Lemon Meringue Cookies Recipe

A zesty lemon cookie covered in lemon curd and finished with a toasted vegan meringue topping - dreamy!

These lemon meringue cookies have the perfect thick and chewy cookie texture. Topped with deliciously sweet and tangy lemon curd and crisp shelled, melt in the mouth toasted meringue swirl. They are such a flavoursome treat and slightly tart lemon curd compliments the sweet cookie excellently. The toasted meringue on top adds the finishing touch to make the most perfect lemon cookie.

This recipe makes six large cookies. They are best eaten the day of baking, as the lemon curd will make the cookies go soft and the meringue will deflate over time. To make them in advance, bake the plain cookies and store them an airtight container until you are ready to add the toppings. You can also freeze the plain cookies for up to one month.

Makes 6 large cookies

Cookie ingredients;

240g plain flour

100g soft brown sugar

90g white granulated or caster sugar

4g baking powder

2g baking soda

90g vegan butter

20g cold water

Zest and juice from 1 large lemon or 2 small lemons

6 tsp vegan lemon curd - find my recipe below

Meringue ingredients;

100g aquafaba - liquid from a tin of chickpeas or white beans

55g caster or granulated sugar

1/2tsp cream of tarter - optional but it helps to stabilise the meringue

You will also need; a mixing bowl, baking tray, baking paper, spoon, electric hand or stand mixer, blow torch or grill, piping bag and nozzle - optional

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How to make your cookies;

1. Pre heat the oven to 180°c

2. Line your baking tin with baking paper, this will make sure your cookies do not stick

3. Make your cookie dough by adding the vegan butter, brown sugar and white sugar into your mixing bowl and stirring until it is light, fluffy and combined

4. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, lemon zest, lemon juice and cold water

5. Mix the dough with your hands to combine everything

6. Scoop the dough into six even balls. Each dough ball should weigh around 100g

   Place the cookie dough balls on the baking paper lined tray. Make sure to space them out

7. Put the baking tray with the cookie balls on into the fridge for around 30 minutes to chill.  This is optional, but will help keep your cookies thicker and stop the dough from spreading as much in the oven

8. Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes at 180c until lightly golden

9. Remove from the oven and bang the tray firmly on the worktop.  This helps release any trapped air bubbles and makes the cookies have a lovely chewy centre

10. Leave the cookies on the tray to cool as the cookies will be soft to touch while they are hot

11. Once the cookies are cooled, make your meringue mixture

12. Add the aquafaba to a bowl and whisk until bubbly

13. Add the cream of tarter and slowly add the sugar a tsp at a time whisking in between

14. Continue to whisk until the mixture becomes thick and fluffy. Set aside

15. Add a tsp of vegan lemon curd to make a little puddle on the top of each cookie

16. Add the meringue to a piping bag and pipe a swirl of meringue over the top of the lemon curd. If you don't have a piping bag, just use aa spoon to add the blob of meringue mixture on top

17. Repeat until all the cookies have lemon curd and meringue on top

18. Use a blow torch to gently toast the meringue until it is golden all over. If you don't have a blow torch, make sure that the lemon curd is completely covered by the meringue mixture, then turn the grill up high and pop the tray of cookies underneath for a few minutes to toast. Keep an eye on them as they can burn really quickly or the heat can make the lemon curd melt out from under the meringue

19. Now they're ready to eat!

Tips & Tricks!

• This is my easy lemon curd recipe; The Easiest Vegan Lemon Curd Recipe

• I used a spreadable style vegan butter to make my cookies. You can use a block butter but this will make the dough slightly drier, so you'll need to add a little extra water. I used Flora.

• The cream of tarter is only a tiny amount but it helps to stabilise the meringue so that it stays fluffy and does not deflate. You can make the meringue without it but I would really recommend adding a pinch of cream of tarter if you can.

• If your cookies spread a little too much in the oven, while they are still hot, use a large circle cookie cutter to scoot them around the edge and bring them back into a nice circle shape. I use the largest of these circle cutters to scoot the cookies if they spread; https://amzn.to/4sDbRoc

• The cookies are best eaten straight away once you add the lemon curd and meringue, as they'll start to go soggy and the meringue will deflate. To make them ahead of time, bake the plain cookies then store them in an airtight container until you need to add the toppings

• I just have a cheap kitchen blow torch like this one; https://amzn.to/4mqMa8K

• If you are feeling fancy, you could add a handful of vegan white chocolate chips to the cookie dough