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It’s Pi Day, and vegan meringue broke the internet. Therefore, I bring you vegan lemon meringue pie!

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Vegan Meringue

I heard about the infamous chickpea-based meringue over the past few weeks on Facebook and blogs (like révolution végétale) and filed away the idea for future experiments. Pi Day seemed like the perfect time to try making vegan Lemon Meringue Pie.

Egg white based meringue wasn’t something I ate regularly before quitting animal products. Rather, I couldn’t even tell you if I ate meringue in my pre-vegan days. Therefore, my experience with meringue: a) never happened, or b) was totally forgettable. But you know, I like trying out techniques that were deemed impossible just a few years ago. And in addition, using leftover chickpea juice is resourceful, and incredibly creative. And everyone is doing it!

Lemon Meringue Pie Filling and Crust

The pie crust is adapted from Cheers to Vegan Sweets. I think pie crust can be a little bland, but the coconut oil in this recipe makes it flaky and adds a sweet flavor. I didn’t have vodka, so I replaced it with tequila. Also, this pie is pretty non-traditional already, right? The lemon filling is adapted from a couple of recipes floating around the internet: Mister Nice Guy and Bite-Sized Thoughts.

I doubled the meringue recipe because I wanted to try making meringue cookies as well, but that was absolutely not necessary. A tiny amount of liquid whips up into giant fluffy pillows. The recipe below makes half of what I made, and will still give you enough meringue for the pie and a tray or two of cookies.

Vegan Lemon Meringue Pie Yield: 8 slices Prep Time: 45 minutes Cook Time: 3 hours Total Time: 3 hours 45 minutes This vegan lemon meringue pie is sweet, tart, and melts in your mouth! The aquafaba meringue whips up and toasts just like traditional meringue. Print Ingredients Crust: 2 cups flour

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

⅓ cup coconut oil

2 tablespoons sugar

⅓ cup cold water

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons vodka Lemon Filling: 1 1/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon agar powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups non-dairy milk

1 cup water

3/4 cup lemon juice, (3-4 lemons)

1 1/2 tablespoons lemon zest, (1-2 lemons) Meringue: 2/3 cup aquafaba, (liquid from can of chickpeas)

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely ground sugar

3/4 teaspoon vanilla Instructions For the crust: Preheat oven to 350°F. Place flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl and cut in oil until dough resembles pebbles. Add water/vinegar and vodka and mix until completely incorporated. Roll out the dough on a floured surface, then transfer to a greased pie tin. Crimp the edges, then poke holes in the bottom of the pan with a fork. Bake for 25 minutes or until just starting to turn golden, then let cool. The pie will be baked again after the meringue step. For the lemon filling: Combine all ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and whisk constantly for 5 minutes until the filling is the consistency of pudding. Pour into the baked pie crust. For the meringue: Pour the aquafaba into the bowl of a stand mixer (or use electric hand mixers…but you don’t want to do this by hand!). Add the cream of tartar, then whip the bean juice with the balloon whisk attachment until it starts to thicken. Gradually add the sugar and vanilla, then continue whipping. To assemble: Preheat oven to 200°F. Pipe dollops of meringue on top of the pie. Bake for 2 1/2-3 hours or until the meringue is toasted. The baking time will depend on the amount of meringue on your pie, and how it’s piped on. Thick layers will take longer to bake. Finally, remove from the oven. Let cool completely to set the meringue. Notes Getting the aquafaba to make stiff peaks took me 7-8 minutes, but I’ve read that it can take up to 15 or 20 minutes. You’ll want to keep it going on high speed until the mixture is the consistency of thick whipped cream. If it’s gloopy, your meringue will deflate as a result. A spoonful of meringue at the proper consistency will not drip if you hold it upside down.

To make finely ground sugar, grind granulated sugar in a food processor so it’s somewhere between granulated and powdered sugar.

To make meringue cookies out of leftover meringue, dollop meringue onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, then bake at 200°F for 2 hours. Then, turn off the oven and let dry with the oven door cracked for a couple of hours. Nutrition Information: Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1 slice

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 403 Total Fat: 10g Saturated Fat: 8g Trans Fat: 0g Unsaturated Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 205mg Carbohydrates: 72g Fiber: 1g Sugar: 40g Protein: 5g All nutritional information presented within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on seitanbeatsyourmeat.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. Even though I try to provide accurate nutritional information to the best of my ability, these figures should still be considered estimates. Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

I took a start-to-finish video of the meringue-making process: it goes from liquid to foam to clouds!

I have a few more experiments up my sleeve, and I can’t wait to see what others come up with.

Happy Pi Day!