Classic Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie

This Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie is the ultimate summertime dessert! Made with a lemon curd filling, toasted aquafaba meringue, and buttery homemade crust, it’s everything you love about the classic, but 100% vegan!

Not big on lemon cake? This Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie might be more your style. The citrusy filling is smooth like a Lemon Posset and tangy like lemon bars, poured into a buttery crust and topped with fluffy aquafaba meringue. 

With just one quick bake for the crust, the rest comes together without the oven, making it the perfect treat for hot summer days. Serve it at cookouts, picnics, or anytime you’re craving a dreamy slice of tart, lemony pie! 

Key Ingredients You’ll Need 

• Vegan pie crust: If you’re making your own pie crust, you’ll need all-purpose flour, sugar, cold vegan butter, and salt. Or, opt for your favorite store-bought crust. 
• Cornstarch: Thickens the filling and helps it set into a sliceable custard. 
• Turmeric: Adds a natural yellow hue without artificial dyes. 
• Lemon juice and zest: Essential for the bright, tangy citrus flavor that defines a classic lemon meringue pie. 
• Vegan butter: Adds richness and helps the filling set with a creamy, buttery texture. 
• Aquafaba: Also known as the starchy brine from canned chickpeas, aquafaba serves as an egg replacer and whips into a light, fluffy meringue consistency! 
• Cream of tartar: Helps to stabilize the aquafaba and hold its stiff peaks.
• Sugar: Used to sweeten the curd filling and meringue. To ensure your pie is vegan, opt for organic sugar. 

How to Make Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie

If you scroll down to the full recipe card, making this lemon meringue pie from scratch might seem a bit daunting at first glance. But in reality, it comes together in just 4 main steps:

1. Make and blind-bake the crust. 
2. Prepare the lemon curd filling. 
3. Make the meringue. 
4. Assemble and serve! 

Want to make things even easier? Use a store-bought pie crust and skip the first step entirely. 

Or, follow along with our step-by-step photo instructions and make each component with us. 

How to Make and Blind Bake a Vegan Pie Crust

1. Combine the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, sugar, and salt. 
2. Cut the butter into the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or your fingertips, cut the vegan butter into the flour mixture until a crumbly mixture forms and the butter pieces are about the size of lentils. It’s okay if the butter pieces are uneven. 
3. Add the ice water. One tablespoon at a time, add the ice water. Mix together with a wooden spoon or spatula. The dough should still be very crumbly. 
4. Work the dough into a round disc. Dump the pie dough onto a clean work surface and work together with your hands. Flatten into a round disc and wrap in plastic wrap. 
5. Refrigerate for at least one hour. Transfer the dough to the fridge and chill for at least 1 hour, or overnight. 
6. Roll into a circle ¼” thick. Once the dough has chilled, sprinkle a work surface and rolling pin with flour. Roll the dough into a large circle about ¼” thick. Carefully transfer to a 9” pie dish. 
7. Trim, fold, and crimp. Lift the edges of the dough and gently drop the bottom into the corners of the pie dish. Trim any excess dough, leaving about 1” overhang. Fold the edges and use your fingertips to crimp the dough as desired. 
8. Freeze the pie shell. Poke the bottom of the crust with a fork, then place the pie dough in the freezer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375F.
9. Prep to blind bake. After 30 minutes, remove the crust from the freezer, line the bottom with parchment paper, and fill with dried beans or pie weights. 
10. Bake! Place the pie crust in the oven and blind bake for 20 minutes. Remove the parchment paper and weights, and bake for an additional 15 minutes. 

The Lemon Curd Filling

1. Whisk and dissolve the cornstarch and sugar. Add the sugar, cornstarch, salt, and turmeric to a medium saucepan and whisk to combine. Add the non-dairy milk and whisk again until the sugar and cornstarch are completely dissolved. 
2. Thicken to a loose gel consistency. Whisk in the lemon juice and zest and heat over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens to a loose gel, about 8 minutes.
3. Whisk in the vegan butter. Remove the lemon curd filling from the heat and whisk in the vegan butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is smooth and glossy.
4. Cool for 30 minutes. Allow the lemon curd to cool for about 30 minutes before adding it to the crust. Stir occasionally to prevent skin from forming on top. 
5. Pour into the baked pie crust. After 30 minutes, pour the tart lemon curd into the blind-baked crust. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the filling, then let the pie cool for an additional 30 minutes before refrigerating for at least 3 hours or overnight. 

How to Make Vegan Aquafaba Meringue

1. Whisk the aquafaba into stiff peaks. Add the aquafaba and cream of tartar to a heatproof bowl. Use a stand mixer or electric mixer to whisk the aquafaba to stiff peaks, about 8 to 10 minutes on medium speed. 
2. Heat the sugar water mixture to 240F. Add the sugar and water to a medium saucepan and gently shake the pan so all the sugar is wet. Heat the mixture over medium heat and place a candy thermometer in the pot. You want the mixture to reach 240F (then immediately remove from the heat!). This should take roughly 10 to 12 minutes, but can vary depending on your stovetop so keep an eye on it! 
3. Gently add the sugar mixture to the aquafaba. Very slowly, stream the sugar mixture into the aquafaba while mixing on medium-high speed. The sugar mixture is extremely hot, so make sure you don’t pour directly on the beaters to avoid the hot mixture flying out of the bowl! 
4. Add the salt. Sprinkle in the salt and continue mixing for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until the sides of the bowl are no longer warm. 

Assemble and Serve!

Once the meringue is room temperature, dollop it on top of the pie or use a piping bag to create a design. 

Then, using a culinary torch, torch the top of the meringue to your liking. Allow the pie to chill at room temperature for 30 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!

Recipe FAQs

Why isn’t my aquafaba whipping up?

Aquafaba can be tricky to work with, but for the best results, make sure it’s cold and that you’re using a clean, grease-free mixing bowl and beaters. Adding a pinch of cream of tartar really helps stabilize it, so don’t skip it. When in doubt, give it more time in the stand mixer!

Can I make the meringue without a candy thermometer? 

The candy thermometer is necessary when making homemade meringue, but if you don’t have access to one, you can skip the meringue altogether and simply top your pie with vegan whipped cream.

How long will the meringue hold its shape?

This aquafaba meringue will keep for several hours at room temperature. It may continue to keep its shape when refrigerated, but we recommend slicing and serving on the first day. 

Storage Instructions

Leftover lemon meringue pie will keep loosely covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. 

More Vegan Lemon Desserts You May Enjoy:

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Glazed Vegan Lemon Loaf

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Lemon Olive Oil Cake (Vegan)

Gluten Free

Healthy Vegan Lemon Bars

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Vegan Lemon Posset

Make sure you tag us on Instagram @sweetsimplevegan and @consciouschris and hashtag #sweetsimplevegan if you make this recipe. We love to see your photos!

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