Our Lemon Cream Pie recipe has been everyones #1 favorite pie for over a decade. It's made with fresh lemon and sour cream custard and a homemade pie crust.
If you love lemon treats as much as I do, don't miss our Lemon Bars, Lemon Cake, Homemade Lemonade, Lemon Poppy Seed Bread, and Lemon Mousse!
For me, Lemon Sour Cream Pie reigns supreme over all lemon desserts
For me, Lemon Sour Cream Pie reigns supreme over all lemon dessertsI fell in love with this Lemon Cream Pie 15 years ago, when my sister-in-law from Pretty Providence made it, trying to copy a version we love from Croshaw's pie shop. This pie is an absolute dream, with the perfect balance of sweet and tart and wonderful creaminess in every bite. We do not celebrate Thanksgiving without this one.
If you want the crowd to go wild, you have to make this lemon sour cream pie in our homemade pie crust.
How to make Lemon Cream Pie:
Lemon Filling: Beat eggs slightly with a fork in a small bowl and set aside. Add sugar and cornstarch to a large saucepan and whisk in milk and fresh lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick and bubbling. Reduce heat to medium-low.
Temper Eggs: Add a spoonful of the hot pudding mixture into the beaten egg yolks and stir well. Repeat, adding a few more spoonfuls of hot pudding into the egg mixture to temper the eggs (gradually bring them to a warmer temperature, without scrambling the). Pour egg mixture into the saucepan and stir well. Bring mixture to a gentle boil then cook for two more minutes and remove from heat.
Finish Filling: Stir in softened butter and lemon zest until butter melts completely. Allow mixture to cool for a few minutes, then stir in sour cream. Pour filling to a baked pie shell. Place a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper gently over the filling and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Whipped Cream Topping: Beat heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer, adding powdered sugar a little at a time. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over pie.
More Pie Recipes:
- Banana Cream Pie
- Chocolate Cream Pie
- Peanut Butter Pie
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Key Lime Pie
- German Chocolate Pie
- Grasshopper Pie
- No-Bake Cheesecake
- Rhubarb Pie
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Recipe
Lemon Sour Cream Pie
Equipment
- Stand Mixer optional
Ingredients
- 1 9-inch pre-baked pie crust*
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 Tablespoon + 1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2-3 lemons)
- 3 large egg yolks , lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup butter , softened
- Zest of one lemon , about ½ tablespoon
- 1 cup sour cream
Whipped Cream Topping:
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2-3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
Instructions
- Lemon Filling: Crack eggs in a small bowl, beat slightly with a fork and set aside. In a large saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Whisk in milk and fresh lemon juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick and bubbling.
- Temper Eggs: Reduce heat to medium-low. Add a spoonful of the hot filling into the bowl with beaten egg yolks and stir well. Repeat this process with two or three more spoonfuls of the hot mixture added to the egg yolks, to temper the eggs (warm them up so they don't scramble when added to the pot). Add egg mixture into the saucepan and stir well. Bring mixture to a gentle boil then cook for two more minutes. Remove from heat.
- Finish Filling: Add softened butter and lemon zest and stir until butter melts completely. Allow mixture to cool for a few minutes, then stir in sour cream. Add filling to baked pie shell. place a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper over the pie and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.
- Whipped Cream Topping: In a mixing bowl, beat heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer. While beating, gradually add sugar. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over cooled pie filling.
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe February 2017. Updated March 2018 and August 2024.
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best lemon desert I’ve ever tasted, and I’ve had a few. my personal preference is a graham cracker crust and no whip cream topping. pretty easy to make
My hubby said it perfectly.
“Quite possibly the best pie you’ve ever made!”
This pie is absolutely delicious! I plan on making it again for Easter coming up. I normally make it on the day it is to be eaten…but will be making it the day before to save some time since I will be very busy cooking on Easter Sunday. Hoping it is just as delicious in spite of. Thanks!
Made individual pies in ramekins (4). Lots of compliments. It was a bit heavy for my taste… Used the “leftover” filling to make ice cream. 20 minutes in the ice cream maker. Delicious ice cream!!
I so very much wanted this recipe to be a phenomenal success but it fell flat. Literally. 🤭 As a commercial baker myself, I understand and appreciate that following a recipe exactly as it states is imperative to achieve success, so trust me when I say I did just that. I’m not sure what happened but I think if I give this another go, I will increase the cornstarch quite a bit! Thank you for your recipe! It was otherwise delicious, but almost inedible due to the runny filling. My apologies for only being able to give this 1 star.
I’m so sorry that happened, but something had to have gone wrong in the preparation. 3 egg yolks and 3+ tablespoons of cornstarch should be plenty to thicken it properly. Hope you get to try it again soon and make sure the mixture is thickened in step 3 before removing it from heat.
If possible, can you revise this to add how long one should cool the mixture before adding sour cream? I had to look at other recipes to find out. This way other newbies will know too. Thank you. 😊
Looks like a great recipe, does it work to freeze this pie?
Because of the sour cream in it, I don’t recommend freezing this one.
Absolutely THE BEST lemon pie I have ever made! Thank you for this fabulous recipe!
Hello Lauren,
This pie looks amazing. I was wondering if a graham cracker crust would work with this pie, or if you’ve ever tried a different crust than traditional pie crust?
Thank you 😊
I have been making this for years for Thanksgiving and it turns out perfectly every time! The flavor is incredible and it’s just the perfect lemon pie!