Join us at Cooking Vacations for our Lemon Lifestyle Cooking With Lemons on the Amalfi Coast and learn how!
Delizia Al Limone ~ Lemon Delight
Pan di Spagna ~ Sponge Cake:
4 Eggs (at room temperature)
120 g Sugar
150 g ‘00’ Flour
Pinch of Salt
1 tsp Vanilla (powdered or liquid) or Lemon Zest
Butter & Flour for the Pan Crema Pasticciera ~ Pastry Cream:
4 Egg Yolks
150 g Sugar
50 g Flour
½ L Whole Milk
Lemon Liquor/Limoncello
Crema Chantilly ~ Chantilly Cream
400 g Pastry Cream
400 g Whipped Cream
Simple Syrup:
1 Liter Water
½ Liter of Sugar
Lemon Liquor
First prepare the sponge cake. Whip eggs with sugar (if the eggs are cold, place in warm water for a few minutes prior to cracking into the sugar) until light and fluffy. Sift flour and salt into the egg mixture, one spoonful at a time, mixing between each addition. Add vanilla or lemon zest and blend well. Pour mixture into a round buttered & floured baking pan (24-cm or about 9 1/2-inch) and bake in a preheated oven at 360°F (180°C) for 20 to 25 minutes until golden.
Next prepare the pastry cream. In a bowl, mix egg yolks with 100 grams of sugar. Slowly add in flour and blend. In a separate pot, heat milk with 50 grams of sugar (lemon zest, chocolate, vanilla beans, coffee beans all optional depending on the flavor that you would like the cream to have). Once the milk comes just to a boil, remove from heat and add to the egg-sugar-flour mixture. Cook over low heat for another 2-3 minutes until the cream has thickened and starts to bubble. Remove from heat, add a splash of Limoncello, cover with plastic wrap to prevent skin from forming and allow mixture to cool completely before using (2-3 hours).
Prepare the simple syrup by mixing the water, sugar and a splash of Lemon Liquor in a large saucepan. Heat over medium until the sugar is fully dissolved and the water just starts to boil. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
After the pastry cream is cooled completely, fold 400g of the pastry cream with 400g of whipped cream to make your Chantilly Cream. (You will have some pastry cream left over, which is a great dessert on its own, served with crumbled cookies or fresh berries on top).
To assemble, cut sponge cake in half horizontally. Spoon or drizzle the simple syrup onto the first layer of the sponge cake to moisten. Spoon the Chantilly cream on to the lower half of the sponge cake. Place top piece of sponge cake back on top to cover and spoon the simple syrup to moisten the top layer as well. Top this with the rest of the Chantilly cream. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
