Lemon meringue pie - is home-made much nicer than readymade?

[Kathyis6incheshigh]

I want to make lemon meringue pie.
DH says he doesn't like it much.
I say 'That is because you have never had a proper home-made one.'

Am I likely to be right? Are the home-made ones generally much nicer than the ones you get served in canteens or frozen-food-reheating pubs?

Thank you

it is bloody impossible to make

good luck

Oooh yes homemade LMP, the lemon curd is tart without being overly sweet and cloying, and the meringue is not flabby and lifeless

No, really? It looks so easy! I am good at pastry and meringues.... why is it hard?

Home made is absolutely delicious, and it isn't impossible to make Enid, it's quite easy!

Sweet pastry

lemon curd

whipped egg whites and sugar on top.

Yum!

I make my meringue with Demerara sugar

It makes the meringue gooey with a super crunchy crust

In fact, I think I will make one today after work! yum

nigella does a rhubarb version.

That sounds GOOD Boysare. Plus, dh is keen on demerara sugar so I can point out it is specially customised for him!

Homemade is much nicer, and not difficult at all IME (although I would never use lemon curd ). Readymade tends to be too sweet, and when you make it yourself you can make the lemon properly tart so that you get the contrast with the meringue.

I am trying to convert my dh to rhubarb
If I can convert him to lemon meringue pie, I can follow that up with rhubarb meringue pie, which I am sure is lovely.

Also I could put it on my Yorkshire food blog shameless plug as rhubarb is local round here.

Thanks all.
One more question. If I follow a standard recipe, like Delia or James Martin, is it likely to come out tart enough, or should I reduce the sugar in the curd bit?

ooh, I used to make LMP all the time as a kid - learnt it at school in the years when we did proper cooking at school, not tarting up a pizza base (old fogey emoticon needed here) so it can't be that difficult. Can I make it tho while pg? Really really want LMP now. Wonder if I can buy demerara sugar in CH? hm - you've made it sound so delicious.

And fishie, if I beg enough, any chance of the rhubarb recipe. I LOVE rhubarb. Had fab recipe for a rhubarb and cream cheese tart, but could adapt that I suppose, but would ike a peek at Nigella's yours

I used Delia's recipe once (from the cookery course series) and it was wrong, she said put the lemon juice in after you have thickened the curd. No No No

Reduce the sugar to begin with then add teaspoonsful at a time until you are happy

Your mouth should pucker and water at the same time lol

HTH

Thanks for tip, will do it that way.

Oh god portandlemon I never meant to suggest using ready made lemon curd! I'v enever used it in my entire life!

I'm a chef, I amke the pastry myslef and the lemon curd myself, it's easy really, then you can make it exactly as sweet or as sour as you r own preferences dictate.

yes, it is.

oh good lord, now I'm going to have to go home and make LMP.

Made a strawberry and rhubarb pie last week, whilst channeling the dom goddess that was my G'ma. Heaven. I only have one tooth left now though.

OK, LMP report - it is lovely, and dh says he's converted and I can make it again

Bit of a hiccup with the pastry thanks to Nigella claiming to only use 00 flour for pastry. I tried this and it shrunk to a sort of toddler-size pastry case, with holes in, but SuzyWong told me I could mend the holes with egg white, which worked.

A bit late, but defo better than shop bought. It's my 14 yr old DS's signature dish [boastful emoticon]

Wow, what a cool ds Lilolil - any tips as to how I can train mine to grow up like that?

it isn't iompossible to make. YOu can play around witht he tartness, until you get it right. Make double the amount of merrengue and really pile it up because there is never enough on shop ones. Remember to use old eggs.

Why old eggs, Chops? Do they whip better than fresh?

Home made is the business! No comparison at all with shop bought.

Bake it and eat it all yourself if he doesn't like it !

yep.