Lemon Meringue Cake

By Becky Hardin

Published Mar 31, 2021

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Get ready for one delicious treat! Sweet and tangy, this layered lemon meringue cake is filled with lemon curd and topped with meringue for a real tasty showstopper!

Easy Lemon Meringue Cake Recipe

Lemon meringue is one of my favorite pies, I just love that balance of sweet and tangy. It felt right to turn it into cake form!

This is a great dessert to serve over Easter, and for any occasion throughout the year! So fresh and delicious, this is a real crowd-pleaser!

Be sure to try my lemon meringue pie and lemon meringue cookies!

How to Make Lemon Meringue Cake

You can jump to the recipe card for full ingredients & instructions!

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar.
3. Mix the eggs into the butter and add in the vanilla and lemon juice.
4. Mix in the flour mix and buttermilk.
5. Pour into a tin and bake.
6. Melt together the butter and lemon juice.
7. Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks in a separate bowl.
8. Whisk together the lemon mix into the egg mix and allow to thicken. Let chill.
9. Whisk together the egg whites and sugar for the meringue in a double boiler.
10. Place into a stand mixer and whisk until light and fluffy.
11. Slice the cool cake into 3.
12. Top each slice with the lemon curd.
13. Cover with meringue, and broil to brown the meringue.

Can you make it ahead of time?

This cake is best served on the day it’s made so that the meringue is at it’s best.

You can Make the cake and lemon curd the day before and keep covered and then make the meringue and assemble the cake the next day. This also means that the cake will be fully cooled when you are ready to build it.

If you do have leftovers they will keep well, covered in the fridge for around 3 days.

Can you make it without a stand mixer?

It’s much quicker and easier to use a stand mixer to make this cake and it ensures that you get an even texture and the meringue is just so.

You can make this cake with a hand whisk, but ensure that the ingredients are really well combined. It will take a little longer to make this way, but it’s a good workout for your arms!

What’s the best way to brown meringue?

You can brown the meringue either with a cook’s torch or under the broiler. I prefer the look with a torch if you do have it, where some parts stay white and others get toasty.

A broiler is the simplest way though if you don’t have a torch.

I cannot wait for you to make this lemon meringue cake, it’s so wonderfully fresh and delicious. I know you are going to love this as much as we did!

If you make this recipe be sure to upload a photo in the comment section below or leave a rating. Enjoy!

Recipe Card

Lemon Meringue Cake Recipe

4.65 from 51 votes

Prep: 30 minutes mins

Cook: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

Chilling time: 1 hour hr

Total: 2 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Servings: 8 slices

Author: Becky Hardin

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Get ready for one delicious treat! Sweet and tangy, this layered lemon meringue cake is filled with lemon curd and topped with meringue for a real tasty showstopper!

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Equipment

• Kitchen Scale (optional)
• 9×5-inch loaf pan
• Stand Mixer
• Hand Mixer
• Baking Sheet
• Kitchen Torch (Click for my favorite) (optional)

Ingredients 

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For the Cake

• ▢ 1½ cups all-purpose flour 180 grams
• ▢ 1½ teaspoons baking powder 6 grams
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon zest 6 grams, from 1 lemon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ▢ ½ cup European Style Unsalted Butter 113 grams, room temperature (1 stick)
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams
• ▢ 2 large eggs 100 grams, room temperature
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 4 grams
• ▢ 2 tablespoons lemon juice 28 grams, about ½ lemon
• ▢ ½ cup buttermilk 114 grams, room temperature (see note)

For the Lemon Curd

• ▢ ½ cup European Style Unsalted Butter 113 grams (1 stick)
• ▢ ½ cup fresh lemon juice 114 grams, from 4 lemons
• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar 150 grams
• ▢ 8 egg yolks 112 grams

For the Meringue

• ▢ 8 egg whites 280 grams (about 1 cup)
• ▢ 1 cup granulated sugar 200 grams

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Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350·F. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan with butter. Add a piece of parchment paper lengthwise to help with removing the cake after baking.
• In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, zest, and salt.
  1½ cups all-purpose flour, 1½ teaspoons baking powder, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  ½ cup European Style Unsalted Butter, 1 cup granulated sugar
• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing on a low speed. Turn the speed up to medium-high and add in the vanilla and lemon juice.
  2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Put the mixer back on low and add about ½ of the flour mixture. Then half the buttermilk. Repeat until all of the flour and buttermilk are incorporated.
  ½ cup buttermilk
• Pour the batter into the loaf pan. Bake for approximately 50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool while making your lemon curd and meringue.
• Prepare the lemon curd. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, melt the butter and lemon juice over high heat. In a separate bowl, whisk the sugar and yolks.
  ½ cup European Style Unsalted Butter, ½ cup fresh lemon juice, ¾ cup granulated sugar, 8 egg yolks
• Slowly whisk together the hot lemon mixture into the egg mixture, a little at a time. Place the mixture back into the saucepan, stirring constantly. Allow to thicken for 6-8 minutes.
• Pour the lemon curd into a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing down to cover the entire top. Chill for 1 hour or until the cake has cooked and cooled.
• Prepare the meringue: Using a hand mixer, whisk together the egg whites and sugar in a clean metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until the mixture is warm and the sugar has fully dissolved, about 1-2 minutes.
  8 egg whites, 1 cup granulated sugar
• Place the meringue mixture in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until light and fluffy, usually about 2 additional minutes.
• Assemble the cake: Slice the baked and cooled cake into 3 horizontal layers. Trim the sides and top to make 3 even layers.
• Place the bottom of the cake on a rimmed baking sheet. Top with a layer of the lemon curd. Repeat with the second layer of cake and curd. Top finally with the top layer of cake.
• Using a rubber spatula or offset spatula, cover the entire outside of the cake in meringue. Make peaks or swirls as you go to make it extra pretty.
• Broil in the oven or use a small hand held kitchen torch to brown the meringue until golden brown. In the oven this would be just about 1 minute, watching carefully. You can also broil just slightly and then further toast the peaks.
• Slice and serve!

Becky’s Tips

• Allow the cake to fully cool before slicing and assembling.
• Use room temperature ingredients. This will help them to combine easily and you will have an even texture throughout the cake.
• If you are looking for a shortcut, you can use store-bought lemon curd for the filling, but it’s pretty quick to make your own and it’s so much more flavorful.

Storage: Store lemon meringue cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Serving: 1sliceCalories: 658kcalCarbohydrates: 90gProtein: 11gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 17gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 298mgSodium: 319mgPotassium: 159mgFiber: 1gSugar: 70gVitamin A: 1054IUVitamin C: 8mgCalcium: 106mgIron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Did you make this? Leave a comment!