A simple, flavorful, and light pie. It’s a favorite of mine for the summer.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Additional Time: | 1 hr 30 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 1 to 9 – inch pie |
Ingredients
- 1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup white sugar
Instructions
- Combine 3/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, water, lemon peel and juice, and egg yolks in a saucepan. Beat well. Stir while cooking over medium heat until thick; it will thicken just as it starts to simmer.
- Remove saucepan from heat. Add cream cheese to lemon mixture, and stir until incorporated.
- In a small bowl, beat egg whites until stiff; add remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Fold sweetened egg whites into lemon mixture.
- Spoon filling into shell and chill.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 246 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 37 g |
| Cholesterol | 58 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Protein | 3 g |
| Saturated Fat | 4 g |
| Sodium | 152 mg |
| Sugars | 26 g |
| Fat | 10 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
I halved the sugar and doubled the lemon juice. With a dollop of Cool Whip on top, that sweetness level works for me. Some may disagree. If I were making it for a potluck or something, I might add 1/8-1/4 cup more sugar, because I feel like most people would like it just a little sweeter. I’m not much of a baker or a cook, so I’ve never dealt with lemon zest before. The one lemon I bought only made less than half a teaspoon and it called for a whole teaspoon. I will probably just leave the zest out next time because I don’t think it makes much difference.
I used
Being a diabetic I used Swerve and it turned the egg whites a grey color. Not great for presentation, still it was delicious and tasted just wonderful!
Delicious. I added an extra 1/4 cup of fresh melon juice and reduced the water by the same for extra tartness.
It was extremely easy to make And so delicious
Followed recipe. Might do a meringue topping. Pudding tasted deliscious. Waiting for it to cool. Used graham cracker crust.
Refreshing!
Made this super easy pie. Truly a refreshing dessert on a very hot day.
It was delicious. But I used 1 TBLS. Of zest an 1/3 cup of lemon juice an 3/4 cup of water give a little more lemon zing. Thanks for the recipe.
It’s my first time making this I think it turned out good
This worked out really well! People said it didn’t have enough flavor, but I didn’t measure my lemon juice so I’m not sure what the regular recipe is like. I used the juice of a good sized lemon and it was packed with flavor! I also did a graham cracker crust and added some candies lemon peel on top for texture
If you like your pies really light, you might enjoy this. Another rater suggested more cornstarch, which probably would have given it more body.
Easy to make, I used 2 extra tablespoons of lemon juice.!
This is an excellent basic lemon pie filling. So many lemon pies are sweetened condensed milk based. This is not, and it is much lighter! I made mine with a graham cracker crust. It was excellent, especially if treated as the base for a little creativity, which I will next time . . .a few nuts in the crust? . . .a little caramel inside? . . . idk. But the fact that it is an excellent pie with possibilities to customize and shine? I will make it again for sure.
A big hit! Make sure to let thicken to get rid of the “cornstarch flavor”, and beat the egg whites until stiff for best results. Mine was already set doing this prior to chilling. Delicious!
I have made this for years and lost my recipe in a house fire. My recipe had a crust with it that called for egg, vinegar and lemon zest. Every one raves about it . My oldest son’s favorite.
I’ve made this pie four times in the last 2 weeks. Easy to prepare and without modification, it comes out perfect. My friends and family are very happy I found this recipe. Thanks for a great addition to our parties!
I made this using stevia instead of sugar and without a crust. I zested 2 small lemons, then juiced them. I served it in parfait glasses. It was very good and very pretty. I will make this again.
I will be making this again, as it is excellent and very easy to make! I made mine with reduced fat cream cheese. Next time I will add an additional pinch of corn starch to aid in thickening up the lemon mixture a bit more, as it was a bit soft after 2 hours in the fridge. I can definitely see using the mixture in a berry parfait to make a nice satisfying treat for my kids without the extra calories of the crust!
I love the taste, but it’s a bit runny… I thought it would set up the next day, but it didn’t. Maybe next time, I’ll use gelatin instead of cornstarch.
I made this for Easter tomorrow…it is great! My husband’s favorite pie is lemon meringue and I hate it…this is a perfect compromise for us. Thanks for sharing!