg whites into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer. Whisk on medium high speed until they become foamy. Add the cream of tartar and whisk until the whites begin to approach soft peaks, which will happen after a couple more minutes of whisking. You will know because the bubbles will become tighter and the meringue will appear cloud-like. With the mixer still running, begin adding the sugar a spoonful at a time until it is all in, then continue to whisk until it reaches stiff peaks. When you lift the whisk attachment out of the bowl and turn it upright, the meringue that is adhered to the tip will form a peak that does not fall back onto itself.Set the meringue aside while you make the filling
Make the orange filling.
- In a medium saucepan on medium heat, whisk together the lemon and orange zests and juices, sugar, vanilla, salt, cornstarch and water. It will look cloudy at first. After about 5 minutes, it will begin to thicken up. Whisk it for a couple minutes until it is thick and glossy. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks. Drop a few spoonfuls of the hot orange mixture into the yolks and whisk to combine. This will cook the yolks without scrambling them. Pour the tempered yolks into the saucepan with the remaining custard and stir to combine. Turn off the heat.
Assemble and bake the pie.
- While the crust is blind baking, make the meringue and the filling so everything comes together all at once. Filling needs to be very hot when you top it with the meringue so the bottom layer of meringue begins cooking instantly, which will help prevent weeping. Pour the hot orange filling into the par-baked crust and use a rubber spatula to spread it evenly.Immediately top with the meringue and use a rubber spatula to create decorative peaks. Place the pie in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely at room temperature before chilling.