Another pie question. This one is about lemon meringue.

[MELSMICE]

Do you put the meringue on the pie & brown it when the pie is warm, room temp after being cooled or after it is chilled.

I have tried it all different ways & my meringue always pulls away from the sides & leaves the "pie juice" around the edges? There is only time when that didn't happen & I can't remember for the life of me what I did then!

HELP!!!

 

[mum4jenn]

Forget the meringue...use cool whip!!!!

Sorry I can't really help you. I do not like meringue at all so I have always used Cool Whip.

 

[wide awake]

Hi,
You put the meringue on right after you take the pie out of the oven...the heat of the filling does some of the cooking of the egg whites, particularly if you have a thick layer of meringue. Pulling away sounds like you may have cooked it too long.

 

[JimmyPicker]

Lemon meringue pie, yummy!!

There are a couple of tricks to it, sometimes they work, sometimes they still don't work. Don't ask me why.

Bake your pie crust in the oven, then pull it out, fill with the lemon, top with the meringue. Put back in the hot oven.

Here's the tricks. Cream of tarter -- just a bit mixed in while whipping your meringue should help keep it from weeping, which could help with separation issues.

Also, make sure that the meringue is on the crust, with no breaks or air pockets. Once it's already separated a little, it makes more separation easier. So a good, tight seal between the crust and the meringue can help with this.

Good luck! I've made thousands of those suckers and who knows why they weep/separate sometimes?

 

[MELSMICE]

Hi,
You put the meringue on right after you take the pie out of the oven...the heat of the filling does some of the cooking of the egg whites, particularly if you have a thick layer of meringue. Pulling away sounds like you may have cooked it too long.

So, if I did this tonight, would be OK until tomorrow? Would it still pull away or get liquidy (sp?)? I can do it tomorrow, but it's the last "pre-prep" I have to do & figured I'd get it done today if possible.

I always keep it chilled too because of the lemon filling having eggs in it. Is this not right?

 

[MELSMICE]

Good luck! I've made thousands of those suckers and who knows why they weep/separate sometimes?

LOL - that's the thing. Not to boast, but I actually make very good pies. I have to bring them all for Christmas & Christmas Eve.

I know it's not a huge deal for it to separate, but it annoys me that I can't get it right every time, all the time!!!

 

[pogo791]

Also, make sure that the meringue is on the crust, with no breaks or air pockets. Once it's already separated a little, it makes more separation easier. So a good, tight seal between the crust and the meringue can help with this.

I've made I don't know how many lemon meringue pies, and I think this is the most important tip. Spread that meringue over the entire pie, all the way to the crust around the edges. Basically, once you put the pie in the oven, the meringue will be grabbing on to the crust. If there is even a small space between the crust and the meringue, then the meringue will shrink, sliding along the top of the filling.

Good luck!