Lemon and meringue cake

It's starting to smell like summer and one of the aromas that are inevitably linked to good weather is lemon. Baking any cake that includes it, as is the case with this Lemon Meringue Cake , leaves a wonderful smell in the kitchen. And I assure you that it is difficult not to fall into the temptation of trying it before bringing it to the table.

With this recipe for lemon and meringue cake, we will obtain a cake with a marked citrus aroma and flavor , since in addition to having the zest of a whole lemon, we also add the juice. And, lemon lovers, pay attention! If that were not enough, we will brush it well with a syrup, also lemon. That's nothing!

On this occasion, we have baked the cake in the De Buyer perforated stainless steel folding rectangular mold and the result could not be more wonderful. Both cooking and unmolding are truly wonderful. The perforations facilitate the circulation of hot air and provide uniform and faster cooking . And the tilting hinges allow the mold to be completely deployed in no time, making it easier to demold.

I highly encourage you to try this lemon meringue cake recipe. It is a very aromatic, juicy cake and perfect for tea time. And also for breakfast, to accompany coffee after lunch or to go to sleep with a wonderful taste in your mouth after dinner.

Ingredients

For the cake

• 160g sugar
• Zest of the peel of 1 lemon
• 50 g of mild oil (natural rapeseed or rapeseed, sunflower, arbequina olive...)
• 3 eggs
• 210 g plain flour
• 8 g yeast
• 30 g cornstarch
• 100 g liquid cream (cooking cream)
• 90 g lemon juice

For the lemon syrup

• Zest of the peel of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 3 tablespoons of water
• 30g sugar

For the Italian meringue

• 50 g egg white (approximately the white of 1 and a half eggs)
• 75 g icing sugar
• 25 ml of water

Elaboration

1. Turn on the oven to 160ºC and line the De Buyer unfolding mold with baking paper.
2. In the bowl of the KitchenAid or your food processor, put the sugar and the lemon zest and mix with the flat beater.
3. Add the oil and lemon juice.
4. Add the sifted flour along with the yeast and cornstarch, and mix gently.
5. Add the cream, stir to mix and, finally, add the lemon juice.
6. Spread the cake batter into the mold and bake for 50 minutes.
7. Once it is ready, unmold it, being careful not to burn yourself, remove the baking paper and let the cake cool on a rack.

1. Put all the syrup ingredients in a saucepan and heat until it boils. Let it boil for half a minute over low heat and remove from heat.
2. Paint the entire cake with the syrup using a kitchen brush.
3. If you want a more intense flavor, you can make a few holes in the cake by poking it with a toothpick before painting it. In this way, part of the syrup will penetrate inside.

1. In a saucepan, put the sugar and water and heat it over low heat until it reaches 118ºC, to make the meringue syrup.
2. Meanwhile, put the egg whites in the bowl of the KitchenAid and beat them with the whisk until they form soft peaks.
3. At that point, add the syrup, little by little, in a stream and continue beating until it cools.

1. Put the meringue in a pastry bag with a round nozzle or in the De Buyer pressure gun .
2. Decorate the cake to your liking, distributing the meringue gracefully.
3. Using a kitchen torch, lightly burn the meringue before presenting the cake.

Grades

• It is possible that you do not like lemon or that you prefer to vary the flavor and aroma of the cake. If so, you can change and replace it with orange, lime, yuzu, mandarin or bergamot, for example. You choose!
• The De Buyer pop-out perforated mold is fabulous, but you can use any mold, whether round, square or rectangular. You can even make it in individual muffin or financier molds.
• Although the recipe specifies that the oil be mild, so as not to provide a strong flavor, a very good option to provide a touch of flavor is to replace part of the mild oil with almond, cashew, walnut or pistachio oil. Look for your favorite combination of citrus and dried fruit, you'll see how delicious the result is!