Greetings Peeps! It’s been awhile since my last post and I apologize for being absent from the blog and social media lately. We are settling in to our new home and it’s been hectic! I’ve got a great low carb lemon pie recipe for you though, and a bunch of photos of Belize at the bottom so I hope you’ll forgive my lapse!!!
So one thing you can’t get here in Belize is lemons, which I found weird because I’ve always considered it a tropical citrus fruit. I was surprised to find that there are lots of green limes and even green oranges, but not a single festive yellow lemon to be found anywhere here on the island of Ambergris Caye.
Knowing that from our scouting visit in February, (and because I really wanted to use this super cute lemon juicer I got at Target this winter) I decided to make this low carb Lemon Cloud Pie in New York before we left.
When I say before we left, I mean RIGHT before we left! I wish I’d taken a photo of the actual kitchen when I was trying to get the pie pictures done, because we were literally moving out while I was finishing up this pie! Being a serious lover of lemon desserts though, I was determined to get this done in case it was my last low carb lemon dessert for awhile!
And it will likely be – but what a way to go out!
This lemon cloud pie is intensely lemon flavored in the best possible way. The low carb crust is a combination of my coconut crust for the Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake, and my almond shortbread cookie recipe. It’s sweet and toasty and sturdy enough to literally pick up the piece of pie with your hands to eat it.
You know, for when you’re standing in front of the open fridge at 2am and you don’t want to dirty any dishes (or have anyone hear your fork clinking against the plate and wake up to catch you eating pie out of the fridge in the wee hours….or maybe that’s just me….) so you just grab a piece and eat it standing there, reveling in its sweet, lemony goodness. ? ? ?
This low carb lemon pie got me through the last couple of days of stress before we finally left for Belize. I even brought the leftovers with me to a friend’s house that we were staying with between the time we’d moved out and when we actually left the country! Which was bad because then I had to share – but it was a hit even with the non low carbers!
For science, we tried freezing the last few pieces to see if it would be good. It was OK once we’d thawed it for a few minutes, but honestly I like the contrast of the pillowy lemon filling against the crunchy, toasty crust better when it’s just chilled in the fridge.
You’ll have to make it and let me know which you prefer!
As if there wasn’t enough to love about this low carb lemon pie – it’s really easy to make! The crust bakes alone and the filling is made with my low carb lemon curd (which can be made in advance and kept on hand in the fridge), folded into some lightly sweetened whipped cream.
That’s it.
My point is, you could be eating this pie in less than an hour!
Well? Why are you still here?!?!? Go! Go! Make it and be sure to report back!!!
Lemon Cloud Pie – Low Carb and Gluten Free
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Lemony and sweet, this refreshing low carb pie recipe is easy to make and perfect for any summer party! Keto, Atkins, Sugar Free, and Gluten Free!
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 6 Tbsp butter, softened
- 3/4 cup erythritol (I used Swerve)
- 3/4 cup dried shredded coconut (unsweetened)
- 3/4 cup super fine almond flour
- pinch of salt
For the Filling:
Instructions
For the Crust:
- Combine the butter, erythritol, coconut, almond flour and salt in a medium bowl and mix until a dough forms.
- Press the dough into a pie plate, going all the way up the sides.
- Bake the crust at 350 degrees (F) for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
Note: Your crust may slide down a bit during baking. Once you remove it from the oven it will remain soft for about 10 minutes before hardening. If it’s slid down, wait five minutes, press it back into the shape you want and let it cool and harden before filling.
For the Filling:
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan on low heat.
- Remove from heat and whisk in 1/2 cup sweetener, lemon juice, and lemon zest until dissolved. Whisk in the egg yolks and return to the stove over low heat.
- Whisk continually until the curd starts to thicken.
- Remove from the heat and strain into a small bowl. Chill.
- In a large bowl, whip the heavy whipping cream, xanthan gum, and 1 Tbsp sweetener together until stiff peaks form.
- Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream mixture into the chilled lemon curd until combined.
- Add the lightened lemon curd mixture to the remaining whipped cream and gently fold together until fully combined, but still fluffy.
- Spoon the filling into the cooled pie crust. Garnish with additional whipped cream and lemon zest if desired.
- Serve chilled – will keep up to a week in the refrigerator.
Notes
To see a list of my favorite low carb products and brands that I recommend for sweeteners, flours, etc. you can check out the IBIH Pantry Ingredients Page!
- Category: Low Carb Dessert Recipe
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/8th pie
- Calories: 427
- Fat: 46
- Carbohydrates: 2.5g net
- Protein: 4
Since I won’t be eating any lemon desserts for awhile, I hope that you guys will indulge in lemon flavored everything so that I can live vicariously through you!
Meanwhile, don’t feel too bad for me – life in Belize has been pretty great so far and we’re finally settled in!
Here’s a few photos from the last couple of weeks and our latest day trip with friends – you can tell that we’re really having a hard time with the transition… ? ? ☀️ ? ?? ?
Movie night at the Truck Stop! Watched The Sandlot – always a classic!!!
Getting our sip on at Izzie’s Juice Bar – I had the Hulk Juice! (don’t make me angry!)
A great day at Secret Beach (which isn’t really a secret!)
Some friends with a boat brought us out to a small island and we had the whole place to ourselves!
The guys went spearfishing and brought back some lunch!
Lionfish are venomous and invasive – they are also DELICIOUS!
Prepping for lunch on the beach!
Beach picnic Belizean style! Some of my friends are on the Whole 30 this month – even here in Belize, who knew??
Post lunch siesta!!
Had a game of catch and some frisbee…
Mason and a friend snorkeling and looking for shells – the water is crystal clear!
And finally, because you guys know I need my coffee… My favorite place for coffee on the island – Rum & Bean!
So that’s just a dump of some IG photos I’ve taken, but I plan to take my camera out to get some good shots of our favorite spots soon! Also a tour of the house! Stay tuned and have a great week, Peeps!
PS. MAKE THIS PIE. SERIOUSLY.
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Made this for a family get together. Didn’t have lemons so used limes. So good. My mother in law was VERY disappointed I wouldn’t give her the leftovers lol! Love your book and cook from it often. This will become a new staple in our rotation!
Oh Melissa. You make my heart sing. I made this last week as a tester for a dessert I need to bring to Easter dinner this Sunday. I didn’t like the crust…at first. Then it sort of grew on me. But, in the end I think I’ll do a chocolate almond crust (I normally make this for a low carb peanut butter cheesecake) and see about putting it in a tarte pan with a removable bottom.
The challenge for me is I just started your SCKC with the 5 day soup. Easter Sunday will be day 6 and the only thing I’ll allow off the diet will be a slice of this. If there is any dessert left over it’ll be left at the hostess’ house :(
★★★★
You have so many people aware of how awesome this recipe is that you really don’t need my high five, but it deserves recognition. My equal favorite is the Lemon Sour Cream Bundt cake in your book but I can’t find it here to tell you that it too is amazing. I served it with coffee for a Christmas lunch and didn’t even mention how healthy it was and no one guessed. THANKS for all these great recipes.
★★★★★
What a great giveaway! I’d love one of these pots ???
It tastes great, but what is the breakdown in Nutrition?
★★★★★
Great recipe! My husband and I loved it. It has a really strong lemon flavor and is delicious:) Definitely recommend it!!
★★★★★
This pie is addictive! I added an egg to the crust and it tasted like an almond, coconut cookie. Very hard to stop at 1 slice. Thank you!
★★★★★
Lovely looking pie. Do you think this can be made with coconut cream rather than heavy cream?
It’s possible Monica – not sure how it will react with the lemon juice though or how the flavors will work together – let us know if you try it!
Just made it and it was amazing I did omit Sugar in the crust as I feel like it doesn’t need it and it was perfect!!! It totally hit the spot! will absolutely make again!
★★★★★
Holy cow. I thought the curd was gazmic until I folded in the whipped cream. This should be illegal. Best. Low carb. Dessert. Ever.
Forget the pie crust. I’m eating this as 8 servings of mousse. Thank you x million!
★★★★★
Update! Still love the ‘mousse’ and I’ve had time to play with it.
1) l made a pretty pink cranberry version using 3/4 cup of homemade unsweetened cranberry puree (~ 180g cranberries with 100mL of water, boil, mash, through a seive).
2) I’ve made both the lemon & cranberry versions using 2 egg yolks and 2 whole eggs instead of 6 yolks. I was getting tired of meringues and omlettes and if, like me, you are trying to eat low carb AND limit fats, this cuts out 8.8g fat and also 76cal and 0.8g carbs. It doesn’t affect the texture or consistency at all.
Thanks for sharing all of your tips and hacks Lulu! Love the idea of a cranberry version!!
Do we use the granulated swerve or the confectioners for this recipe?
I did but you can use either.
I am allergic to nuts is. there any way to
make this crust.
Hi I made this this past weekend and it was really good but had a grainy texture. I used powdered erythrytol to avoid that. What could have happened?
I am so confused by the curd portion of this recipe. I’ve never made lemon curd before and I had no idea how thick it should be. The recipe says to stir until it starts to thicken, not when it is thick. Then in the comments I saw you said pudding consistency. Does that mean the consistency of the liquid pudding mix before you let it set up in the fridge or does it actually need to be pudding thick? You don’t really love much description in the recipe for us newbies. I’m pretty sure I didn’t let mine thicken up enough because I stopped it just as it started to thicken. I love the taste and would love to make this again with any clarifications you have! Thanks! PS my crust looks amazing!
★★★★
It should be thickening enough to coat a spoon but thin enough to run through the strainer, it will continue to thicken when chilled to a pudding consistency.
Thanks! It was coating the spoon, but I still think it could have thickened up a bit more before I added in the whipped cream. I ended up freezing it and making it an ice box pie and it worked perfectly. The crust is amazing and I love the lemon! Next time I will let it thicken it some more and let it chill a little longer.
When I was a little girl, my favorite dessert was lemon chiffon pie. It had a graham cracker crust and was heavenly! I was so thrilled when I found this recipe as it is quite close to my memory of the lemon chiffon pie. I have made this pie twice and it is absolutely delicious! Quite easy to make. I took it to a party last night, and no one could believe it was a low carb pie!
I do find the crust a bit tough and would like to be able to break it up with just a fork….maybe I am doing something wrong? It tastes yummy!
I think next time I will try making it with limes. Would also like to make this in little tartlets!
So many options, the lemon curd is perfect! Thank you for a great low carb recipe!
★★★★★
Made this for a potluck at work and it was a hit. I was very pleased with it as well. It was difficult to limit myself. In fact one guy at work posted he ate almost one pie to himself!
★★★★★
Holy moly, this pie is absurdly good. I don’t know my way around the kitchen but I followed the instructions carefully and it turned out amazing. Yes, my crust did sink a bit as it did for others, but I pushed it back up a bit after it cooled a bit. It took a little while of whisking the lemon curd on low heat before it thickened. I wasn’t sure what I was doing for most of the steps, but it worked beautifully! Thank you. It is soooooo effing good!
Is the xanthan gum totally necessary? It’s the one thing I don’t have! :-)
It might be a tad runny without it but it won’t ruin the recipe to omit it – guar gum or arrowroot powder can also work if you have one of those.