Last updated on October 2nd, 2021 at 06:49 am

Shaker lemon pie is a strange and bitter confection that isn’t meant for everyone. I’ve taken a few liberties with the original idea and made it my new favorite dessert.

Shaker lemon pie. It’s a weird one—and it’s not for everyone.

Shaker lemon pie is, basically, a whole-lemon pie—as in rind, pith and all. It was created by the Shakers, a Protestant sect that formed in England in the late 18th century and later settled in Ohio (hence, Shaker Heights and Ohio Lemon Pie). Like other communities throughout history, using every last bit of fruit, vegetable or animal so as not to waste anything was common (we are such wasteful modern people). The Shakers applied this idea to their lemon pie. It’s an acquired taste, but I’ve made some adjustments to the idea to make it palatable (at least in my house).

Shaker Lemon Pie

Shaker lemon pie might not be exactly what you’re thinking. You don’t wrap an entire lemon in pastry and bake it. What you’re supposed to do: slice the lemon, bury the lemon slices in granulated sugar and let the lemon mixture sit overnight. Then you mix it with eggs, pour the lemon and egg mixture in a pie shell, cap it with a top crust and bake. It’s also nothing like a lemon meringue pie which is, basically, lemon curd in a pie crust topped with meringue. 

I tried a bite of it once at Mission Pie (RIP) a few years ago, but I didn’t get the full experience. That’s probably a good thing because it’s not an easy pie to like. Some people do like the taste of lemon peels (Campari drinkers, English people) the way some people like the taste of Finnish salty licorice or the smell of gasoline. There’s a reason it’s not a more common pie. 

Coming Up with a New Version

I made the New York Times version. It was adapted from Alice Waters of Chez Panisse and (grooooaaaan) egg spoon fame, which was adapted from some other recipe from some other person who adapted it from some Ohio housewife who adapted it from her grandmother’s recipe that was adapted from an original Shaker. 

It was not at all to my liking. 

The rind, no matter how much macerating it’s subjected to, cannot be beaten into anything edible. It’s. Just. Too. Bitter.

I did, however, taste its potential. I was determined to make this pie something I like. But I ended up making this pie waaaaay too many times. So, in keeping with the grand tradition of adapting (and in my case, bastardizing) recipes, I have made some major adjustments to this pie to not only make it palatable but also delicious. 

The Rind

The recipe suggests using Meyer lemons because the rind is thin and soft (AHEM…the Meyer lemon did not exist when the Shakers settled in Ohio). But even with the thin skin and a mandolin to get the lemon peel paper-thin, it was still overpowering and chewy. 

A regular lemon has a thicker peel but if they’re good enough for Shakers, they’re good enough for me. However, I used monster Meyer lemons (there is some strange citrus tree grafting in my neighborhood), but instead of using the entire rind, I grated the zest of the lemons. The pith was also a problem, so I removed as much pith as possible. I also left off the “heel” of the lemon. The heel is the end of the lemon that’s leftover when you’re done slicing (like a heel of bread). I guess that means it’s not a real Shaker lemon pie, but it does mean it’s a delicious pie. 

The Pastry

This pie really benefits from extra salt and a little bit more butter in the pie dough. I used one stick of salted butter and one stick of unsalted butter in addition to 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. It offsets the sweetness and tartness, and enhances the buttery flavor. 

The Filling

I really wanted this to be a semi-solid filling, so added another egg and a bit more flour to the macerated lemons which makes it creamy and a little less gooey. I also threw in some grated ginger and a handful of blackberries, because why not? 

Pie Pan

I also didn’t use a pie plate and used a cake pan instead. It’s not totally necessary, but the uncooked filling is very runny and I like the straight sides to keep the filling contained. 

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