The history of the lemon meringue pie is a complete mess. Considering it is a relatively recent invention (because meringues are not super-ancient), it is quite frustrating to find at least four versions of events – one of which is very protective of the dish’s status as American. Here are the various versions of genesis of the lemon meringue pie: Elizabeth Goodfellow. Early 1800s Philadelphia is the scene of Goodfellow’s sweet treat enterprise that supplied the folks of Philly with baked goods and desserts. Goodfellow never wrote recipes down, but her students did. Eliza Leslie recorded the lemon meringue pie in a 19th Century cook book. Alexander Frehse. Swiss baker Frehse invented the dish in the 1800s. This story is all over the Internet, but the text used is nearly always a copy/paste from the unreferenced Wikipedia article. Emile Campbell-Browne. Wigbeth, Dorset, 1875 – botanist Campbell-Browne had his staff make the dish for Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury at a hunting ball, in Wimborne St Giles, Dorset. Chester pudding. This is a chicken and egg situation. The Victorian English Chester pudding is exactly the same as a lemon meringue pie. A lemon meringue pie is made of three … Continue reading Lemon meringue pie