Lemon Meringue Pie

In this week's lab we made a lemon meringue pie.

Video Reflection:


In making the meringue, egg whites mixed with cream of tartar are beaten with an electric hand mixer until soft peaks in the foam are visible:

 

Sugar is then gradually added until the peaks become more firm and defined:

 

Afterwards you can set the meringue aside while preparing the pie's filling.

To make the filling, begin by mixing the cornstarch, flour, salt, sugar, and water. The mixture should look like this:



After heating to a boil while stirring, the mixture should become thick and almost glue-like:

 

Remove the mixture from the heat. Take a few table spoons and mix with the egg yolks. Pour the now-warm egg yolk mixture back into the sauce pan.

Bring to a boil and cook for 1-2 minutes:

 

While the filling is still hot, fill the pie crust and spread the meringue on top evenly. The pink you see is strawberry donut crumbs.

 

Bake for about 20 minutes until meringue starts to brown:



Then refrigerate until cooled:



Once cooled you can cut your pie:



  • What chemical changes occurred when you made the meringue? What did you observe that told you these chemical changes were happening? 
    • The protein in the egg whites denature when beaten. This is evident by the change in color of the egg whites from a clear off-yellow goo to a fluffy, white foam. 
  • What was the role of the cream of tartar?
    • The cream of tartar contains tartaric acid, which helps prevent -SH and -SH from forming disulfide bonds. This should discourage the grainy texture egg whites can get from over-beating. 

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