I’m a fan of a good lemon pie…

In New York my favourite lemon pie is from a shop called Four & Twenty Blackbirds in Brooklyn. Their lemon pie features a crispy pastry with a generous amount of a tangy lemon filling and is tastiest when eaten with a little bit of whipped cream on top.

The lemon pies back in London tend to be more like the French lemon tartes which are also nice but tend to be a less thick with a more buttery pastry.

When I make a quick lemon pie at home I have an easy receipe using ready made pastry dough.

The result is something in between a French lemon tarte and American pie – it’s still tastiest with some whipped cream!

For a 23cm/9 inch pie you’ll need

• an unbaked pie crust/ ready made pie pastry
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• finely grated zest of 3 large, unwaxed lemons
• the juice of said 3 large lemons
• 5 eggs
• 1/3 cup butter, melted
• whipped cream, to serve

Preheat the oven to gas mark 3.

Roll out your pastry to around 3mm (around the thickness of a one pound coin) and line a 23cm inch pie form, cutting any excess pastry off with a knife.

Combine the sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice in a bowl and beat in the eggs – one by one – with an electric whisk. 

Continue to whisk and slowly pour in the melted butter until all is well combined.
Pour the filling into the prepared pastry and bake in the oven for 45 minutes.

Cool down fully before serving – with a dollop of lightly whipped cream!