The request from my dear friend was clear – something exotic, refreshing, and flavoursome. Therefore, I just had to reach out to Chetna’s Makan lovely recipes and I created sexy passion fruit and lemon cake. I gave it much love, but I didn’t think it will work out so lovely in such a short time of preparation I had for it. Amazing!
If you fancy exotic and sour sweet tastes, go for it. It is almost healthy, a bomb of vitamins and very spring like. The best thing is that you will have some curd left. And that’s just heavenly: eat it with some pancakes, creams, yoghurt or toast it on a bread with some layer of butter. So yummy.
Passion fruit and lemon cake is suitable for kids above 3, just because of the unusual flavours. If your toddlers like acid citrus like mine, serve it to them even before.
Total time:40 minutes preparation (the curd and decoration incl.) + 30 minutes baking + cooling for about 2 hours.
SHOPPING LIST
Passion fruit and lemon curd:
- A pulp of 3 passion fruits
- Juice and zest from 3 lemons
- 200g of caster superfine sugar
- 100g of butter
- 3 egg yolks + 1 whole egg
The lemon sponge
- 200g plain flour, sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder, sifted
- 200g golden caster sugar
- 200g butter, softened
- 4 whole eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 lemon, zested
- A splash of milk
The cream filling: 400ml double cream
- 250g Mascarpone cheese
- 1 package vanilla sugar
To Decorate with
- A pulp of 2 passion fruits
- 2 handfuls of lyophilized mango
- 5 kumquats, washed and sliced
- Cuban oregano and mint smaller leaves
- 2 handful of finely chopped pistachios
INSTRUCTIONS
In a steam bath put butter, caster sugar and juice from 2 lemons as well as pulp from 3 passion fruits. Bring it to boil and then, lower the heat. After the sugar dissolves and butter melts, pour in the eggs. Stir with a balloon whisk. Don’t cook the eggs, just wait until it thickens a bit for about 10-12 minutes.
Take off the heat and sieve through the sifter into a clean jar. Let it cool down entirely and refrigerate until the next day.
Next day – the lemon sponge
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease two 20cm round cake tins with butter and line the bottom with a baking paper sheet.
Then, put all the cake ingredients in a bowl: flour with baking powder, sugar, butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. Whisk for about 4 minutes until creamy and pale.
Afterwards, add a splash of lukewarm milk to get silkier texture. Mold the mixture between the 2 cake tins and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Ease the form and flip them onto a baking paper sheet. Gently take off the baking paper sheets from bottoms of sponges and leave them aside to cool down.
The cream filling
Whisk the double cream with the sugar until thick enough to hold its shape. In another mixing bowl, ease the Mascarpone and start adding the double cream. Incorporate well with a hand mixer and place into a piping bag.
PRESENTATION
Place little bit of cream to glue the sponge on a serving plate.
Next, one cake upside-down (the smooth side on top) on a serving stand and spread the thin layer of cream filling over the surface. Afterwards, make a round wall around the edges, which will stop the curd from leaking. Place a gentle amount of curd in the middle and cover with the second sponge upside-down. Spread the cream filling on top and sides of the cake. Smoothen and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
After the cake has been set, continue to decorate. If you want to cover the whole cake, spread more cream filling around it. If you keep it nude like me, pipe into your desirable shapes around the edges of the top. Sprinkle with pistachios and gently pour the pulp of two passion fruits in the middle. Finish with the kumquat slices, lyophilized mango, and herbs.
Makes 12 serves.
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