Lemon and meringue cake

It's starting to smell like summer and one of the aromas that is 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 give in to the temptation of trying it before bringing it to the table.

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

This time, we baked the cake in the De Buyer perforated stainless steel rectangular springform pan and the result couldn't be more wonderful. Both baking and unmolding are really wonderful. The perforations facilitate the circulation of hot air and provide even and faster baking . And the tilting hinges allow the pan to be fully unfolded in a jiffy, making unmolding easier.

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

Ingredients

For the cake

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

For the lemon syrup

• Grated peel of 1 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 3 tablespoons of water
• 30 g of 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. Preheat the oven to 160ºC and line the De Buyer springform pan with baking paper.
2. In the bowl of your KitchenAid or food processor, place the sugar and lemon zest and mix with the flat beater.
3. Add the oil and eggs and mix.
4. Add the sifted flour together with the yeast and cornstarch, and mix gently.
5. Add the cream, stir to combine and finally add the lemon juice.
6. Divide the cake batter into the pan and bake for 50 minutes.
7. Once it is ready, remove it from the mould, being careful not to burn yourself, remove the baking paper and let the cake cool on a rack.

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

1. In a saucepan, put the sugar and water and heat over low heat until it reaches 118ºC, to make the syrup for the meringue.
2. Meanwhile, place the egg whites in the KitchenAid bowl and beat with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form.
3. At this point, add the syrup, little by little, in a trickle 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, spreading the meringue gracefully.
3. Using a kitchen blowtorch, lightly char the meringue before placing it on the cake.

Grades

• You may not like lemon or you would prefer to vary the flavour and aroma of the cake. If so, you can change it and replace it with orange, lime, yuzu, mandarin or bergamot, for example. It's up to you!
• The De Buyer perforated pop-out mould is fabulous, but you can use any mould, round, square or rectangular. You can even make individual muffin or financiers moulds.
• Although the recipe specifies that the oil should be mild, so as not to add a strong flavour, a very good option to add a touch of flavour is to replace part of the mild oil with almond, cashew, walnut or pistachio oil. Find your favourite combination of citrus and nuts, and you will see how delicious the result is!