A fun twist on a lemon meringue pie, with a light and fluffy meringue that tops cupcakes filled with homemade lemon curd!
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These lemon meringue cupcakes are just as delicious as they look! I love all things lemon, I use it in my drinks, desserts and even savory dishes.
My mother was visiting from out of state and one thing I used to make for her was lemon meringue pie. She's also on Keto so I wrote this recipe as a new twist on my traditional pie. It did NOT disappoint!
Look at these gorgeous lemons I found at my grocery store! This was the inspiration for my 5 Minute Microwave Lemon Curd. I saw them and just had to make something fabulous with them!
These are so fun and easy to make, and they are filled with my 5 Minute Microwave Lemon Curd, but if you'd rather use lemon curd made on the stovetop, you can use my recipe for Lemon Curd.
They both taste amazing, but for this recipe, I prefer the 5 minute method to save on time.
What's in Lemon Meringue Cupcakes
- 5 Minute Microwave Lemon Curd (or this traditional Lemon Curd)
- Super fine almond flour
- Oat Fiber
- Eggs
- Sour cream
- Swerve confectioners
- Swerve granular
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract
- Lemon zest
- Fresh lemon juice
- Cream of tartar
- Pinch of salt
*Exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below.
How to Make Almond Flour Cupcakes with Lemon Meringue
To Make the Gluten Free Cupcakes
Preheat your oven to 350F.
Add the flour, baking powder, oat fiber and salt to a bowl and whisk together, then set aside.
Separate the eggs, and set yolks aside. Whip up the egg whites with a hand mixer until you have soft peaks.
Add the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla extract to the egg yolks and mix. Then add in the Swerve and continue mixing.
Add in the egg whites and quickly mix just to combine.
Combine the dry and wet ingredients, mixing by hand.
Scoop into a silicone muffin pan, silicone cupcake liners or paper liners. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Allow them to cool before filling.
To Make the Keto Meringue
While the cupcakes are baking, add the egg whites and cream of tartar to a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer) and whip to soft peaks.
For best meringue results, make sure you use a clean, dry bowl. Room temp egg whites render a much better and fluffier meringue. You also want to make sure that the beaters to your mixer are clean and dry as well.
Then slowly add the Swerve confectioners and Swerve granulated while mixing to stiff peaks. Keep mixing until the Swerves are well incorporated with the egg whites.
Soft peaks are when the egg whites are glossy and will form a peak that bends over at the tip when the beaters are lifted.
Transfer the mix to a piping bag fitted with the tip of your choice. If you don't have piping tips, you can add to a food storage baggie, cut a hole at the tip and pipe on that way.
To Fill with Sugar Free Lemon Curd
Increase oven temperature to 400F.
Add the lemon curd filling into a piping bag fitted with a large round rip.
Gently push the tip into the center of the cooled cupcake and squeeze a little of the filling into it.
To Finish the Low Carb Cupcakes
Pipe the meringue over the top of the cupcakes, as if you were frosting them.
Place them back into the oven on the upper ⅔ rack and bake for 3-4 minutes or until the meringue is toasted. Do not over-bake!!
If they bake too long, the tops will be more like meringue cookies, and not as gooey inside. You want them just barely toasted on the outside exactly like you find on lemon meringue pie.
The texture is going to be light and fluffy and delicate.
All your lemon loving friends and family will be so impressed with the finished product because not only do these Keto Lemon Cupcakes look gorgeous, they taste incredible.
How Many Carbs in Lemon?
There're approximately 4 grams of carbs in one tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Most recipes don't call for more than a couple of tablespoon for the entire recipe so the carb count is minimal in most instances.
Are Lemons Keto?
While a lot of fruit isn't recommended for Keto or low carb diets, lemons are considered a basic essential. The reason is, there're relatively low in carbs and sugar, but more importantly, lemons help the body detox and get rid of extra fluid and inflammation.
Lemons are a great source of vitamin C and are a host for many health benefits. If you'd like to read more about this super fruit, check out this article.
You might also try Instant Pot Lemon Cheesecake with Meringue Icing!
Note: The Oat Fiber is really important in this recipe! I use it in so many recipes, because of the amazing texture it gives whatever I am baking! It is hands down, the best ingredient I’ve baked with and is really worth buying. I use Lifesource Foods Oat Fiber 500 because they grind it to a very fine powder and has a mild flavor. I buy it in the 16 ounce bag here. The bag lasts a while, because you don’t need to use much in your recipes.
Oat Fiber is not the same as Oat Flour, which is made from grinding oats. Oat Fiber is made from grinding the outer husks of oats and is pure insoluble fiber. Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water and is not broken down in the digestive tract, so it’s Low Carb and Keto friendly.
More Keto Desserts Using Oat Fiber
- Blueberry Lemon Muffins
- Pumpkin Cupcakes
- Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Cheddar Jalapeño "Cornbread"
- Blueberry Pancakes
- Lemon Poppy Mini Bundt Cakes
- Rosemary and Kalamata Olive Focaccia
- Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes
- Pumpkin Donuts
- Cranberry Sauce and Walnut Muffins
More Keto and Low Carb Cupcakes
- Strawberry Cupcakes
- Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
- Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Coconut Cupcakes
- Lemon Cupcakes with Creamy Lemon Frosting
- Pumpkin Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
If you'd like to know more about baking on Keto, this article, Keto Baking Made Easy, is loaded with tips and info that you'll find helpful. You might also check out my Keto Sweet Treats eBook that has 50 amazing Keto dessert recipes, all with color pics, macros and more! I'm offering it at 50% off when you subscribe to my free weekly emails here.
Shop my favorite products on Amazon and check out my Keto Pantry List!
Keto Lemon Meringue Cupcakes
Recipe Video
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup 5 Minute Microwave Lemon Curd, or my traditional Lemon Curd
For the Cupcakes
- 1 ¾ cups super fine almond flour
- ¼ cup Oat Fiber , see note below
- 2 eggs, divided
- ⅔ cup sour cream
- ½ cup swerve confectioners
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
For the Meringue Topping
- 3 egg whites
- ¼ cup swerve confectioners
- 2 tablespoons swerve granular
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
INSTRUCTIONS
To Make the Cupcakes
- Separate the eggs, and set yolks aside. Whip up the egg whites until you have soft peaks. Add the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla extract to the egg yolks and mix.
- Add in the swerve and continue mixing. Then add in the egg whites and quickly mix just to combine. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and mix by hand.
- Scoop into a silicone muffin pan, silicone cupcake liners or paper liners. Bake for 15 minutes.
To Make the Meringue Topping
- While the cupcakes are baking, add the egg whites and cream of tartar a large mixing bowl (or stand mixer) and whip to soft peaks. Then slowly add the swerve while mixing to stiff peaks.
- Transfer the mix to a piping bag fitted with the tip of your choice. If you don't have piping tips, you can add to a food storage baggie, cut a hole at the tip and pipe on that way.
To Finish the Cupcakes
- Increase oven temperature to 400F. Add the lemon curd filling into a piping bag fitted with a large round rip. Gently push the tip into the center of the cupcake and squeeze a little of the filling into it.
- Pipe the meringue over the top of the cupcakes, as if you were frosting them. Place them back into the oven on the upper ⅔ rack and bake for 3-4 minutes or until the meringue is toasted. Do not over-bake!! If they bake too long, the tops will be more like meringue cookies, and not a little gooey inside. You want them just barely toasted on the outside.
RECIPE NOTES
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Lisa
That looks like such a fun and delicious recipe!
Keto Cooking Christian
Thanks!
Heather
I want to make these but don’t have time to order the oat fiber . Can I use something else. Went to three store trying to find it but no one has it
Keto Cooking Christian
Hi Heather,
I don't think anything else really compares, but maybe a combination of psyllium husk powder and coconut flour? You would need to add a little more liquid and maybe more egg, but I can't really say for sure how they'd turn out.
Roxana
These look so yummy! I was a little confused about the whites and yolks for the cupcakes. But I think what the reason is step 3 under the cupcakes. It says to add in the "whites," but I think this is where you would add in the yolks. Is that right?
Keto Cooking Christian
Hi Roxana,
No, the recipe is stated correctly. You step 2 says to separate the eggs, set the yolks aside and whip the egg whites. Then says to add the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest and vanilla extract to the egg yolks and mix. Then step 3 says to mix in the Swerve, then add in the egg whites (to mix into the egg yolk mixture). The lastly, mix in the dry ingredients into the wet. Sorry if that sounded confusing though, I hope it all makes more sense now 🙂
betty
can you freeze these?
Keto Cooking Christian
Hi Betty,
I've actually not tried freezing them yet, so I can't say for sure. If you would like to try, I would only prepare the cupcakes with the filling and once they are thawed and ready to serve, then put the meringue topping and bake as directed. I hope that helps!
Nancy
Hi, could i make these with Coconut Flour? My stomach doesn’t like Almond flour. Thanks!
Keto Cooking Christian
Hi Nancy,
I honestly couldn't say for sure, since I've never tried using coconut flour in this recipe. I know it's much more absorbent than almond flour, so if you tried using it, you would have to add more egg and liquids to the mix.
haleherm
do you have to grease silicone muffin pans? Do these need to be refrigerated if you aren't serving til the next day?
Keto Cooking Christian
Typically no, but I like to just in case. I would store them in the fridge until you are ready to serve. I might even wait to make the meringue, until the day you serve them.