A fresh and light cake made with white sponge and lemon cream. I made the cream using a butter base combined with a milk-based pastry cream, enhanced with lemon zest and lemon juice. It's no secret that many people aren't fans of buttercream cakes because they can feel too heavy and rich. But this cake is an exception — it's nothing like that. Thanks to the zest and juice, it tastes incredibly fresh, light, and citrusy, without feeling the least bit heavy. I soaked the cake layers generously before assembling, since I love a well-soaked cake, and layered raspberries in between — though blueberries work just as well here (they pair beautifully with the lemon flavor too). The finished cake is incredibly tender, moist, and luscious. The cream has a pronounced lemon flavor and aroma, but it's not sour at all — on the contrary, it's very delicate and perfectly balanced. Absolutely delicious — highly recommend!
Ingredients:
- Sponge cake:
- 5 eggs
- 150 g sugar
- 100 g flour
- 30 g starch (I used cornstarch)
- 2 tsp vanilla sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- Soaking syrup:
- 2 tbsp lemon juice + 5 tbsp water + 2 tsp sugar
- Cream:
- 500 ml milk
- 200 g sugar
- 50 g starch (I used cornstarch)
- 3 eggs
- zest of 3 lemons
- 350 g butter
- 130 ml lemon juice
- Also:
- 200 g raspberries, frozen or fresh (or blueberries)
How to cook sponge cake with lemon cream and berries
Prepare the sponge cake in advance, following exactly the method from the Raffaello Cake (just leave out the butter). Now make the cream. Zest 3 lemons, avoiding the white pith, then juice the lemons. I got 170 ml of juice. Measure out 130 ml for the cream and set aside the remaining 2 tbsp for the soaking syrup.
Pour about one-third of the milk into a bowl, add the starch, eggs, and lemon zest, and whisk together thoroughly.
Pour in the egg mixture and stir to combine. Cook over the lowest heat, stirring constantly — especially along the bottom — until the mixture thickens considerably. A spatula works best for this.
If lumps form, vigorously whisk them out or briefly beat with a hand mixer until smooth. The cream will be quite thick. Let it cool completely.
Finally, pour in the lemon juice in a thin stream while continuing to beat with the mixer. The cream is ready.
Assemble the cake. For the soaking syrup, mix together the lemon juice, water, and sugar, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Level the top of the sponge and cut it into three layers. Place the first layer on a serving plate and evenly brush it with about one-third of the soaking syrup.
Add the second layer, soak it, then add cream and berries again. Place the final layer on top, soak it as well, and cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining cream. I set aside about one-sixth of the cream for decoration.
Decorate as desired. I coated the sides with finely crumbled scraps from the leveled-off sponge top, and piped the reserved cream on top as decoration.
I made this cake for my daughter Agata's birthday — she turned four! And here she was at 1 year old, 2 years old, and 3 years old.
Comments