Front view of lemon marshmallow frosting piped with a 1M piping tip into a tulip jar. Frosted cupcakes and lemon slices in the background.

Lemon Marshmallow Frosting

Spring is fast approaching, thank God, and I have the perfect bright, citrusy Spring recipe. My lemon marshmallow frosting is basically a more stable Italian meringue that I’ve added lemon too and it’s divine! Easy to frost cupcakes, cakes or pies with.

If you love lemon meringue pie, then you’ll love this lemon marshmallow frosting. It tastes like your eating lemon meringue pie in a big fluffy bite! I am absolutely in love with this frosting and the best part, it’s so much more simple to make then you think! Italian meringue can feel intimidating but I promise it’s easy. In all honesty, including the first time I ever made it, I’ve never had it go wrong on me with the use of a thermometer. Follow all my tips and you’ll have an amazing frosting.

This frosting honestly feels like you’re biting into Spring and you cannot help but smile when eating it. It’s made the same way as my homemade marshmallow frosting but you’re going to swap out some of the water with lemon juice. It’s as simple as that.

Front view of a vanilla cupcake topped with lemon marshmallow frosting. More cupcakes and sliced lemons in the background.

This frosting is actually very versatile. It’s easily pipeable and you can also use it as a cake filling, pie topping or tart topping. I like having it on cupcakes, especially my easy vanilla cupcakes or chocolate cupcakes.

You could absolutely smush this between some graham crackers with chocolate and have the most amazing s’more as well!

Front view of lemon marshmallow frosting piped with a 1M piping tip into a tulip jar. Frosted cupcakes and lemon slices in the background.
  • Make sure there’s no fat on any of your tools or equipment. Thoroughly wash everything or wipe it clean with vinegar. Fat or grease can prevent the egg whites from whipping up. Mind you, I’ve never had this recipe fail and I’m not super careful but I do make sure everything feels grease free.
  • Make sure you properly separate your eggs. If you get yolk in with the egg whites, they won’t whip up.
  • Make sure you bring the sugar mixture to the right temperature, 240℉ or or 115°C using a thermometer. This is what basically “cooks” your eggs so they’re safe to eat and gives you a beautiful fluffy meringue

There are many ways to do this but I find the easiest way is to crack the shell off the counter in the middle and pour the egg into your hand. Let the whites run into the bowl through your fingers while gently passing the egg between your hands. It’s much harder to break the yolk this way.

Other methods include passing the yolk back and forth between the two halves of the shell while letting the egg whites drop into the bowl or using egg separator tools.

Another tip is eggs are easier to separate when cold. When recipes, not including this one, call for eggs to be at room temperature, separate the eggs first then let them come to room temperature.

Front view of lemon marshmallow frosting piped with a 1M piping tip into a tulip jar. Frosted cupcakes, some with toasted frosting, and lemon slices in the background.

So, because my lemon marshmallow frosting is made without corn syrup, it’s best eaten the day of. It will be perfectly fine to eat the next day but may start to wilt a little.

That being said, this frosting is easy to pipe onto a cupcake, cake, pie, etc. and will taste a million times better then anything store bought.

If you want it to last longer, toasting the outside with a blowtorch helps it maintain it’s shape. Plus it tastes phenomenal!

So, I love this frosting toasted and untoasted. When I frost cupcakes with this frosting, I like to blowtorch some of them and leave some of them as is. Some people prefer them one way or another and personally it depends on my mood. The flavours will be a little more complex if you do toast the frosting.

Front shot of a vanilla cupcake with lemon marshmallow frosting that's been toasted. More cupcakes and sliced lemons in the background.
  • When making the frosting, ensure all of your tools and equipment are grease free, otherwise the egg whites won’t whip up. If you thinks there is grease on anything, wipe it down with white vinegar.
  • Ensure you heat the sugar syrup to 240 degrees. This is what “cooks” the eggs and kills any bacteria.
  • For the best flavour, I recommend using fresh lemon juice. However, if you only have store bought, it will still work perfectly fine and taste delicious.
  • I create my recipes based off weights so I recommend measuring by weights if you own a scale. It’s actually so much easier and makes for much less cleanup. I wish I had baked by weight from the beginning, I could never go back now.

Today’s song is some CanCon (Canadian content) and I always have to turn up the radio when this song comes on. Here’s Red Flag by Billy Talent. Happy baking! **Disclaimer: Liv’s Little Muffins owns no rights to this song.

Don’t forget to leave a STAR REVIEW if you try my recipe! Follow me on Facebook or tag me on instagram @livslittlemuffins. Find more ideas on my Pinterest or Whisk.

Front view of lemon marshmallow frosting piped with a 1M piping tip into a tulip jar. Frosted cupcakes and lemon slices in the background.

Lemon Marshmallow Frosting

Olivia Daly
This lemon marshmallow frosting is the perfect Spring frosting. Full of bright citrusy flavours and easy to pair with so many desserts like cakes and cupcakes.
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 12 minutes
Total Time 12 minutes
Course Dessert
Servings 3 cups

Ingredients
  

  • 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tbsp water
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice (fresh if possible)
  • 2 large egg whites (not from a carton)
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • Add the granulated sugar, water and lemon juice to a small saucepan. Give it a gentle stir so all the sugar is in the liquid. Heat on the stove over medium-low heat until the mixture reaches 240℉ on a thermometer. (Make sure you're not touching the thermometer off the bottom of the pot when checking the temperature as this will effect the accuracy) Don't stir, just let it heat up.
  • While the sugar mixture heats up, add the egg whites, salt and cream of tartar to a clean, grease free bowl of a stand mixer. (*see notes) Whisk on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. At this stage the egg whites will just barely hold their shape. Stop whisking at this point until the sugar comes to temperature.
  • Once the sugar syrup reaches 240℉, carefully slowly pour it into the egg whites while whisking at low speed. Once all the syrup is in, add your vanilla extract and whisk the meringue at medium-high speed until it becomes fluffy and glossy, about 2-4 minutes. It should about double in size.
  • Once the frosting has cooled to room temperature, it's best to use it right away or the same day. Otherwise, store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days before using, although it may start to wilt at this point.
  • If you want to toast it, pipe it or spread it on your dessert first before gently blowtorching it. Don't hold the blowtorch over one spot to long or it can burn or catch fire, just like an actual marshmallow.

Notes

*If there’s any fat in your bowl or on your tools, the egg whites won’t whip up. To prevent this, wipe down everything with white vinegar, rinse and fully dry.
Keyword Homemade lemon marshmallow frosting, Lemon Italian meringue, Lemon marshmallow frosting
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size1/4cup
Servings12
Amount Per Serving
Calories52
% Daily Value *
Total Carbohydrate12g
4%
Dietary Fiber0g
0%
Sugar12g
Total Fat0g
0%
Saturated Fat0g
0%
Trans Fat0g
Protein0g
0%
Cholesterol0mg
0%
Sodium33mg
2%
Potassium22mg
1%
5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating