Lee & Lou: Meyer Lemon Meringue Tart

By Lee & Lou Havlicek.
Lee & Lou Cook.

Lemon. Meringue. Two of our favorite words. But add Meyer in…and we’re goners.

These aren’t just your ordinary lemons. Don’t get us wrong, we love your ordinary lemons. But Meyer lemons are a whole other situation. And this year, something extra special is going on with them. We don’t know how, we don’t know why, but every Meyer lemon that we’ve bought this year has been crazy-incredible—so juicy, so sweet. We literally cut one up while baking and ate it like an orange because we couldn’t resist.

Meyer lemons have an slightly orange-y, honey-like flavor to them. They’re more mellow and, yes, sweeter than regular lemons. But that doesn’t quite capture just how exquisite they are. You’re going to have to taste one for yourself. And once you do, you’re going to want to use them in dressings, squeeze them into lemonades, stir them into cocktails, zest them into cakes, drizzle them over fish…it goes on and on. You might want to make some time in your schedule and work your way through this list.

It’s possible that you don’t love lemon meringue pie as completely and unconditionally as we do. Lee even has a special place in her heart for the terrible lemon meringue pie that you find in just about every diner in this country. But the good stuff, the real stuff, is tart and tangy and bright, piled high with clouds of soft meringue. And it’s amazing. (We aren’t the only ones that feel this way—FYI August 15th is National Lemon Meringue Pie Day…but we prefer to celebrate year-round, so…) We like our meringue a little golden on the outside, with a hint of sweetness and vanilla. All of these flavors work so beautifully with our olive oil crust—which, if you made our Salted Pumpkin Pie, you might already love. It has the lightest olive oil taste to it, giving the lemon and the meringue a perfect complement.

The whole thing is magic.

Our gift to you on this late-winter morning—the perfect way to celebrate winter citrus and the inkling of spring in the air, however faint: a sunny tart packed with one of the best things these cold months offer. Grab all the Meyer lemons you can while you can! We’ll be using them from now until the last one disappears for the year…

For the rest of the post, the recipe, and oh so much more Lee & Lou click here.