Welcome to instalment 3 of ‘what I made for mum and dads 50th anniversary’ and the cutest little Mini Lemon Meringue Pies EVER!
These were so much fun to create. My family has always been a fan of Lemon Meringue Pie. That and rice pudding are the 2 desserts we probably ate the most of growing up. If you’re particularly after mini tarts, try these Coconut Tartlets aswell.
Mum always used to be the Lemon Meringue Pie maker but in recent years, dad seems to have taken over and is always trying to make his next one the best one.
Well, a big slice of lemon pie is great and all but isn’t everything better in miniature? Plus because these are Mini Lemon Meringue Pies, we can eat more of them right?
The cookie cup
These actually start off with a simple sugar cookie cup base using my sugar cookie recipe. This is a fairly basic dough with just a few ingredients which is rolled out and I use a small round cookie cutter to cut out circles of dough, that then get pushed into the holes of a mini muffin tin. The trick is getting just the right amount of water into the dough to make it pliable without making it very wet but don’t worry. If little cracks or holes appear when you push the dough into the tin, it doesn’t matter as they will still bake up into a perfect looking little cookie cup.
The lemon curd
You can make your lemon curd from scratch using this recipe or to save on time (especially if making a whole bunch for a party) you can use a good quality shop bought lemon curd. Easy peasy.
The perfect meringue top
These Mini Lemon Meringue Pies wouldn’t be lemon meringue without the perfect little, crisp on the outside, chewy in the middle meringue. These I definitely make from scratch and they’re so cute, right? I used my basic meringue recipe that I’ve used in these Massive Chocolate Swirl Meringues and Easy Peppermint Meringues and just piped little meringue kisses.
The meringues puff a little in the oven so make sure to pipe them just slightly smaller than the size of the cookie cups. Also, if you want that burnished look to your meringues a simple kitchen blow torch does the job.
I love doing the meringues separately like this as it means you can assemble the Mini Lemon Meringue Pies at the last minute.
Click here to Pin this recipe for later!
Assembling these perfect Mini Lemon Meringue Pies
Assembly of these little cuties is incredibly easy. Take the cooled cookie cups, fill them with a little lemon curd, then top with a cool meringue kiss. Done.
I got a bit indulgent and, since it was mum and dads 50th wedding anniversary, I brushed the meringues with a little gold leaf. If you like the shimmer but don’t want the expense, a simple edible gold glitter will do the trick too.
Other recipes you might like
- Biscuit Base Lemon Meringue Pie
- Strawberry Chocolate Petit Fours
- No Bake Lemon Meringue Cheesecake
- Lemon Meringue Cake
- Lemon Crumble Slice
- No Bake Chocolate Meringue Pie
- Chocolate Pavlova
Mini Lemon Meringue Pies
Ingredients
For the sugar cookies
- 195 g (1 ½ cups) plain (AP) flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup (100g / 3.5oz) caster sugar
- 57 g (1/2 stick / ¼ cup) unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup lemon curd
For the meringues
- 2 large egg whites
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 cup (100g / 3.5oz) caster (superfine) sugar
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160C (320F) and spray the holes of two 24 hole mini muffin tins with oil spray
For the cookies:
- Sift together flour & baking powder and set aside
- Beat the butter and sugar until lightened. Scrape sides of bowl. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat well, scraping down the bowl a couple of times until well mixed. Add flour mix in 3 parts. Keep the mixer on low and mix until it comes together as a dough. If it looks too crumbly and isn't coming together, add 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of water until it starts to form big clumps of dough. Be patient. Don't add more water than necessary.
- Bring the dough into a smooth ball and roll out between 2 sheets of baking paper (I cut the dough in half as I find it more manageable to do half at a time). Roll it to about 2-3mm thick.
- Use a round cookie cutter about 2cm larger than the holes of the muffin tin, to cut out as many circles of dough as possible. Then re-roll and repeat.
- Cut out a small triangle from the edge of each cirlcle (a bit like a pac man) – this will help you to shape them into the muffin tins.
- Make sure the holes of the tin are greased properly, then pushed the circles into the holes very gently. If they break, you can just push the dough together or use offcuts if required to fill any cracks that occur.
- Bake for around 10-12 minutes until starting to turn golden on the edges and making sure to turn the tray half way through. Transfer to a cooling rack.
- Once cooled, fill each cookie cup with about 1-2 teaspoons of lemon curd.
For the meringues
- Preheat oven to 120C / 100C fan forced. Line 2 large cookie sheets with baking paper.
- In a stand mixer, with the whisk attachment (or using a handheld beater), beat the egg whites to soft peak stage (a peak that bends over at the top) - About 5 minutes.
- Sift over the cream of tartar and beat through. Now add the sugar one tablespoon at a time, until the egg whites are thick and glossy and at stiff peak stage. Once all the sugar is incorporated, test the mixture by rubbing a little between your finger and thumb. It should be smooth. If it is still grainy, keep beating until it is smooth when you test it.
- Tip 1: Use a little meringue under the corners of the baking paper to hold it down (especially if your oven is fan foced)
- Transfer the meringue to a piping bag and pipe small kisses / teardrops, slightly smaller than the diameter of the cookie cups, onto the baking sheets. Make sure to space them about 1 inch apart.
- Tip 2: Hold the piping bag perfectly vertical about 1 fingers width from the baking paper and begin piping slowly, as the bottom fills out into a nice shape, lift the piping bag away slowly, creating a little peak on each one. Once you get the hang of it you can move along quicker.
- Place in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes until the outsides look dry. Remove from oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheets. Gently peel away from the baking paper and transfer to an airtight container until ready to top the pies.
Notes
- I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (4 teaspoons worldwide)
- If you would like the toasted look, use a small kitchen torch to give them just a kiss of colour.
- For best results you should always weigh ingredients like flour and sugar. Kitchen scales like these are relatively cheap but if you can’t weigh the ingredients, use the spoon and level method (don’t scoop).
This post may contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission for my referral, at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting Sugar Salt Magic.
18 Comments on “Mini Lemon Meringue Pies”
I am making these for a yr 9 school cooking project they look amazing hope I get a good grade (;
How exciting – you got this! I’d love to hear how you go 🙂
These were so easy to make, look so cute and taste amazing. My son has requested these as part of his birthday meal for his 18th next week!
Thank you so much, Isobel. So happy you love them
Yum, another great recipe! I love that they are single-serve size although I would need at least 3 :D. I have featured your recipe in our roundup, 7 Of The Best Fruit Pie Recipes. You can view it here if you wish, https://www.diythought.com/7-of-the-best-fruit-pie-recipes/ Thanks!
Thank you so much Kelly 🙂
Yum! This looks delicious! Feel free to share your recipes on Kitchen Thyme. We share each recipe on social media, weekly meal plans, newsletters and recipe round ups. I hope you join us! https://kitchenthy.me/
Thanks so much Jane
These are the cutest things ever! They are so perfect for a dessert bar at a party and if you have it as an everyday dessert, that will sure make your day special.
They sure are a great party dessert. Thanks Trang 🙂
Wow!..I hit up google trying to find ways to make my meringue work and how to get the best look for meringue on the top of individual lemon tarts. This site/receipe popped up, and while I still look forward to making your sugar cookies, I can proudly say it is first time I have actually succeeded at meringue, and my little lemon tarts look so cute!..Can’t wait to try your other receipes.
Thanks Marie, you’ve made my day!! Xx
Thanks so much Connie, I’m so happy my post was helpful 🙂
Lemon meringue pie was always a childhood favourite and I can’t remember the last time I had some. These mini pies are the cutest! Love a good cookie cup! And the meringue looks so whippy! 😉
Mine too. I just love a good lemon meringue pie and cookie cups too, and combined they are wonderful 🙂 thanks Leanne
Yes, everything is better in mini :-). These sound amazing and are so beautiful. The gold leaf is the perfect finishing touch! I bet there were none left after the party 🙂 . Take care.
Well technically there were but I made millions. They’re all gone now though 🙂
Terrific idea of doing the meringues separately. Thanks Marie. They look lovely.
Yes, it works great as you can just top the little pies at the last second.