Forget the crust! This take on a lemon meringue pie is perfect for a warm day. Meringue cookies are sandwiched with graham cracker ice cream and lemon curd for a fun hand pie.
I promised another lemon curd recipe weeks ago, and somehow, things kept coming up that prevented me from posting these. And I almost skipped another week, because looking over my week, it has been full of oatmeal moon pies, peanut butter, peanut butter, and more peanut butter! But I am going to satisfy your sweet tooth with yet another sweet recipe, and I promise that I’ll bring something a little more savory to the table next week.
I love lemon curd in just about any way, shape and form, but pairing it with meringue cookies and ice cream? Just brilliant. These were the perfect sweet treat. Sweet, creamy and tart, all coming together in a delicious ice cream treat. And it’s getting so warm outside – you need your freezer stocked with great frozen treats to battle that afternoon sun. These ice cream cookies would be a perfect way to re-energize you any hot afternoon!
Just one word of advice on these – if you choose to brown the meringues in the oven under the broiler, keep a constant eye on them. My first batch did not go exactly as planned – unless we were willing to eat completely blackened meringue cookies. And after that happened, I was too scared to try the broiler again, so I ended up digging out my kitchen torch to brown the meringue. I’m sure the broiler works – you just need to keep a constant eye on them because they can go from browned to blackened in a matter of seconds!!
Lemon Meringue Hand Pies
Ingredients
- 4 egg whites at room temperature
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 pint vanilla ice cream
- 4 graham cracker sheets lightly crushed
- ¾ cup Lemon Curd
Instructions
- Place the oven racks in the top third and the bottom third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 250F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a glass or bowl as a guide, trace 6 circles, about 3½-inches in diameter, onto the parchement paper. Set aside.
- Use an electric mixer to whisk the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until they are frothy, about 1 minute. Gradually sprinkle in the sugar while the machine is running on high speed and beat until the meringue is glossy and stiff, about 3 minutes. Fold in the lemon extract.
- Transfer the meringue into a piping bag with a large star tip. Pipe onto the circles on the parchment paper, starting at the center and working your way out.
- Transfer to the oven. Immediately change the oven temperature to 200F. Bake for 45 minutes. Rotate the pans and cook an additional 30 minutes. Without opening the oven door, turn off the oven and let the meringues cool in the closed oven for at least 6 hours.
- Let the ice cream soften slightly. Mix the graham crackers in with the ice cream.
- Using a kitchen torch, (or the oven broiler - see tip in post above), brown the edges of of the meringues. Spread ⅓ cup of the graham cracker ice cream onto 6 of the meringues, and 2 tablespoons of lemon curd onto the other 6 meringues. Sandwich one of the ice cream topped meringues with one of the lemon curd topped meringues. Repeat with the remaining meringues. Serve immediately or freeze up to 2 hours.
Ruby says
Beautiful recipe and picture!
Carrie @ Bakeaholic Mama says
These are stunning!!
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel says
An excuse to use my new kitchen torch! 🙂
Joanne says
And to think, Rachel doesn’t call herself a baker! These sound so delicious and are so cute!
sally @ sallys baking addiction says
Lemon curd is certainly delicious! I am so impressed with how perfect these turned out! Stunning photos to capture such a lovely dessert!
Becky at Vintage Mixer says
These look fantastic. I am a sucker with anything that includes lemon curd!
Erika - The Teenage Taste says
This is such a cool idea! Rachel Ray rarely dissapoints!
kelley {mountain mama cooks} says
Deb, these look amazing! I, too, love lemon curd. Actually I love ANYTHING lemon. These look like so much fun. Perfect for summer!!
Sasha @ The Procrastobaker says
Lemon curd has to be my all time favourite spreadable eat-by-the-spoonful treat, so these definitely look like little bites of heaven to me!
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious says
These look so decadent and cute. And I love that they were made into mini pies – makes them more fun to eat 🙂
Stephanie says
Adorable and perfect individual servings!
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
Wow, these are stunning! So beautiful (and so prone to burning!). Great work on such a delicate dessert!
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
So pretty, what a great idea. Your meringues look perfect!
Kim says
Oh my goodness! These are so impressive! Love, love, love them! However, I am terrified of meringues. I’ve never had success with them at all. Will have to get over myself so I can give these a whirl. Pinning!
amanda @ fake ginger says
These are SO CUTE! I haven’t had luck with meringue under the broiler so I think I need to go buy a kitchen torch so I can make them!
Katrina says
These are freaking brilliant!