Easy Baked Lemon Meringue Donuts
Easy, lemon infused, baked donuts topped with a layer of homemade lemon curd and frosted with a gorgeous marshmallowy toasted meringue.
Lemon is one of my absolute flavors to bake with. I have so many lemon dessert recipes, but if I’m being honest, lemon with meringue is superior.
Lemon curd and Meringue can be tricky to get just right but I have all the details in those posts so make sure to read them if you’re not familiar or need some extra tips.
How To Make Lemon Meringue Donuts, Step-by-Step Photos
Lemon Curd
- Combine the sugar, eggs, lemon juice & zest, butter and salt in a small nonstick or enameled (NOT metal) saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Whisk continuously until it thickens, about 5 minutes. The curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- While it’s still hot, press the curd through a sieve into another bowl/jar, cover it and allow it to cool completely to room temperature. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
Donuts
- Zest the lemon on top of the sugar and use your fingers to rub them together well, until they’re well combined.
- Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt until they’re evenly distributed.
- Add the room temperature butter and the oil and use an electric mixer to beat them at medium, until they’re crumbly like a streusel.
- Add the egg and mix just until it’s well combined and the batter looks like paste.
- Add the sour cream and turn the mixer to low speed while streaming in the milk.
- Scrape the edge of the bowl and give it a good mix. Fill the donut molds about ⅔-¾ full.
- Bake for 10ish minutes, until it springs back when you press on it.
- Let the donuts rest for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove them from the pan and let them cool completely.
Meringue
- Combine sugar, cream of tartar and egg whites over a double boiler.
- Heat until sugar is fully dissolved in the egg whites and reaches 170F (77C).
- Whip egg whites and sugar until it’s a fluffy meringue.
Assemble
- Spread a layer of lemon curd on top of the cooled donuts (if there’s a flatter, less rounded side, spread it on that side so it holds more).
- Use a piping bag to pipe the meringue on top of the lemon curd so it doesn’t slide around.
- Use a culinary torch to toast the meringue.
How To Store Lemon Meringue Donuts
These donuts can be served right away or refrigerated for later. Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days or freeze for longer.
To freeze the donuts, place them in an airtight container and then place the container in a freezer bag, squeezing out all the excess air. Bring them back to room temperature by thawing at room temperature for a few hours before serving or in the fridge overnight.
I hope you enjoy these lemon meringue donuts and I hope they bring a little bit of sunshine to your day!
If you have any questions, please comment down below – those will get answered much quicker than email or through social media.
If you’ve tried this, I would very much appreciate a star rating or review as well.
As always, have a blessed day and happy baking!
Love, B
Baked Lemon Meringue Donuts
Easy, lemon infused, baked donuts topped with a layer of homemade lemon curd and frosted with a gorgeous marshmallowy toasted meringue.
Equipment
- 1 zester
- 1 small pot
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 1 large lemon, zested or 2 small
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk room temperature
- 60 mL (1/4 cup/2oz) lemon juice 1 large or 2 small lemons
- 42 grams (3 Tbsp) salted butter room temperature
Lemon Donuts
- 200 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 2 large lemon (or 3 small), zested
- 210 grams (1 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour spooned and leveled
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- 56 grams (1/4 cup/4 Tbsp) unsalted butter room temperature
- 60 mL (1/4 cup) canola oil
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 113 grams (1/2 cup) sour cream
- 80 mL (1/3 cup) whole milk room temperature
Toasted Meringue
- 150 grams (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- 3 large egg whites (90-100 grams)
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
- tiny pinch fine sea salt
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- Combine the sugar, eggs, lemon juice & zest, butter and salt in a small nonstick or enameled (NOT metal) saucepan over medium-low heat.*50 grams (1/4 cup) granulated sugar, 1 large lemon, zested, 1 large egg, 1 large egg yolk, 60 mL (1/4 cup/2oz) lemon juice, 42 grams (3 Tbsp) salted butter
- Whisk continuously until it thickens, about 5 minutes and reaches about 170F (77C). The curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- While it’s still hot, press the curd through a sieve into another bowl/jar, cover it and allow it to cool completely to room temperature. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator.
Lemon Donuts
- Preheat the oven to 350F/177C convection and grease a donut pan (I did 12 large donut molds and 12 minis)
- Place the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl) and zest the lemon on top. Use your fingers to rub the sugar with the lemon zest to release the oils.200 grams (1 cup) granulated sugar, 2 large lemon (or 3 small), zested
- Add the cake flour, baking powder and salt and whisk until they're evenly distributed.210 grams (1 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- Add the oil and butter to the dry ingredients and beat together until they're combined.60 mL (1/4 cup) canola oil, 56 grams (1/4 cup/4 Tbsp) unsalted butter
- Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until they're fully combined.1 large egg, 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- Add the sour cream and turn the mixer to low speed, while streaming the milk in. Scrape the edge of the bowl and mix just until the batter is smooth.113 grams (1/2 cup) sour cream, 80 mL (1/3 cup) whole milk
- Fill each donut mold about 2/3-3/4 full and bake for about 8-11 minutes. They are done when you press on the center and it springs back and the edges are golden brown.
- Remove them from the oven and let them cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack. Allow the donuts to cool completely before frosting.
Toasted Meringue
- Bring a small pot with a little water to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer (keep it on very low heat).
- Wipe down your equipment with a tiny bit of vinegar or lemon juice (any edible acid) and then place the sugar and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer, whisking them together.150 grams (3/4 cup) granulated sugar, 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- Add the egg whites to the bowl and whisk the egg whites into the sugar. Place the bowl of egg whites and sugar on top of the simmering water (making sure it doesn’t submerge into the water) – you want the steam to heat the egg whites.3 large egg whites (90-100 grams)
- Whisk the egg whites frequently so they don’t coagulate around the edge of the bowl. Generally around 5 minutes, the sugar will feel like it’s dissolved in the egg whites but you want to take the egg whites to 175F (80C) in order to get that stable, marshmallowy texture, which is normally around 10 minutes for me. So make sure to check the temperature with a thermometer between the 5-10 minutes (it may take up to 15 minutes).
- Once it’s at 175F (80C), turn the stove off, remove the bowl from the simmering pot and place it on the stand mixer fit with the whisk attachment. Beat at medium speed for a minute and then increase to medium-high for about 10 minutes.
- Add in the vanilla extract and salt and mix, that just until it’s combined, making sure to scrape the edge of the bowl as well. The texture should be thick and marshmallow – not dry or foamy.2 tsp vanilla bean paste, tiny pinch fine sea salt
Notes
- Store bought lemon curd will work as well but I don’t particularly love any of them to recommend.
- I recommend a light colored metal donut pan if you want them more uniform in color.
- I got 12 large donuts and 12 mini donuts out of this batter. You could also get about 18 large donuts or 36 mini donuts if you’re making them all the same. The batter can wait while one set bakes at a time.
- Store in an airtight container, refrigerated for 4-5 days or frozen for a few weeks.
- If you need the meringue to be SUPER stable you can add gelatin to it.
- I just dissolve a ¼ tsp of gelatin in 1 tsp of cold water. Let it set for a few minutes and then microwave it for 5 seconds. Add it in with the vanilla and salt, mixing just until it’s well combined. It’ll set once it’s refrigerated.
- I just dissolve a ¼ tsp of gelatin in 1 tsp of cold water. Let it set for a few minutes and then microwave it for 5 seconds. Add it in with the vanilla and salt, mixing just until it’s well combined. It’ll set once it’s refrigerated.
Nutrition
Serving: 1gCalories: 197kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 3gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 103mgPotassium: 53mgFiber: 0.2gSugar: 18gVitamin A: 224IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 39mgIron: 0.3mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!