Lemon Cream Pie with Pecan Gingersnap Crust

Journey with me back to 2012 — the last time I shared this perfect lemon cream pie recipe:

“Baking lemon pie brings memories of my Grandmother back to me. She made an incredible lemon pie with sky-high meringue. It was sensational, just like her. She was also very snippy and demanding at times. I think she mostly lived off of coffee and buttered toast, and the occasional chili from Wendy’s. I remember once she put a pizza in the oven and asked me why it looked so funny… it was upside down. True story. I miss her humor, attitude, and that lemon pie.”

Cheers to my Grandma, and to the best lemon pie you’ll ever make (or eat). Share it with friends and family for summer parties, birthdays, and showers, or just to show some love.

What makes this lemon cream pie extra special

The filling is (obviously) incredible, but the secret is the crust. The crust is made from pecans and gingersnap cookies and will seriously make you a pie-baking goddess. Ginger and lemon? Yep. Ugh, I wish you could live in my mind. The flavor combination is perfect.

Unlike in my banana cream pie, you don’t have to carefully “cook” the filling on the stovetop before adding it to the crust. You’ll just whisk, pour, and bake!

Ingredients in this lemon cream pie recipe

I tweaked this recipe slightly from 13 years ago, and it seriously turned out better than I even remember. Here’s what you’ll need:

• For the crust: as I mentioned, you’ll need pecans and gingersnap cookies, plus some salted butter and dark brown sugar. So simple.
• For the filling: the lemon custard filling is made with granulated sugar, whole eggs (not just egg yolks), lemon juice and lemon zest, sour cream, cornstarch, and salt. No gelatin or sweetened condensed milk required!
• For topping: what’s a lemon pie without homemade whipped cream? Make my version with heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract.

Can I make it gluten-free or dairy-free?

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend a substitute in this recipe to make it gluten-free or dairy-free. If you have a gluten-free pie crust you love, feel free to try that and let me know in the comments how it goes!

More ingredient FAQs

• Can I substitute walnuts for the pecans? I wouldn’t recommend it, but you could use hazelnuts instead.
• Will fat-free yogurt work? Unfortunately, the filling won’t set properly with 0% or fat-free yogurt. Please use 2% or whole-milk Greek yogurt if you’re swapping yogurt for the sour cream.
• Can I use honey or maple syrup in place of the sugar? No, I wouldn’t recommend this substitution, as a liquid sugar will change the consistency.
• How do I make it nut-free? You can substitute the pecans for extra gingersnap cookies!

The magic of sour cream

You might be thinking: wait, we’re adding sour cream to the filling?! Yes! Not only does it give your filling a wonderfully smooth, creamy texture, but it also adds an extra level of tartness with the lemon juice that balances out with the sugar, crust, and whipped cream topping.

If you’re out of sour cream, you can also use 2% or whole-milk Greek yogurt!

Not into gingersnaps? Try a new crust

• If you like a traditional pie crust, feel free to use your favorite store-bought pie crust OR (even better) try my fool-proof all-butter pie crust.
• I recommend swapping the gingersnaps for a different cookie like biscoff cookies, vanilla wafers, or graham crackers.

How to make a perfect lemon cream pie

1. Pulse the crust. Add the pecans and gingersnaps to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until they become fine crumbs. Add the butter and brown sugar and pulse again until the mixture looks like wet sand.
2. Form & bake the crust. Pour the crust mixture into a 9-inch pie pan and evenly press into the bottom and sides of your pan with clean hands or the bottom of a measuring cup. Bake, and then let it cool.
3. Mix the filling. Add the sugar and lemon zest to a large bowl and use clean fingers to rub them together to infuse the sugar. Whisk in the rest of the ingredients until smooth.
4. Bake the pie. Pour the filling into the cooled pie crust, then carefully transfer to the oven and bake until the filling is set. It can be slightly jiggly; just make sure it doesn’t look “wet.”
5. Cool, then cool again. Let the pie cool to room temperature, then loosely cover it with plastic wrap and cool in the fridge for 4 hours. This is important, so don’t rush the cooling process!
6. Make the whipped cream topping. Use an electric stand mixer or hand mixer to beat together the whipped cream ingredients until nice and fluffy.
7. Top, garnish & serve. Top the cooled pie with whipped cream and lemon zest, then slice and serve!

Can I make it ahead of time?

Yes! Feel free to make the full lemon cream pie OR one of the components 1-2 days ahead of time. Here’s how:

• To make pie crust ahead of time: after baking the gingersnap pie crust, simply store it covered in the refrigerator until you’re ready to assemble, bake, and chill the rest of the pie.
• To make filling ahead of time: once you’ve whisked the filling together, cover it with plastic wrap so that the plastic is touching the top of the filling (to prevent air from getting in) and chill the filling in the refrigerator until you’re ready to assemble and bake the pie. You can also make the whipped cream topping ahead of time and store it in an airtight container until you’re ready to add it to the pie!

Recommended tools

• Pie pan
• Food processor
• Lemon zester
• Lemon juicer
• Large mixing bowl
• Good whisk
• Stand mixer or hand mixer
• Pie server

Get all of our kitchen essentials here!

How to store lemon cream pie

Store any leftover lemon cream pie loosely covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days.

More lemon desserts you’ll love

• Lemon Cookies with Lovely Lemon Glaze
• Lemon Pistachio Cake with Lovely Lemon Frosting
• Mixed Berry Cobbler with Lemon-Pistachio Biscuits
• Lemon Lover’s Lemon Blueberry Sweet Rolls
• Lemon Blueberry Zucchini Cake with Lemon Frosting

Get all of my lemon recipes here!

I hope you love this lemon cream pie recipe! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!

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Lemon Cream Pie with Gingersnap Crust

5 from 15 votes

byby :Monique Volz of AmbitiousKitchen.com

Leave A Review Print Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 5 hours hours 50 minutes minutes

ServesServes 9 servings

The absolute best lemon cream pie with a bright, perfectly sweet lemon custard filling and an incredible pecan gingersnap cookie crust. Top this beautiful spring pie with homemade whipped cream or a sprinkle of powdered sugar. This is the only lemon cream pie recipes you need!

Ingredients

• Crust
• 2 cups (140g) gingersnap cookies (or sub biscoff cookies)
• 1 cup (100g) raw pecans
• 5 tablespoons (71g) salted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• Filling
• 1 cup (200g) sugar
• Zest from 1 lemon
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• ¾ cup (150g) fresh squeezed lemon juice
• ½ cup sour cream (or sub 2% or whole-milk Greek yogurt)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• Topping
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In the bowl of a food processor, add the gingersnap cookies and pecans and pulse until they become fine crumbs, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add melted butter and brown sugar and pulse again until the cookie crumbs resemble wet sand, about 30 seconds.
• Dump the mixture into a 9-inch pie pan and use clean hands to evenly press the mixture into the bottom and sides of the pan. Sometimes I find it helpful to use a small measuring cup to help set the crust firmly and get the crumbs up the side of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes then remove from the oven; if the crust bubbles up slightly, very gently press it back down with a measuring cup. Allow the crust to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. (The crust will need to be somewhat cool to the touch before you can add the filling.)
• In a large bowl, add the sugar and lemon zest and use clean fingers to rub the zest into the sugar for 30 seconds. This will infuse the lemon flavor into the sugar. In the same bowl, add in the eggs, lemon juice, sour cream (or yogurt), cornstarch and salt. Whisk together until well combined.
• Pour mixture into the cooled crust. Carefully transfer the pie pan to the oven and bake until the filling is just set, about 30 to 35 minutes; it’s okay if the filling appears to be just slightly jiggly in the center, just make sure it isn’t wet looking. Cool pie at room temperature for 1 hour, then loosely cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge to finish cooling, about 4 hours. Do not worry if the pie cracks, sometimes this happens if you beat the filling too long or if there is a dramatic change in temperature (your house is cold, etc).
• Make the whipped cream: Once the pie and filling are cold and you are ready to serve, add heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to the bowl of an electric mixer (or use a hand mixer!); beat on high until cream reaches stiff peaks.
• Evenly spread whipped cream over pie filling, then garnish with extra lemon zest. Cut into 9 to 12 slices and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

If you don't want to use whipped cream, you can dust the pie with powdered sugar before serving. Delicious either way!

See the full post for tips, tricks, and ways to make this pie ahead of time.

Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats

This post was originally published on April 17th, 2012, republished with updated ingredients and instructions on April 7th, 2025, and republished on May 19th, 2026.