Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices is a deliciously tart pie made with sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks and freshly squeezed lemons in a graham cracker crust topped with homemade candied lemon slices and whipped cream.
While, I am a peanut butter and chocolate dessert kind of girl, every once in awhile, I want a dessert that is sweet, tart and creamy. This Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices is just that! Plus, both my kids really enjoy these types of desserts so it a nice treat for them too.
Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices
This Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices recipe was inspired from Joanna Gaines and her favorite lemon pie from Magnolia. This pie is vibrant, beautiful, fresh and perfect for spring entertaining, dinner parties or even the Easter holiday. This is a super simple pie to create with a bake time of less than 20 minutes and is a breeze to whip together. Make this pie for your next family get together and promise everyone will be begging for more!
Tips & Tricks
Lemon Pie
This lemon pie filling is crazy simple! Just make sure to use fresh egg yolks and once you have beaten the filing mixture, by and release some of the air bubbles by tapping the bowl on the counter before pouring into the pie crust to bake.
Whipped Cream Topping
You want to beat heavy cream, confectioners sugar and vanilla extract together to form a nice whipped cream topping for your pie which will take about 7 minutes to form a stiff peak. As you beat the mixture, look for trails being left in the mix. At that moment, you want to pay attention to ensure you don’t over mix. The whipped cream will be stiff and hold it’s shape. This means it is time to serve.
Candied Lemon Slices
The candied lemon slices make this pie really fun and is a great spin off the original recipe. The hardest part of making these candied lemon slices is the waiting period after simmering them so make sure to make them in advance. If you forget, no biggie! Just use fresh lemon slices or decorate the pie however you please!
Don’t toss that sugar water you simmered the lemon slices in! Save it for later as a lemon simple syrup to use in cocktails, to make sorbet or as part of a sweet dressing.

Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Total Time: 38 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
Description
Magnolia Lemon Pie with Candied Lemon Slices is a deliciously tart pie made with sweetened condensed milk and freshly squeezed lemons in a graham cracker crust topped with homemade candied lemon slices and whipped cream.
Ingredients
Candied Lemon Slices
- 2 lemons, sliced
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
Lemon Pie Filling
- 28 ounces sweetened condensed milk (2 cans)
- 3 egg yolks
- 2/3 cup lemon juice (4 lemons)
- salt
Graham Cracker Crust
- 10 graham crackers (1 sleeve)
- 6 Tablespoons butter (melted)
- 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
Whipped Cream Topping
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 3 Tablespoons confectioners sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- 24 hours prior to servings your pie, begin the candied lemon slices. Wash and slice 2 lemons.
- In a saucepan on the stove top, bring 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar to a simmer and then add in lemon slices. Simmer for 15 minutes and place onto parchment for a day.
- Begin the crust. first pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place the graham crackers and brown sugar into a food processor and blend for 1 minute. Add the melted butter and blend for another 30 seconds.
- Press the graham cracker mixture into the bottom of an 8 inch pie pan. I use spatula to press the graham cracker down and come up the the sides.
- Bake the crust for 8 minutes.
- Begin the lemon pie filling. In a large mixing bowl, add condensed milk, egg yolks, and a pinch of salt. Juice about 4 lemons to get 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice and place into the mixing bowl. I like to juice the lemons into a separate small bowl and then add the juice to ensure I don’t drop in any lemon seeds. Use a hand or stand mixer to beat the mix for 5 minutes,
- Pat the bowl down on the counter top a few times to get the air bubbles out and then pour over baked pie crust.
- Bake another 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven, let the pie cool and then place in refrigerator for 2 hours.
- As the pie chills in the refrigerator, make the whipped topping. In a mixing bowl, add 2 cups heavy whipping cream , 3 Tablespoons confectioners sugar and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract. Use a stand or hand mixer to beat until you have reached a firm peak which takes about 7 minutes.
- Decorate the pie with the candied lemon slices and serve with a dollop of whipped cream. Mint is optional to add a pop of color.
Notes
A touch of yellow food dye was also added in for these photos. Try 5 squirts for a more vibrant pie if you please!
- Category: Dessert
Are you typically a chocolate dessert eater or do you love more tart desserts like this Lemon Pie? Let me know in the comments below and tell me how this dessert fit into your spring planning.
This pie is so good! Delicious recipe! I have made it multiple times already and have found that using sour-er lemons, a little extra lemon juice, and a bit of lemon zest really ups the flavor. It is delicious with lots of whipped cream but the candied lemons seem optional in the end.
Lemon zest can do so much for a dessert! Sounds good. I love it with a bunch of whipped topping too to break up the sourness. 🙂
This lemon pie really screams spring and I love it! I love how bright and cheerful it looks and can’t wait to try this.
It is a happy pie with the bright yellow, isn’t it? Enjoy Linda.
This will be perfect 2 add to my Easter menu. Can’t wait to try it!
this sounds so delicious, I can’t wait to try this!
So beautiful and perfect for Spring! Hoping your bright tart helps brings Spring faster. 🙂
If only!
That pie simply SCREAMS Spring. It looks so light and delicious!
Yes, so ready for spring and light, bright dishes and desserts like this.