A few years ago I made an Easter cake with my lemon sponge cake filled with lemon curd. It was in need of an update, so this year I have made a mousse of the lemon curd and topped the cake with lightly sour cream cheese frosting.
EASTER CAKE WITH LEMON CURD AND CREAM CHEESE
12-14 SERVINGS
CAKE:
150 G SUGAR
150 G SOFTENED BUTTER
50 G MARZIPAN WITH MIN. 60% ALMONDS
3 M/L EGGS
1½ TSP. BAKING POWDER
1½ TSP. VANILLA SUGAR
150 G FLOUR
ZEST OF 2 LEMONS
65 ML LEMON JUICE
2 TBSP. POPPY SEEDS
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees celsius.
Butter the bottom and sides of a 20 cm spring mould and line it with baking paper.
Whisk sugar and butter light and creamy.
Add the eggs, one at a time.
Mix in baking powder, vanilla sugar and flour.
Add lemon zest and lemon juice and whisk well together.
Finally, add the poppy seeds.
Pour the batter into the prepared spring mould and smooth the surface.
Bake the cake in the middle of the oven for 40-45 min. or until a toothpick comes clean out.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool completely in the mould.
If the cake has a high dome after baking, place a clean dishcloth on top and press it lightly down as soon as the cake comes out of the oven. Then it should get a nicely flat top again.
LEMON CURD MOUSSE:
250G LEMON CURD
3 GELATINE SHEETS
60 G PASTEURIZED EGG WHITES
50 G SUGAR
175 G HEAVY CREAM 38%
JUICE OF ½ LEMON
Soak the gelatine in cold water for 5-10 min.
Heat up the lemon juice, squeeze the water out of the gelatine and melt it in the juice.
Let the juice cool until it is room temperature.
Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks and add sugar, whisk again until it becomes a shiny meringue.
Pour the cooled gelatine into the lemon curd in a thin stream whisking thoroughly.
Fold the meringue into the lemon curd.
Then fold the cream into the lemon curd mixture.
Scrape the mousse into a piping bag with a round tip, cover the opening with a small piece of cling film and place the mousse in the fridge for a few hours, until it is firm enough to pipe and will hold its shape.
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
125 G SOFTENED BUTTER
75 G ICING SUGAR
200 G FULL FAT CREAM CHEESE
Whisk the butter soft and creamy.
Mix in icing sugar and make a butter cream.
Add cream cheese and whisk until it’s just incorporated, so you will get nice tops.
Add the cream to a piping bag with a round tip.
ASSEMBLY:
Cut the cake into two even layers and place the bottom sponge on your serving tray.
Remove the mousse from of the fridge and pipe small dollops along the edge of the bottom and spread the rest of the mousse in the middle.
Place the other sponge on top and press down lightly so that it sticks together.
Pipe small dollops of cream cheese frosting on top of the cake.
DECORATION:
DRAGEE EASTER EGGS
SPRINKLE PEARLS
VALRHONA DULCEY CRUNCHY PEARLS
RED WOOD SORREL
Decorate the cake with Easter eggs, sprinkles, crunchy pearls and red wood sorrel.
