Vent: My lemon meringue pie disaster at the county fair bake-off last summer

I spent 4 hours on a lemon meringue pie for the county fair bake-off in Des Moines, only to have it weep a puddle of syrup all over the display table by judging time. Some folks say you have to cook the filling longer, others swear by adding cornstarch at the end. Which method do you stick with to keep your pies from leaking?

3 comments

3 Comments

ray6482d ago

Actually cornstarch goes in the beginning when you're mixing the sugar and cornstarch together before you add the wet ingredients. Adding it at the end just gives you lumps. I always whisk the sugar, cornstarch, and salt together first, then slowly pour in the lemon juice and water while stirring. That way the starch gets fully incorporated before it hits any heat. The real trick though is bringing it to a full boil for a solid minute or two after it thickens. That cooks out the starch taste and sets the filling proper. My grandma taught me that and her pies never weeped once in 40 years of fair competitions.

ramirez.caleb1d agoTop Commenter

Hear me out though what if the problem isn't just technique but the actual cornstarch itself? I switched to tapioca starch a few years ago after my lemon pie turned into a weird half-jelly half-sludge mess and it changed EVERYTHING. @ray648 your grandma's boiling tip is solid but tapioca sets up way clearer and doesn't get that grainy texture even if you rush it a little. I still mix the dry stuff first though because lumps are unforgivable.

thea_carter2d ago

That line about your grandma's pies never weeping is like a personal attack on my baking career. My lemon pies always end up looking like a crime scene because I'm impatient and never let it boil long enough. I'm usually scooping out chunks of uncooked cornstarch sludge while my kids pretend it's fine. You're right though, mixing the dry stuff first makes total sense. I've been trying to get away with just dumping cornstarch in at the end like some kind of monster. Maybe if I follow those steps I'll finally have a pie that doesn't start leaking before it even gets to the table.