Making classic lemon meringue easier with puff pastry and tastier with Meyer Lemons! One of our favourite desserts and Meyer Lemon recipes.
I feel like I could be the chimney sweep character in Mary Poppins who does the heel click as he’s joyfully whistling down the street when I make anything sweet involving citrus. Do you remember that scene?
What is different about Meyer Lemons? In particular as they’re so freaking good, don’t pack as much tang as regular lemons, but are still filled with fantastic citrus notes that brighten dishes with flavour and colour. They’re less tart than a regular lemon, almost like a cross between a sweet orange and a lemon, and they have a thinner skin.
I made this Meyer Lemon Meringue Tart easy by using store-bought puff pastry. One roll, a quick bake and the tart is ready to be filled! And, truth be told (please don’t hurt me), I usually prefer puff pastry versus pie crust. Not always, but I love how light, pliable, and even special it feels to me (more mille-feuille versus apple pie kind of feels).
To me, citrus represents, big hits of vibrant fruit flavours and Vitamin C to get us through Winter. They hold so much flavour in such a little amount. Meyer Lemons are naturally sweeter and lean into sweet dishes easily.
What’s the best use for Meyer Lemons? Since they don’t hold as much acidity as regular lemons, I wouldn’t recommend them for brightening up savoury dishes the way we use regular lemons. If Meyer Lemons are not available in your location, regular lemons will do just fine in this tart. Sweets and cocktails are my usual go to for Meyer Lemons, but they also preserve well in salt.
This tart was a complete and utter fail the first time I made it. I made it for my street’s regular Friday Happy Hour as it was my turn to host (yes, this is a thing for me and yes, I live on a great street with really fun people).
It was moderately embarrassing and I didn’t even bother to torch the meringue since I knew it was a fail. The curd would not set. I’m still uncertain at what went wrong as I couldn’t get that thick custard-like consistency that goes with lemon curds. In lieu, I had a tart that literally oozed out from the centre all over the cutting board. Regardless, the kids loved it.
Round 2 was miles better. The curd turned out nicely; perfect consistency. I triple checked all my measurements and even discovered that meringue keeps in the fridge!!
My friend Liv tells me that she even freezes her version of meringue. So if you end up with extra, feel confident in parking it in the fridge for a couple of days, freeze for a month, or bake immediately into meringues, like these Triple Chocolate ones, here.
Obviously, the entire family loved this tart. I ate the majority of it of course, but once you’ve tried a bite of this tart I doubt you’ll walk away without seconds.
Making classic lemon meringue easier with puff pastry and tastier with Meyer Lemons! One of our favourite desserts and Meyer Lemon recipes.
- 250 grams frozen puff pastry usually 1 package
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 2 medium meyer lemons, zest and juiced
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 6 tbsp granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp salted butter, cut into 1 tbsp pieces
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 1 tbsp pieces
- 6 large egg whites 6 tbsp
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
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Preheat oven to 375* F. Place rolled out pastry into pastry tin and press pastry against bottom and sides of a fluted tart pan (I used 13" x 4") until snug inside. Using a fork, punch holes into the pastry (base and sides). Brush pastry with egg wash. Line the bottom with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans.
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Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until pastry is browning and cooked through. Allow to cool fully and remove pie weights and parchment paper. Set aside.
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In a medium sauce pan, whisk the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until just mixed. Stir in the Meyer lemon juice and zest, then all 6 tablespoons of butter. Place over low to medium heat (edging closer to low as if the eggs get too hot too quickly they will scramble) and cook, stirring constantly until mixture begins to thicken and can coat the back of a wooden spoon. About 10-15 minutes or when the mixture reaches a temperature of 170° F (if a candy thermometer is available). Allow to cool and set aside.
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Place egg whites and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (set with a whisk attachment). Using a double-boiler method, place bowl above a sauce filled with a couple of inches of water set above medium heat for a simmer (never allowing the bowl to touch the water). Heat the mixture until extremely warm to the touch, or has reached 160° F if using a candy thermometer. Remove the bowl from heat and carefully set into the stand mixer.
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Mix on high until stiff glossy peaks form, about 10 minutes. Add vanilla extract and whisk briefly to combine. The bowl should have lost all heat and returned to room temperature (touch the outside of the bowl with your wrist to see).
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Quickly whisk cooled curd to smooth it out and place curd inside cooled pastry. Top with meringue using a piping bag and a 1M star shaped tip (there maybe some leftover*). If you have a torch, carefully and lightly toast meringue if desired .
- There maybe some meringue leftover. Meringue will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days and freezes well for a month or two.
Enjoy! xo
Meyer Lemon Curd from Chez Panisse Meyer Lemon Meringue Pie on New York Times.
Meringue Recipe, quartered from Tessa Huff’s Layered Cookbook.
Get Dinner Rolling – Rosemary Rock Salt Dinner Rolls
Gorgeous Tart! I love puff pastry too. Do you remember when only a few years ago you couldn’t even buy Rolls of puff pastry? I could only find blocks and I hated them. I also never actually tried Meyer lemons, need to find them somehow!
It’s os nice that food has come a long way, especially for items that are maybe a bit of a pain in the butt to make;) Meyer Lemons are much more common December through May so it might just be a bit of waiting game till they’re more widely available. They usually show up with Blood Oranges around here.
This looks so good! I love lemon desserts, and I love Meyer lemons too! I’ve pinned this for later 🙂
Thank you! Lemon desserts are great aren’t they? They are a nice way to enjoy a treat without feeling too indulgent.
Helloooooooo, beautiful! I am such a sucker for lemon in desserts, especially if it’s Meyer lemon. I love that you took the time to pipe on the meringue, rather than just swirling it on like lazy ol’ me would’ve done. 🙂 So glad you persevered and tried again.
PS: Freezing leftover meringue or even just parking it in the fridge? Never tried, but what a genius idea!
Hahaha. I love the piped look personally, but I really like it when food looks “pretty”. The fridge/freezing is all Olivia so you can thank her for that tip. Have a great weekend!
I enjoy making pie crust, but sometimes I like to be lazy too and use store bought puffy pastry (which works and tastes great) ?. This Meyer lemon Meringue Tart is beautiful and I’m sure absolutely delicious. Would love a piece right now!
We’re totally on the same page with the puff pastry. I definitely don’t have the time to always make pie pastry. In addition, sometimes I just want puff pastry. I’m hoping to try a phyllo pastry dish soon. 🙂
Go team citrus! Citrus was the very first thing I ever featured on Diversivore, and it holds a very special place in my heart and my kitchen. I’m a BIG fan of meyer lemons, and I’m really intrigued at the way you’ve used them here. Normally I reallllly like that tangy lemon kick in curd, but I could totally see the sweet almost orange-y flavour of Meyers being amazing. And while I’m a really big fan of pie-crust on desserts like this, you’ve actually get me really interested with the puff pastry. I mean, I LOVE puff pastry, so why not, right?
Alright, it’s official. I’m excited for winter citrus season. Thanks! 😀
Yeah citrus!! And I’m trying to be more of a “why not” person than a “why” person so I’m digging your comment a lot. And puff pastry is the ultimate prepared item that I always have in my freezer. Breakfast tart? Vegetables with cheese tart? Kind of a pizza? You catch my drift I’m sure. That’s so great that you used citrus as your first ingredient to showcase; it’s so dynamic and diverse.
Hooray for ‘why not’! I can’t help but roll my eyes when people do the saaaaaame things, over and over again. It’s nice to break out of the monotony and try new things. I’m curious, where do you get your puff pastry? I don’t have any right now, but I’m in love with the all-butter one made by La Baguette at L’Echalote. They sell through Whole Foods in Vancouver (though nobody at the store had ANY idea what I was talking about when I asked where to find it), but I don’t make it there all that often. I’m keeping my eyes peeled for other options.
Yes! That puff pastry at WF is excellent (freezer section next to the frozen french fries and frozen pastries). The one I buy the most often is actually the President’s Choice brand (gasp!). It’s pre-rolled and comes in a convenient two pack for half the price of the WF one. Their phyllo pastry is also on point in my opinion. It was on sale this past weekend, I got both boxes for $5. Score!
How much Lemon curd? Ty.
Marie Lawson
Hi there, the lemon curd made in the recipe is the exact amount you need for the tart. I’m not too sure of the volume if you’re using store bought curd.
Followed it to a T, except had no lemons on hand so used 100% lemon juice. Came out so good! Excited to make it many more times this summer, I may even buy lemons 😁. Thank you for this!
Pleasure! Good to know that it is still tasty with just using lemon juice.