Lemon Sour Cream Pie

If you love lemon desserts, you’re going to love this pie! This recipe for sour cream lemon pie comes from my mother-in-law, who makes it almost every year for Thanksgiving. It’s that good! I’ve put my own twist on my mother-in-law’s lemon sour cream pie by serving it in a Shortbread Pie Crust, but it would also be delicious in a traditional pie crust like my Food Processor Pie Crust or Graham Cracker Crust.

One of the things I love about this sour cream lemon pie is that the filling doesn’t need to be baked! While the shortbread crust does require turning on your oven, it’s super simple to pull together. For more no-bake pie recipes, check out my Cookies and Cream Pie, S’mores Pie, Peach Cream Pie, Arkansas Possum Pie, and Banana Cream Pudding Pie.

Why This Recipe Works

• Easy lemon sour cream pie. From start to finish, this pie could not be simpler, especially if you use my press-in shortbread pie crust. The lemon custard is cooked in just a few minutes on the stovetop, then mixed with sour cream and poured into the prepared pie crust. Then you can stick it in the fridge and forget about it until it’s time to serve. Easy!
• Perfect flavor balance. In this lemon pie with sour cream, neither the lemon nor the sour cream is super overpowering. The homemade lemon filling mixed with sour cream provides just the right amount of tart lemon flavor in this creamy lemon pie. 
• Great for gatherings. As I mentioned, this pie often makes an appearance at my in-laws’ Thanksgiving table. But this pie is also perfect for other holiday celebrations, as well as parties like baby showers or bridal showers. Whatever the occasion, it’s sure to be a hit!

Ingredient Notes

For the shortbread crust

• Unsalted butter: Butter is one of the building blocks for shortbread. The high butter content inhibits the formation of gluten, resulting in a crumbly texture.
• All-purpose flour: The other key ingredient for forming the structure of the shortbread dough.
• Powdered sugar: I prefer to use powdered sugar (also known as confectioner’s sugar) because it makes for a smoother dough. And it’s important not to use too much. Shortbread is lightly sweet, and a less-sweet shortbread crust is the best complement to a sweet pie filling.

For the lemon sour cream pie filling

• Granulated sugar: White sugar is better than brown sugar for this recipe because we really want the lemon flavor to shine. Brown sugar adds caramel-like flavors, which are delicious, but not what we’re looking for from this pie. Also, brown sugar contains more moisture, which would require adjusting the other moisture-adding ingredients to the filling. 
• Cornstarch: To aid with thickening the lemon cream. 
• Egg yolks: Similar to cornstarch, egg yolks will help thicken the filling. They also add a rich flavor. 
• Butter: This is one of those rare occasions where you can use salted or unsalted butter! Butter adds to the richness and smoothness of the pie filling.
• Lemon zest and juice: This sour cream lemon pie recipe gets its lemon flavor from both lemon zest and lemon juice. One lemon will yield about one tablespoon of lemon zest, which is the amount you need for this recipe.  Make sure to zest your lemon BEFORE you get the juice from it! For ¼ cup of lemon juice, you’ll need 1-2 lemons.
• Milk: Another ingredient that contributes to the richness and velvety texture of the lemon custard. 
• Sour cream: The key ingredient for sour cream and lemon pie is sour cream, of course! The sour cream is added after the lemon custard is completely cooled and makes for an extra creamy pie.

Step-by-Step Instructions

For the shortbread pie crust

1. Prep pan and dough. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, cream 1 cup of room-temperature unsalted butter until the butter is smooth. To the large bowl with the softened butter, add 2 cups of all-purpose flour, ½ cup of powdered sugar, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Mix until combined. The dough will be crumbly. Press the dough in an even layer on the bottom and up the sides of the prepared pan. 
2. Chill, then bake. Chill the shortbread pie crust in the fridge for 20-25 minutes, or in the freezer for 15 minutes. While the crust chills, preheat your oven to 350°F. Use this time to prepare your lemon cream pie filling. Once the crust has chilled and the oven is preheated, bake the pie crust for 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden. Remove the crust from the oven and allow it to chill completely.

For the lemon sour cream pie filling

1. Make lemon custard. To a medium saucepan, add 1 cup of granulated sugar, 3 tablespoons of cornstarch, ¼ cup of butter, 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, ¼ cup of fresh lemon juice, 3 egg yolks, and 1 cup of milk. Cook these ingredients over medium heat, whisking frequently until you have a thick and smooth custard. 
2. Strain custard. Once thickened, remove the lemon custard from heat and pour it through a fine mesh sieve into a different bowl. This will remove any lumps. Let custard cool completely. You can allow it to cool to room temperature or chill in the fridge to speed up the cooling process.

3. Add sour cream. After the lemon mixture is cooled completely, fold in 1 cup of sour cream. 
4. Assemble pie. Pour the sour cream lemon pie filling into the pre-made crust. Smooth it into an even layer if necessary. 
5. Chill, then serve. Let the pie chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving. If desired, serve this luscious sour cream lemon pie with fresh whipped cream.

Recipe Tips

I used full-fat sour cream for this recipe, but I think reduced-fat sour cream would work too. You can also try using Greek yogurt, but I think it might be a little too thin, consistency-wise. 

One medium-sized lemon will yield about a tablespoon of zest, and 1-2 lemons should yield a ¼ of juice. Always, always zest your lemons before juicing them! Otherwise you will have a difficult time getting zest from your lemons. 

I think this recipe could be the basis for any kind of citrus sour cream pie. I haven’t tested it, but I think you could use the same proportions of zest and juice and make a lime sour cream pie or grapefruit sour cream pie. Orange juice might be too sweet. 

While this pie filling works great with several different pie crusts, I recommend using the shortbread pie crust because it holds up in the fridge really well. 

If you want to get fancy, decorate the top of the pie with fresh whipped cream and additional lemon zest or lemon slices.

Make Ahead, Storing, and Freezing

Make Ahead: The assembled pie will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge, so this is the perfect make-ahead pie! You can also make the shortbread crust a couple of days in advance, and fill it later. 

Storing: Store leftover pie covered with plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 4 days. Alternatively, store slices of pie in an airtight container in the fridge. 

Freezing: The shortbread crust for this pie can be frozen. I do not recommend freezing the filling or the assembled pie, because once thawed the texture would be unpleasant.

Recipe FAQs

More Lovely Lemon Recipes

• Lemon Shortbread Cookies
• Lemon Bar Cake
• Lemon Poppyseed Cookies
• Lemon Cupcakes
• Old Fashioned Lemon Squares