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Baked Lemon Meringue Pudding

Baked Lemon Meringue Pudding

by | Aug 29, 2021 | 0 comments

lemon meringue pudding

This magical lemon meringue pudding has a filling that splits into two layers – a luscious tangy curd at the bottom and a light, fluffy sponge at the top. Coupled with the crisp meringue topping and buttery coconut biscuits at the bottom, it’s a warm version of our favourite lemon meringue pie for a chilly night!

lemon meringue pudding

LEMON MERINGUE PUDDING

Originally created for Essentials Magazine

Serves 6

 

100g Tennis biscuits, crushed

220g + 110g Natura Sugars Golden Caster Sugar

finely grated zest of 1 large lemon

6 eggs, separated

90g butter, melted

70g cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

300ml coconut milk

125ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

 

Preheat the oven to 180C conventional or 160C fan-forced. Butter a 25cm pudding bowl or casserole dish with butter. Sprinkle the crushed Tennis biscuits in the bottom. In a mixing bowl, rub 220g of the sugar and the lemon zest together with your fingertips to release the oils from the zest – it should be very fragrant. Add the egg yolks and beat with an electric whisk until light and creamy. Add the melted butter, sifted cake flour and baking powder to form a batter then mix in the coconut milk and lemon juice. Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form then gradually add the remaining 110g caster sugar to form a glossy meringue. Place half the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. Divide the rest of the meringue into two – whisk half into the lemon curd mixture then fold the rest in gently. Pour into the prepared dish, pipe the meringue on top in rosettes and place inside a larger roasting tin. Fill the roasting tin with boiling water so it comes halfway up the sides of the dish then bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the top just sets – it should wiggle slightly. Remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly then serve warm.

lemon meringue pudding

 

 

Lemon Raspberry Wedding Cake with Vanilla Buttercream

Lemon Raspberry Wedding Cake with Vanilla Buttercream

by | May 23, 2017 | 11 comments

‘Who is making your wedding cake?!’ was the question I was asked a gajillion times a week during the run-up to the big day. I suppose when a cake-obsessed, dessert guzzler like myself marries an ex-pastry chef turned chocolate maker, well, then people think about these kinds of things! The answer? Well, duh we’re making our own wedding cake!
Some brides stress about the dress. Others agonize over the decor or stationery. Not me – I was all about the cake! So there are a few reasons we decided to make it ourselves: One, I was NOT going to have one of those piece-of-art, Pinterest-worthy cakes that look incredible but taste like cardboard. There is nothing more disappointing in life than dry cake and I was not about to start married life with one – oh hell no.

Secondly, why do we have to wait until right at the end of the day to cut the cake? Life’s too short… So we ate the cake first. Jip, straight after the ceremony, the bubbly flowed and we all scoffed ourselves silly on cake. And thirdly, I wanted the first thing we did as husband and wife to be special, and there is nothing we enjoy more than baking which is how we decided to assemble our wedding cake, live, right there in front of our guests. Eeeek!

The cake itself, was the first recipe Chocolate Maker and I baked together. Raspberry is my favourite flavour, while lemon is his and the buttercream is scented with vanilla and spiced rum we brought back from our recent trip to Mauritius. The lemons may or may not have come from my neighbours lemon tree (this is not a confession!). Obviously we couldn’t make the wedding cake on the day of the wedding (we made it the day before), so to keep it super moist, we soaked each layer in a tangy lemon syrup – it’s a secret baking weapon that makes all the difference!
I decorated it with olive branches to bring in a bit of Italy (since I am now, half-Italian afterall!), lemon branches and pomegranates from the Riebeek Kasteel area. The cake was perfect – fragrant, moist, not too sweet and was the perfect pairing for the Ayama MCC (my favourite bubbly!).

It was a seriously delicious cake and the perfect way to start a marriage – on a sweet note, with lots and lots of butter! ?

LEMON AND RASPBERRY WEDDING CAKE WITH VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

This recipe makes a standard 4-layer, 24cm cake. To make my two-tiered wedding cake, I doubled the recipe below (cake and buttercream) which made an extra 24cm cake plus 2 x 18cm cakes for the top tier. The final cake easily served 70 hungry guests.

SERVES 10-12

 

For the cake:

500g butter, softened

500g castor sugar

400g whole eggs (about 9 large)

400g cake flour

80g cornstarch or corn flour

100g buttermilk

1 tsp baking powder

finely grated zest of 2 lemons

 

For the buttercream:

300g egg whites

450g castor sugar

1020g unsalted butter, cut into blocks, softened (see tip)

1 juicy vanilla pod, seeds scraped

juice of 1/2 lemon

 

For the lemon syrup:

120g white sugar

120ml water

zest and juice of 2 lemons

 

Good-quality raspberry jam, for assembling

Olive branches, pomegranates and lemon branches, to decorate

 

Start by making the sponge layers. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celcius (fan-forced, or 170 degrees Celcius convenional). Grease and line 2 x 24cm springform cake tins. Cream the butter and sugar in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for 8-10 minutes. The mixture should be very white and very fluffy. Next, add the eggs in one by one, beating well after each addition. Sift the dry ingredients together. Remove the bowl from the mixer and using a spatula, fold in the dry ingredients alternatively with the buttermilk, adding the lemon zest last. Divide the batter between the cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes then turn the oven up by 10 degrees for the remaining 10 minutes. Test the cake with a skewer inserted into the middle. If it comes out clean, it is baked. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before unmoulding. Level each cake off using a knife then slice each cake in half horizontally so you have 4 layers.

To make the buttercream, place the egg whites and sugar in a bowl that fits over one of your saucepans. Fill the bottom of the saucepan with water and bring it to a gentle simmer. Place the bowl with the egg and sugar over the hot water and stir gently with a whisk (don’t whisk to aerate the mixture). Keep stirring until the mixture reaches 60 degrees Celcius on a thermometer or until the egg is hot to the touch. Transfer the hot mixture to the bowl of a standmixer and using the whisk attachment, whip the mixture on high until light and fluffy. Continue whipping for a good 10 minutes or until the meringue is cool to the touch. Slowly add the butter one block at a time. Scrape in the vanilla seeds and squeeze in the lemon juice, to taste. Cover and set aside at room temperature until ready to frost the cake.

To make the syrup, place the sugar, water, lemon zest and juice in a saucepan and bring to the boil for 1 minute. Allow to cool completely.

To assemble the cake, place the first cake layer on a cake stand and brush well with the syrup. Spread with a thin layer of raspberry jam and top with a layer of vanilla buttercream. Continue layering the cake, syrup, raspberry jam and buttercream until all the layers are assembled. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining buttercream and smooth with a palette knife (using a cake decorating turn table really helps). Place in the refrigerator to set. Decorate with olive branches, lemon branches and cracked pomegranates just before serving.

 

TIP Never make a buttercream using salted butter – I know it’s tempting because of the ridiculous price of unsalted butter – but the amount of butter used means that you’ll be left with an extremely salty buttercream. Don’t do it.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY GUNTHER SCHUBERT OF VORSPRUNG STUDIO
Lemon Meringue Baked Cheesecake

Lemon Meringue Baked Cheesecake

by | Jan 18, 2017 | 11 comments

I have a serious soft spot for lemon meringue pie but not because of the coconutty crust or the velvety smooth filling (made with condensed milk please!) or even the puffs of crispy-marshmallowy meringue that adorn the top. Nope, it’s not because of any of those things. In fact it doesn’t even have anything to do with the pie. It’s because it’s my dad’s ultimate favourite dessert and that makes it special in our family.

This version, made with a baked lemon cheesecake filling, combines the best of both pie and cheesecake worlds and the layer of tangy lemon curd that oozes out the bottom when you cut it, adds an extra heavenly dimension. And if you’d like to go to a little extra effort, I think cute little mini versions of this (made in ring moulds or even clean tins!) would make a memorable dessert!

Lemon Meringue Cheesecake

Serves 10-12

 

400g biscuits, crushed

100g butter, melted

540g full fat cream cheese, softened

150g castor sugar

3 eggs

20ml double cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon

½ cup store-bought lemon curd (optional)

4 egg whites

120g castor sugar

 

Preheat the oven to 160C. Grease and line a 22cm springform cake tin with baking paper. Combine biscuits and butter and press into the bottom and up the sides of the tin to form a crust. Beat the cream cheese until soft and smooth then add the castor sugar, eggs, double cream, vanilla, juice and lemon zest. Spread a thin layer of lemon curd over the crust then pour in the cheesecake filling. Whip the egg whites until soft peak stage then add the castor sugar gradually until the meringue is glossy and the sugar is dissolved. Top the cheesecake with the meringue mixture, using a spoon to create soft peaks. Bake for 1 hour then leave the door slightly ajar (or place a wooden spoon in the oven door to keep it open), switch the oven off and allow the cheesecake to cool completely. Refrigerate until set then serve.

 

 

Coconut and Lemon Curd Crumble

Coconut and Lemon Curd Crumble

by | Aug 1, 2016 | 4 comments

#SPONSORED

Some of you, will make lemonade, but me? When life gives me lemons, I make PUDDING. Although, if I’m really honest with myself (and you), life didn’t give me lemons last week, I sort of, kind of, took them. My floral stylist friend Matanna would call it ‘Gorilla Foraging’ (which is, like, very trendy right now) but I know better than to dress something up and give it a fancy name. In simple words, it’s called stealing. Yes, when nobody was looking (at least I hope nobody was!), I snuck into my neighbour’s front yard and knicked a few lemons. Their tree has been groaning with citrus for the past few weeks, the ground littered with plump zingy lemons rotting away – going unused. Wasted. Every time I drive past, my heart ached with longing to save them. It just had to be done, nay, it was my duty!

So when life gave me lemons (just run with it, people!), I obviously made dessert – there is so much poetic clout in that sentence I can’t even deal. See, dessert even turns me into a poet! I adore lemons, along with butter, salt, a jar of Nutella , chocolate, and coffee, lemons are among the ingredients that are ALWAYS in my kitchen. Always. They bring so much brightness and cheer to winter – and the fact they’re packed with Vitamin C, well that just makes them (and anything they’re in) healthy.

All my favourite pudding recipes are magical and this one is no exception – it splits into two layers in the oven; a smooth, creamy, tangy, lemon curd at the bottom and a light, spongy pudding at the top. Sprinkle over some crunchy coconut crumble and you’re a scoop of ice cream away from lemon heaven. As if by some kind of sweet fate, the caster sugar that this silky smooth pud cries out for, just happens to be the same colour as it’s inspiration; Natura Golden Caster Sugar. It’s fine texture means it dissolves quickly ensuring a velvety texture, and it’s unrefined, natural bronze colour adds heaps of flavour. Just like a lemon without it’s zest, sugar with all it’s colour stripped from it, sadly, doesn’t taste like much so make sure you get the sugar with all the tasty parts still in it!

Now, excuse me while I go and fight the flu by eating this pudding.

Coconut and Lemon Curd Crumble

Recipe adapted from Curtis Stone

Serves 4

 

Coconut Crumble

110g cake flour

85g Natura Golden Caster Sugar

110g butter, melted

90g desiccated coconut

1 tsp finely grated lemon zest

 

Lemon Curd Pudding

220g + 110g 85g Natura Golden Caster Sugar

Finely grated zest of 1 large lemon

4 eggs, separated

90g butter, melted

70g cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

300ml coconut milk

125ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

 

Vanilla ice cream, to serve

 

Preheat the oven to 180C. Make the crumble by combining all the ingredients together. Spread on a lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside to cool. To make the pudding, butter a 25cm pudding bowl or casserole dish with butter. In a mixing bowl, rub 220g of the sugar and the lemon zest together with your fingertips to release the oils from the zest – it should be very fragrant. Add the egg yolks and beat with an electric whisk until light and creamy. Add the melted butter, sifted cake flour and baking powder to form a batter then mix in the coconut milk and lemon juice. Whip the egg whites until soft peaks form then gradually add the remaining 110g caster sugar to form a glossy meringue. Whisk half the meringue into the lemon curd mixture then fold the rest in gently. Pour into the prepared dish and place inside a larger roasting tin. Fill the roasting tin with boiling water so it comes halfway up the sides of the dish then bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the top just sets. Sprinkle over the coconut crumble and allow to cool in the bain marie for 5 minutes before serving with ice cream.

 

Disclaimer: This post has been created in collaboration with Natura Sugars, however, I only work with brands I think are awesome and that I actually use myself.

Lemon White Chocolate Melting Moments

Lemon White Chocolate Melting Moments

by | Apr 5, 2016 | 4 comments

#SPONSORED

This recipe is straight out of one of those old Australian Women’s Weekly cookbooks – hand’s up who has one? I have like, a gajillion of them but ‘Beautiful Biscuits’ is my favourite and obviously this recipe was in it because these are just that – beautiful! The shortbread is rich and buttery which is how they earned their name because with so much butter, they almost magically melt in your mouth. I don’t think there is a person on this planet that would not close their eyes in sheer bliss when biting into one – and speaking of things that are sheer bliss, the addition of the lemon zest and white chocolate in these biscuits is the perfect pairing for the Haute Cabriere Chardonnay Pinot Noir which is loaded with with citrus, vanilla and peaches. Who said cookies and wine don’t go together?!

You know what else goes together? These melting moments and the delectable-looking Cauliflower Couscous with Salmon Trout and Horseradish Dressing that Sarah Graham (A Foodie Lives Here) has made. In case you missed my Chocolate Truffles post, we’ve paired up with Haute Cabriere to create some even more perfect pairings with their iconic Unwooded Pinot Noir and Chardonnay Pinot Noir wines.
So why not invite some friends over for lunch and serve up our perfect pairing or heck if you don’t feel like sharing do what I did and bake up a batch of these cookies and polish off the bottle of Chardonnay Pinot Noir on your own*. Now that’s my idea of a melting moment!

Lemon White Chocolate Melting Moments

Makes 20

 

350g butter, softened slightly

1/2 cup icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract (almond extract is also delicious)

2 cups cake flour, sifted

1/2 cup corn starch (Maizena), sifted

Zest of 1 lemon

200g The Kate Tin White Chocolate, melted

 

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Cream the butter, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl until light and fluffy. Stir in the flour, cornstarch and lemon zest until combined and soft. Place the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle. Pipe 3 cm rounds onto lined baking tray, allowing room for spreading. Place the tray of biscuits into the fridge for 30 minutes for the butter to chill then bake for 12-14 min or until golden. Cool on the tray. Sandwich the cookies together with the melted white chocolate. Store in an airtight container.

 

TIP Don’t skip the chilling time in the fridge – the massive amount of butter in this recipe means that the biscuits need to be cold to avoid them spreading flat.

Disclaimer: This post has been created in collaboration with Haute Cabrière – I only work with brands I think are awesome and that I actually use myself.