Grandmama’s Chocolate Meringue Pie

Grandmama’s Chocolate Meringue Pie is classic, traditional, simple, and well…perfect. Often times with meringue pies, there are problems: the meringue may pull away from the pie and will become watery, or the meringue will not rise like it should. I address all of these problems to make this recipe quite foolproof.

Classic Chocolate Meringue Pie is one of those pies you need to learn to make by heart. — Grandmama’s Chocolate Meringue Pie is one of those pies you need to learn to make by heart.

The Story of This Chocolate Meringue Pie

My first recollection of tasting the delectable chocolate meringue pie happened to be on an ordinary Sunday after church at my grandmother’s house. The family was still sitting at the table eating Sunday dinner.

At that time, I was little enough to be at the children’s table. However, I wasn’t content with the kid food. I quietly moved toward the buffet where the real food, as far as I was concerned, sat.

There I carefully took a slice of the chocolate pie, tiptoed back to the table, and devoured the best dessert I had ever eaten.

Later as a cook, I made it one of my ambitions to recreate that chocolate meringue pie. The recipe would have to be fail proof, invincible, and simple. Most important, it would have to bring people the same joy I got that Sunday so long ago from my grandmama’s pie.

Kitchen-Testing the Recipe for a Foolproof Pie

I started by asking my grandmama for her recipe. As I worked through the recipe, I noticed that there were times it turned out perfectly. However, sometimes I noticed a separation between the chocolate and the meringue. Other times, the meringue became sticky or the crust a little wet.

These problems had to have a solution, and it was my job to find them. I had to create the perfect recipe that would deliver results EVERY TIME.

The first reason I’m writing this post is to share my love of this chocolate meringue pie.

But the second is to save you the trouble of having to make 100 pies before you get that perfect pie.

There is a third reason: celebrating with this pie is such a great tradition to start. I want you to have this recipe for all those special occasions, and I want you to be able to make it by heart.

Ensuring the Perfect Meringue

I already knew a few things to help ensure the perfect meringue:

All my equipment needed to be squeaky clean.
There should be no fat from the yolks mixed with the egg whites.
Room temperature egg whites are much fluffier than cold.

Then the experimentation began! I think I made 100 pies before I successfully prepared a perfect chocolate meringue pie every time.

Chocolate Meringue Pie - Fail Proof - Stacy Lyn Harris — Chocolate Meringue Pie – Fail Proof – Stacy Lyn Harris

Soggy Crust? Here’s the Solution.

First, I want to begin with the soggy crust situation. Especially with custard and fruit pies, the liquid in the filling will make the crust soggy. This is an easy fix that is worth the small effort to ensure excellent crust results.

The secret is an egg wash brushed over the uncooked pie shell. The proteins create a barrier that keeps the moisture in the pie filling from penetrating the shell. How easy is that?

Once the egg whites are baked onto the pie shell, the shell becomes impenetrable, leaving you with the flaky goodness that you and your family deserve.

I start with my traditional crust recipe located here.
I then mix 1 egg white with 1 teaspoon of water and lightly brush the mixture over the entire pie shell before I bake.

No More Weeping (Liquid between the Filling and Meringue)

The next problem I had to address was the separation of the meringue from the filling. This is called “weeping,” and it results from a liquid forming between the two layers.

Weeping is what I felt like doing when this happened! I couldn’t figure out why it happened only sometimes.

Finally, I pinpointed the difference. Half of the time, I had the meringue ready to go onto the pie right after I poured the filling into the pie shell — while the filling was hot from the saucepan. No weeping!

But others times, I prepared the filling first and let it cool in the pie shell while I made the meringue. This gave the filling too much time to cool, which is not a good thing for meringue.

Solution: You need to put the meringue on the filling while the filling is piping hot. This will allow the egg whites to “cook” onto the filling.

Also, I learned that the sugar needs to be completely dissolved in the egg whites. This is majorly important to keep the meringue from separating. This is an easy fix as well.

You can purchase superfine sugar to add to the egg whites. But you can also grind regular sugar yourself for the same results. I like to rub a little of the meringue between my fingers to make sure there is no graininess at all before placing it over the filling.

Bye-Bye to Beading (Liquid Drops on Top of Meringue)

I noticed when cooking the meringue, if I raised the temperature of the oven from 350 degrees to 375 degrees, I was less likely to overcook the meringue. This reduced the chances of the meringue shrinking and releasing “beads” on the outside of the meringue.

Another tip to remember is to seal the meringue to the crust. Don’t just top the filling. This is important for the success of your chocolate meringue pie.

Check the Weather for the Perfect Chocolate Meringue Pie

Lastly, I have learned that making meringue is much easier on a clear, non-humid day! This is not a must, but I will take all the advantage I can get when preparing this delicious pie.

Don’t stop short of learning to make this pie by heart! You won’t regret the time you invested in committing this masterpiece to memory.