Upside Down Lemon Meringue Pie
Serves: 6 to 8
This is my top favorite “socials” recipe in the book! A sweet and crisp meringue shell is the perfect container for the tart and creamy True Lemon Ice Cream, but it works with your favorite ice cream as well. Piping the meringue makes it easier to spread evenly, but it will be every bit as beautiful if spread with a spatula instead. The secret to its easy unmolding is nonstick cooking spray and cornstarch. You can unmold the meringue shell from the pie plate and fill it with whipped cream and berries instead of ice cream, but if you are filling it with ice cream, it needs the support of the pie plate for cutting slices.
Plan Ahead Fill the meringue shell with ice cream a minimum of 2 hours and up to 5 days before serving.
Oven Temperature: 200°F/93°C
Baking Time: 2 hours, plus 20 minutes with the oven off and door open
Special Equipment
One 9½ inch deep dish pie plate, preferably Pyrex, coated with nonstick cooking spray and then coated with cornstarch (invert the pie plate and tap it to knock out any excess cornstarch)
A large disposable piping bag fitted with a ½ inch star pastry tube or a quart-size reclosable freezer bag with a small semicircle cut from one corner and fitted with the star pastry tube
Crisp Meringue Pie Shell
| 3 large egg whites | 90 grams | ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (89 ml) |
| cream of tartar | . | ⅜ teaspoon |
| superfine sugar | 175 grams | ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons |
Preheat the Oven
* Twenty minutes or longer before baking, set an oven rack at the middle level. Set the oven at 200°F/93°C.
Mise en Place
* Into the bowl of a stand mixer, weigh or measure the egg whites, cream of tartar, and sugar and whisk them together until blended. Cover and allow it to sit at room temperature for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 6 hours.
Make the Meringue
1) Attach the whisk beater. Starting on low speed and gradually raising the speed to high, beat for 12 minutes. The meringue will be very thick and glossy and form curved peaks when the beater is raised.
Pipe the Meringue Shell
2) Insert the star tube into the piping or freezer bag and fill it with half of the meringue. Hold the bag in a vertical position (straight up and down) with the tube at least 1½ inches above the pan. To achieve the full height, the meringue must be allowed to fall from the tube (not pressed against the pan).
3) Starting at the center of the pie plate, pipe a spiral coil to cover the bottom and sides of the plate. To prevent gaps, let the spirals of meringue fall against the side, almost on top of the previous spirals. The weight of the meringue will cause them to fall perfectly into place. Continue piping until the coil has reached the sides of the plate.
4) Refill the bag with the remaining meringue. For the sides, pipe single rings of meringue until the last ring is just above the rim. Smooth the top edge of the meringue to form a level, ½ inch wide top edge. To reinforce where the sides and bottom coils meet, in order to prevent cracking, pipe a coil of meringue against the bottom side coil and smooth it with a spoon. Fill in any gaps in the meringue coils and smooth the surfaces of the bottom and sides with a spoon or small offset spatula. If desired, pipe a decorative border (see Scoops).
Bake AND COOL the Meringue Shell
5) Bake for 2 hours without opening the oven door. The meringue should not be brown. To check the meringue for doneness, without removing it from the oven, use the tip of a small, sharp knife to dig out a little from the bottom’s center. It can still be slightly sticky, as it will continue to dry while cooling. If it is stickier, continue to bake it, checking every 10 minutes until it is done. (A slight stickiness in the meringue shell bottom can be extra pleasing!)
6) To prevent cracking, turn off the oven and prop the door open slightly with a wooden spoon handle. Let the meringue sit for 10 minutes. Then open the oven door completely and let the meringue sit for another 10 minutes. Remove it from the oven and place it on a counter. Place a cake dome or large bowl over the pie plate and cool the meringue for another 30 minutes.
Compose the Pie
7) Soften the ice cream until spreadable, then fill the meringue shell. Set a piece of plastic wrap on top of the ice cream surface and freeze the completed pie for a minimum of 4 hours. Depending on the temperature of your freezer and refrigerator, you will need to allow it to soften in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to an hour before serving.
8) To cut slices, first slip the tip of a small knife between the top edge and the pie plate to dislodge it. The meringue will unmold easily from the pie plate but will crumble slightly on serving.
Garnish if desired with the lemon stardust.
Store
Filled pie: frozen, 3 days (about 1 week if using commercial ice cream with stabilizer)
Unfilled meringue shell: Airtight: room temperature (at low humidity), 5 days; frozen, 3 months
Scoops
* Commercial ice cream usually has more overrun than homemade. (This refers to the amount of air that gets incorporated during the freezing process.) When the ice cream is softened to make it possible to spread it into the meringue shell, it loses much of the air and the volume can decrease by as much as one-third. If using commercial ice cream, you will need extra to fill the meringue shell to the desired thickness. Have at least 1½ quarts/1½ liters on hand.
* If piping a large decorative border, you will need to increase the meringue by 1⅓ times (4 egg whites/120 grams, ½ teaspoon cream of tartar, and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons/233 grams sugar).
* You can create a decorative swirl on the top of the ice cream by using a small offset spatula. Allow the ice cream to freeze for about 30 minutes before setting the plastic wrap on top.