This easy Keto Lemon Meringue Pie is the perfect way to eat your favourite pie flavour while staying on your low carb diet. Gluten-free, sugar-free and keto-friendly, this Keto Lemon Meringue Pie is a lemon-lovers dream dessert.
I have a confession to make. This is my very first attempt at making a lemon meringue pie. Shocking, right?! Well, I decided that there is no time like the present to try something new!
You may be wondering why in the world someone who loves to cook and bake as much as I do, has never attempted a lemon meringue pie. Well, truth be told, I was a very picky eater as I was a child. Although I have always had an enormous sweet tooth, I would only eat chocolate desserts, filled with chocolate and then layered between chocolate. Since lemon meringue pie does not contain any chocolate, I was never interested in it!
Things have definitely changed as I have gotten older. The more interesting, flavourful and crazy (ie. my creation of a Dairy-Free Avocado Pizza Crust (Whole30, Keto, GF), the more intrigued I become. Since we had extra lemons lying around, I decided to see if I could take a classic lemon meringue pie and turn it into a sugar-free, gluten-free, low carb version.
How to Make a Gluten-Free, Low Carb Lemon Meringue Pie
Step 1: Making a crust
After doing some quick research online, I realized that all pie crusts contain only 4 basic ingredients: flour, salt, sugar and a source of fat. For the gluten-free, low carb version, I simply replaced the flour with almond flour, switched out the sugar for a sugar-free sweetener and then decided to use butter as my source of fat. I placed all of the ingredients in a large bowl and combined the ingredients with a fork until I had a crumbly mixture.
Next, I pressed the mixture into a round dish and pressed it firmly up the sides. I used a fork to create small holes so that the crust would not bubble. NOTE: I only realized after I had made my mind up that I was going to make a pie that I actually don't own a pie pan! (Since pie crusts don't contain much chocolate, you can now understand my lack of purchasing a pie pan!:-) Since I plan on making more pies, I went out and bought a real pie pan. The second time I made the pie with a pie pan, I was able to crimp the edges to make the border look prettier. However, on my second attempt, I did not get the meringue as close to the edge so you can see how it pulled away in the pictures.
Next, I placed my crust in the oven for 10 minutes to crisp it a little. As it was baking, I set out to accomplish the second part of the pie, the lemon filling.
Step 2: Making a sugar-free lemon filling
This was a little more challenging. However, knowing the fundamentals of a lemon meringue pie, I knew I had to create a custard type filling. I whisked the sweetener and salt in a medium saucepan until combined. I then whisked in the eggs and yolks until no streaks of egg remained. Then, I whisked in the lemon zest and juice. I cooked it over medium-low heat, whisking constantly and scraping the corners of the saucepan until the mixture thickened slightly and registered 160 degrees F (about 5-8 minutes)
I removed the pan from the heat and whisked in the olive oil until incorporated. Once the pie shell came out of the oven, I pour the lemon mixture into the shell.
*If your mixture does not seem to thicken, simply add a little xanthan gum while whisking until it thickens slightly*
Step 3: Making the Meringue
This was the easy part. Since I love Chocolate Souffle (Low Carb, Keto, GF), I knew the basic principles governing meringue. I simply whipped the egg whites, salt, vanilla and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Then I gradually added the sweetener and dolloped it in the crust. Into the oven, the pie went.
And look at what came out!
Lastly, I sprinkled a little erythritol on top to get the nice shimmer on the top of the meringue. Beautiful and delicious and ridiculously easy to make!
If your pie does not work, here are some troubleshooting techniques:
- Do not use reactive metal when making the lemon filling as you can end up with a "metallic" taste.
- The meringue falls after it cools - this is most likely due to beating the egg whites too quickly on high. When making meringue, start beating at a low to medium speed and slowly increase to high. If you start beating the egg whites on high from the start, you can create large air bubbles which will deflate as the pie cools.
- The edges of the crust start to brown before the pie is done - Simply tent a piece of aluminum foil over the entire crust. This happened to me when I used the glass dish on my first attempt which will burn faster than my second attempt with a metal pan.
- The meringue pulled away from the edge of the pie - make sure that the dollops of meringue actually touch the crust to form an anchor. If you don't do this, as the meringue shrinks slightly when cooling, it will pull away from the crust
- The custard is too soupy - you probably did not cook the custard long enough in the saucepan to help to reduce its water content. Also, make sure you let the pie cool for AT LEAST 3 hours to help it solidify.
- To make peaks with the meringue, simply use the back of a spoon to lift meringue before placing it in the oven.
- This pie is best served the same day as the sweetener will crystallize if you put it in the fridge UNLESS you use Allulose (allulose is 70 % as sweet so you may need to reduce the amount of sweetener if you choose a different brand. Do not worry about what type of sweetener you use in the crust as it will not make a difference)
If you like this Keto Lemon Meringue Pie, you may also like:
- Chocolate Souffle (Low Carb, Keto, GF)
- Paleo Chocolate Almond Butter Banana Cake with Banana Almond Butter Frosting (Gluten-Free)
- No-Bake Carrot Cake Bars (Keto, Gluten-Free)
Lemon Meringue Pie (Keto, Gluten-Free, Low Carb)
This is a nice and easy recipe for a lemon meringue pie. Only takes minutes to put together and in no time you have a delicious, keto, gluten free pie.
- Total Time: 60 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust:
- 1.5 cups almond flour
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 2-4 tbsp Swerve (OPTIONAL - you can eliminate it completely or reduce it to your taste preference)
- ¼ tsp salt
For the Lemon Filling:
- 3 large eggs plus 3 egg yolks
- 1 ¼ cup Allulose (I have made this with Swerve but prefer the allulose as it does not crystallize)
- ⅓ cup lemon juice (approximately 2 large lemons)
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ⅛ tsp salt
- zest from 2 lemons (OPTIONAL)
For the Meringue:
- 5 egg whites
- ½ cup Allulose (I have made it with Swerve Confectioner but it can crystallize)
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all the crust ingredients until crumbly. Press firmly in a well-greased pie pan. Taking a fork, make holes throughout the crust. Place in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, whisk the sweetener and salt until combined. Whisk in the eggs and yolks until no streaks of egg remained. Then, whisk in the lemon zest and juice. Cook the mixture over medium-low heat, whisking constantly and scraping the corners of the saucepan until the mixture thickened slightly and registers 160 degrees F (about 5-8 minutes). Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the olive oil until incorporated.
- Pour the mixture into the pie crust and set aside
- In a large mixing bowl, whip egg whites, vanilla, salt and cream of tartar until stiff peaks form. Gradually add sweetener, 1 tablespoon at a time and continue to beat until fully incorporated. Dollop meringue all over crust making sure that meringue touches pie crust.
- Place in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes or until the meringue has set.
- Allow pie to cool COMPLETELY before slicing (at least 4 or more hours)
Notes
- PLEASE make sure you read my "troubleshooting" section in my post.
- If you prefer a less sweet crust, feel free to decrease the amount of sweetener or eliminate it altogether.
- If you want to store this pie in the fridge, make sure that you use Allulose as the sweetener in the meringue as well as the pie filling. All other sweeteners may crystallize when refrigerated.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Keto, gluten free, low carb
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 286
- Sugar: 1.2 g
- Fat: 25.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 7.4 g
- Fiber: 3.9 g
- Protein: 9.2 g
Cat says
The sweetness of keto desserts depends on the brand you use. You can always take any of my recipes and decrease the amount of sweetener to suit your taste.
Linda H says
I am a lemon meringue pie lover. I appreciate the effort to create a keto version. But this was way too sweet, and was more of a lemon custard pie. I'd like to try your lemon curd recipe (more lemon tang and less sweet) and add gelatin to firm it as the pie filling.
Would I double the curd recipe to have enough for one pie?
Also the meringue does not have to cook to "set". It only needs to be in the oven long enough to have a nice browned top, like a nicely roasted marshmallow.
Cat says
Great idea!
Leslie Barker says
o you toast the almond flour in a dry frying pan before making the crust, it gives it a really nice flavor. Similar to a graham cracker crust
Susan says
My son's first lemon meringue pie and he said it turned out great. I was on the phone with him while making it. the curd was not setting according to him so I said to add some corn starch and it turned out beautifully. Maybe it is where he lives. I am not sure but it was a quick fix. 😉 The crust was great since he is keto, it was perfect and very easy. Thank you for your time and knowledge. Susan
Cat says
Thank you for taking the time to comment. I have had some readers say that it did not set properly for them and I am unsure why. PLEASE let me know how it turns out for your son!
Susan says
Made this last week for husband's bday, he loved it. I use much less sweetener in the filling because husband is diabetic and we prefer it tart. The crust was fabulous, no sweetener used. My son is on keto diet and is going to try it, this will be his 1st LEMON meringue pie. Thank you for your time and knowledge!
Cat says
Glad you liked it!
Anonymous says
Followed the directions to a tee and it turned out wonderfully! Thanks for such a great and easy recipe.
Cat says
Thank you so much for such a great comment! I try to make every recipe 2-3 times each to make sure that it turns out so it is always disheartening when someone tells you that your recipe didn't work. If you ever are looking for a keto and gluten-free recipe, let me know and I would be happy to recreate it!
Hayley says
I made this today with erythritol instead of swerve and added a teaspoon of xantham gum to thicken the lemon part. It looked and tasted very nice. Nice sweet addition when you are on a keto diet. Ignore the poor reviews, if you follow the recipe and use the right ingredients it’s quite nice. Remember some sweeteners are extra sweet and leave an after taste and some are less so, so taste as you go along. Thank you I loved it.
Cat says
I am so sorry to hear that. Just be aware that Stevia in the Raw is about 70% Maltodextrin and only 30% Stevia. Maltodextrin, although zero-calorie, raises blood sugar more than regular sugar! I am pretty sure it was the sugar substitute that ruined it so I amended the recipe to call for Swerve instead so the mistake does not happen to others. Pure Stevia is not easy to find.
Glad to hear that it at least turned out looking good!
Anonymous says
Pie was beautiful to look at. I used Stevia in the Raw and overall the flavor of the pie was not good. Perhaps the type of Stevia I used, but pie did not taste good, ended up tossing it in the trash?
Cat says
I went ahead and added the word "optional" next to the sweetener as it will not affect the outcome of the crust if it is eliminated. I am probably too much of a sugar lover and prefer a sweet crust but you are right, most traditional crusts do not contain sugar. Thanks for your comment!
Miranda says
My daughter and I made your meringue pie recipe and I have to say, why would you put any sweetener in the pie crust? It ended up being way too sweet. There isn't any sugar in regular crust so not sure why you would have sugar in this crust? Next time we make it we won't be adding sugar to the crust