Today, I present to you this vegan lemon meringue pie* in honor of…
Sarah of Snixy Kitchen’s virtual baby shower!! Yay babies!!
In honor of her baby girl (coming soon in February), Todd and Alanna are hosting a virtual Cheese & Sweets-themed baby shower (also in honor of things Sarah loves) with a fantastic group of bloggers. See the bottom of the post for a zillion INCREDIBLE cheesy, sweet, and cheesy AND sweet recipes! (Mostly all gluten-free in honor of Sarah!)
In a stroke of great luck, I’ve gotten to meet Sarah in real life before! Last year when I was home in California over winter break, Alanna hosted a potluck for a few local blogger friends in her lovely home. What struck me about Sarah (aside from her adorable glasses and bangs) was the fact that she was not only an incredibly talented gluten-free food blogger and photographer, but also a blog design back-end whiz AND getting her PhD in math education. WOWOWOW. Her baby is lucky to be sharing those star-packed genes.
So this pie, I’ve tried making it before. Because ever since I found out you can make billowy, fluffy, snow-white, honest-to-marshmallow MERINGUE from aquafaba (aka the magical chickpea brine), lemon meringue pie has obviously been on my to-do list. (Even though I’ve never really been a huge lemon meringue fan.) (It still had to be done.)
Many lessons were learned in the second making of this pie. Like:
- Juicing lemons by hand takes a lot of time, which is why I use my trusty Hurom juicer (there are a range of Hurom juicers to suit every kitchen and budget, if you’re looking for one, or planning to make a lot of lemon merangue pie!)
- You should have a crust recipe in mind before making the pie.
- In terms of fun level, swirling meringue is on par with eating a bite out of twenty different cookies (or close, anyway).
But I’m sure you’re wondering: how does it taste?
To me, the satiny, glossy, lightly toasted and sticky meringue tastes just like the real deal. The tofu-based lemon curd is quite tart and bursting with fresh lemon juice, which completely dominates any tofu flavor. I think the thin layer of curd is well offset by a fairly thick layer of meringue so that the sweet, relative blandness of the meringue cuts the tartness.
The crust is what I might change if I made this again. It’s thick, hefty and nutty where a lighter crust that almost shatters in your mouth might be a better fit. I made this previously with a non gluten-free crust (a simple vegan olive oil/all-purpose flour crust like this), which was flakier and more delicate. I was still happy enough with this version to post it, but if you have a favorite pie crust, feel free to use it in place of the one that’s written and please report back! Let’s crowdsource this until we make it perfect!
*PS. I realize this was made in a tart pan, so it’s technically a tart, but you could also make this in a deep-dish pie pan to make it an actual pie. That would be ideal since I had excess filling after making this in a 10-inch tart pan.
Congratulations Sarah!! I look forward to seeing photos of you and your beautiful cheese baby girl!!
A few notes about aquafaba:
- While you can make aquafaba meringue using chickpea brine straight from the can (alternatively, some have had success using the liquid from boiling dry beans), I find that reducing the aquafaba first makes for a stronger, stiffer meringue that is less likely to weep and disintegrate into foam after sitting in the fridge.
- Also, you must use chilled aquafaba during the whipping step; I tried using it warm from the stove and it never reached the stiff peaks stage. This is why the recipe is written so that you reduce the aquafaba in the beginning, and then chill it as you work on other components. You can also reduce and chill the aquafaba the night before.
If you’re looking for more recipes with aquafaba, I’ve also used it successfully as an egg replacer in these waffles and these cookies!
- Brine from 1 15-oz can chickpeas (about ¾ cup)
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup sugar
- 1.5 cups of oat flour
- ¾ cup almond flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 3 tablespoons almond milk
- 14 oz silken tofu
- ¾ cup lemon juice (juice of ~4 large lemons)
- ½ cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons almond milk
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (optional)
- Bring chickpea brine to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes. Mixture should be reduced to a little under half a cup at this point (it's okay if it isn't exact). Pour reduced brine into a cup and refrigerate while making the crust and filling.
- In a food processor, combine the oat flour, almond meal, sugar and salt until blended. Slowly stream in the coconut oil and milk until evenly incorporated. Alternatively, mix the dry ingredients together by hand, then work in the wet ingredients until dough holds together when pressed (mixture will be crumbly). Press evenly into a 10” tart pan or deep dish pie pan, prick all over with a fork, and bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees, until crust is dry and starting to turn golden.
- Blend all ingredients (tofu through salt) together in a blender or food processor.
- When the crust is done baking, let stand or refrigerate for about 10 minutes, or until barely warm. Pour filling into crust and bake for 40-45 minutes at 350 degrees until filling is set, but still slightly jiggly. Let cool while making the meringue.
- Whip the cold, reduced brine in a clean bowl with clean beaters with the cream of tartar and vanilla until mixture turns foamy, and then begins to form soft peaks. At this point, slowly add the sugar a quarter cup at a time. Continue to whip the mixture until it reaches stiff peaks.
- Cover the top of the cooled pie with the meringue. Preheat the broiler to 575 and broil for 1-2 minutes, keeping an eye on the pie the entire time--it can burn in a second!
Cheesy Things
- the briny – Smoky Beans n’ Greens Enchiladas with Roasted Sweet Potato and Sunflower Seed Cheese
- Half Baked Harvest – Greek Falafel Melts
- Healthy Nibbles & Bits – Japanese-Spiced Goat Cheese Ball with Pistachios
- Just Putzing Around the Kitchen – Cheesy Fried Spinach & Artichoke Bites
- My Natural Kitchen – Brazilian Cheesy Thyme Popovers
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- Fix Feast Flair – Mixed Greens Salad with Lilikoi Vinaigrette, Honey Macadamia Nuts, and Goat Cheese
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- Will Frolic for Food – Vegan Walnut Parmesan Zucchini Noodles
- Vegetarian ‘Ventures – Pimento Mac & Cheese Bites
- MJ and Hungryman – Cheese Stuffed Kimchi Pancakes
- Savory Simple – Cheddar Chive Crackers
Sweet Things
- the pig + quill – Mini Vegan PB+J Cheesecakes
- The Kitchen McCabe – Meyer Lemon Pudding Cakes + Honeyed Chevre Whipped Cream
- The Little Epicurean – Matcha Mochi Waffles Sundae
- Shared Appetite – Vegan Chocolate Raspberry Mousse
- The Pancake Princess – Vegan Aquafaba Lemon Meringue Pie
- The Food Charlatan – Lemon Bars {gluten-free}
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Cheesy & Sweet Things
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- HonestlyYUM – Sweet Cheese Puffs (for a Sweet Cheese Baby)
- fit for the soul – Queso Mais Ice cream {No-Churn}
- Completely Delicious – Chocolate Orange Ricotta Scones
- Good on Paper Design – Citrus Ricotta Mini Cakes {gluten-free}
- Floating Kitchen – No-Bake Meyer Lemon Cheesecake with Chocolate Ganache Layer {gluten-free}
- Hungry Girl por Vida – Gluten-Free Pretzel Goat Cheesecake Bites
- Heartbeet Kitchen – Roasted Citrus Bowls with Honey Mascarpone
- Salted Plains – Pavlova with Mascarpone Coconut Cream and Candied Citrus
- The Kitchen Paper – Candied Citrus Ricotta Cake
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