Bad Cook, Better Baker

Lemon sponge cake with lemon curd filling and poppyseed cream cheese frosting – Spring in a cake!

Vernal equinox, where we officially escape the dreariness of winter and see the ray of light that is spring, was the perfect day to bake this spring-evoking lemon on lemon cake.

To be honest, I’m surprisingly not a huge lemon fan, now that I’m older. Shocking, considering I grew up with the odd affinity of liking the yellow Starbursts the most, and also had both words “lemon” and “angel” in my first AIM screenname (is…that the right term for it? “screenname”? am I aging myself?).

I do, however, share a soft spot for the lemon flavor profile given that one of my best friends loves lemon, and therefore I love lemon, out of solidarity.

The reason I made this cake was doubly-purposed, as all the best things in life are. One, is that I wanted to create this content. One-and-a-half, I’m often making the same “signature”-ish cakes (“signature” to no one else other than my very close family and friends, so this is very tongue-in-cheek) and wanted to make something I never make. Two, it was my neighbor’s birthday!

So to the very new neighbor who I had only just introduced myself to maybe not even 2 weeks ago, so sorry it probably came off very strong to hand someone a homemade a two-layer 9″ cake for a household of two. I don’t have any small cake pans, okay!

Here’s the recipe: (portioned for a 2-layer cake – if you want to add a layer or if you only want a single-layer cake, divide each portion of the ingredients in half)

EQUIPMENT

• 1 electric hand mixer or stand mixer
• 2 8″ cake rounds (preferably aluminum)
• 1 offset spatula
• parchment paper
• 1 cake turntable, optional

INGREDIENTS:

INGREDIENTS

LEMON CAKE:

• 8 eggs whites*
• 2 tsp vinegar
• 240 g sugar
• 240 g flour
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 8 egg yolks
• 80 ml whole milk**
• 60 ml vegetable OR canola oil
• 2 TB lemon zest (from 1-2 lemons)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

LEMON SYRUP CAKE SOAK:

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (1-2 lemons)

LEMON CURD:

• 6 egg yolks
• 120 g sugar
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 113 g unsalted butter (1 stick), sliced into tablespoons

POPPYSEED CREAM CHEESE FROSTING INGREDIENTS:

• 16 oz cream cheese (2 sticks)
• 152 g heavy whipping cream (2/3 cup)
• 54 g powdered sugar (1/2 cup)
• 2 TB poppyseeds

*Cold eggs are much easier to separate, but you’ll want them to be room temperature once you start baking. If you don’t have too much time, it should still be fine, but follow the aforementioned for optimal conditions.

**If you don’t have any whole milk, I’ve tried almond milk in a pinch and it worked fine! The higher the fat content, the better, but other milks will still work.

INSTRUCTIONS

CAKE SOAK

1. Combine water and sugar into a small stovepot. Set over low-medium heat until sugar dissolves completely Allow to cool.
2. Stir in lemon juice.
3. Set aside. For easy distribution to the cake, pour into squeeze bottles.

LEMON CURD

1. Make the lemon curd first so it has time to cool and thick, preferably overnight. Add sugar into a small saucepan.
2. Zest lemons into saucepan and massage zest into sugar with hands. This helps amplify the lemon flavor.
3. Add in egg yolks and whisk until mixture is pale yellow and combined. Then add in lemon juice.
4. Heat on medium-low, stirring constantly with a wire whisk until the mixture noticeably thickens and just starts to bubble. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and keep its shape, about 5-7 minutes. Take off heat.
5. Pour lemon curd through a fine mesh strainer into a separate bowl to remove any bits of cooked egg or lemon zest to give a perfectly smooth texture.
6. Add cold butter (sliced into tablespoons) and stir in until melted and incorporated.
7. Cover with plastic wrap directly on top of the curd to prevent a skin from forming as it cools. Chill in fridge until ready to use, at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

LEMON CAKE

1. In a small bowl, add oil, milk, and extract. Zest 1-2 lemons and add lemon zest into the mixture. Leave to sit overnight in fridge, if possible. Allow mixture to come to room temperature before baking.
2. Preheat oven to 305 degrees and line the bottom of two 8-inch round pans with a round of parchment paper. Do not line or grease the sides of the pans. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl², use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer to beat egg whites and vinegar together until it gets frothy and opaque.
4. Sprinkle in granulated sugar one tablespoon at a time (if using hand mixer, mix well between each addition). Once all the sugar has been added, continue beating until stiff peaks. To test, pull whisk attachment straight up from bowl. Meringue should stand on its own and should not move if you flip the bowl upside down.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Pour yolks into meringue.
6. Gently fold yolks into meringue with a spatula by hand, occasionally turning bowl 45 degrees every few turns, until no streaks remain and batter is a homogenous pale yellow.
7. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Sift this mixture into the egg mixture.
8. Sift half of this mixture into the egg mixture. Fold together with a spatula until combined and no streaks remain.
9. Add half of oil, milk, extract, and zest mixture into the batter. Fold together until combined and no pools of liquid remain.
10. Repeat steps 8 and 9 until no streaks remain and batter is fluffy and airy.
11. Divide the batter into lined cake pans until about 2/3 full. Bake for 24-28 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden and a toothpick in the middle comes out dry. Tops should not be browned.
12. Let the cakes cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes. Run an offset spatula or knife around the edges and release the cakes onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely before assembling cake.
13. Optional: The top layer forms an “eggy” layer that I prefer to scrape off so that the crumb of the cake is exposed. You can choose to leave on, but my opinion is that the cake is texturally better without this layer. Using a small serrated knife, carefully scrape the thin top layer of the cake. It should scrape off easily to expose the actual cake crumb underneath.²

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

1. In a large bowl fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat cream cheese on high until smooth and creamy. For optimal results to get out all lumps, wrap bowl with a kitchen towel soaked in hot/warm water.
2. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Mix on low for 30 seconds, and then switch to high and beat for 2 minutes.
3. Separately, whip the whipping cream until soft peaks (hand mixer or by hand recommended).
4. Fold in whipping cream to cream cheese mixture.
5. Add in 1 TB of poppyseeds and mix until combined.

CAKE ASSEMBLY:

1. On a cake turntable, lay down the first cake layer. Pipe a thick ring of cream cheese frosting around the edge layer and fill the center with lemon curd. Reserve about 1/4 cup lemon curd to decorate the top of the cake.
2. Top with the other cake layer.
3. Use an offset spatula to apply a thin layer of cream cheese frosting all over the cake as a crumb coat. Chill the cake in the fridge for 15-30 minutes or until the frosting is slightly firm to the touch.
4. Add a second layer of frosting with the remaining frosting. On the top layer, dollop the remaining curd in a small circle in the middle of the layer.

¹: Wipe the mixing bowl and the beater/whisk attachment with a vinegar-soaked paper towel. This will ensure that there are no fat particles on the equipment that might prevent egg whites from whipping up properly.

²: I find it’s best to do this while the cake is on a wire rack with newspaper or other materials lining the bottom for easy clean-up. You can also use a tray but this requires more dishes, while if you use some material you can throw away, you can easily discard of the whole layer at the end. I always opt for the less-dishes route!