I have a few recipes for this pie and the one I normally use is based off one in an old Joy of Cooking cookbook that I have altered somewhat.
Baked single pie crust (see pie crust Pie Crust)
In a saucepan whisk together 1 ½ c sugar
1/3 c cornstarch plus another ~ 2 tbsp
pinch of salt
Whisk into this blending well:
1 ½ cups water
~2/3 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice (this is the PIE!!! Must use fresh squeezed lemons. I use about 5 or 6 lemons)
Some grated lemon zest to make about 3 or 4 tablespoons
Into the above whisk in about 5 egg yolks until no streaks remain. Keep the egg whites for the meringue and make sure you leave them at room temperature do not put them back into the fridge.
Place it on a medium-low heat and keep whisking to keep it smooth as it becomes thick.
Add about 3 tablespoons of butter cut into pieces and keep mixing as it melts.
The mixture will become quite thick.
Pour this into the baked crust and immediately cover with a sheet of plastic wrap. You want to wrap to touch the filling so you avoid getting a thick skin before you add the meringue but you also need the filling to be hot when you add the meringue therefore start making the meringue immediately.
Meringue
Oven remains at 400F for the meringue.
This meringue is fast and easy to make.
Use the egg whites from the filling (should have about 5)
Add about ¼ tsp of cream of tartar to the whites and beat until soft definite peaks form.
Gradually beat in the sugar, a fine or superfine sugar works best but if you only have regular white granulated sugar use it; you will need about ½ cup of sugar.
Continue beating on high to get stiff peaks then add a little vanilla for flavor if you want (not necessary).
Immediately spread this on top of the filling and spread around to touch the meringue to the edges of the crust so as to ‘anchor’ it to the edges. Touch up the rest of the pie to get your fluffy ridges.
Bake this in the heated oven about 20 minutes. Check it around 15 or 16 minutes as it will start getting brown on the peaks and you do not want it to burn.
When done, place it on a rack to cool.
Now…..growing up on the farm my brothers were infamous for immediately devouring hot lemon pie…no time for pie cooling at my house.
Years later one of my brothers ordered a piece of lemon pie at a truck stop restaurant and it was brought to him…Cold!!!
He asked if it could be heated up and I think the staff thought he was a complete nutcase!
To each his own!!
Bon Appetit!!