Some of my favourite lemon recipes.
- lemon drizzle cake - lemon curd sponge - individual lemon puddings - Lemon Biscuits - Lemon madeira cake - Greek Lemon and Honey Cakes - Lemon Muesli Cheesecake - Lemon & Lime Cake - Lemon Yogurt Cake
Lemon cream
Into a heavy based pan put 1 pint of double cream and 5 oz. caster sugar.
Slowly bring to the boil stirring to dissolve sugar. Boil for exactly 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and whisk in the juice of 2 lemons.
Pour into glasses or ramekins and leave to cool, then chill for several hours or overnight in fridge. serve with Amaretti or shortbread biscuits.
Preheat oven to 160 C and grease and line two 8in sponge tins. Put into a large bowl, 4oz soft margarine, 4oz caster sugar, 2 eggs, 4oz golden syrup, 8oz self raising flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 teaspoon ground ginger and 2 tablespoons of milk.
Beat the mixture well, put into the tins and even out the tops. Bake for about 25 minutes until well risen and springy to touch. Leave in tins for 5 minutes and then turn out onto rack to cool.
To make the filling, beat 2oz softened butter until creamy, sift in 6oz icing sugar and add 2 tablespoons lemon curd (lemon cheese) and 2 teaspoons lemon juice. Beat well. Spread over one of the cooled sponges and sandwich together.
For the icing , sift 6oz icing sugar into a bowl, beat in the finely grated zest of 1 lemon and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Add enough warm water ( 3/4 teaspoons) to make a smooth icing. Spread over cake and leave to set.
To serve 6. In a large bowl whisk a large carton ( 560 ml) of double cream until it just holds it's shape. Stir in 8oz lemon curd.
Before serving,
preheat grill,, then sift a fine layer of icing sugar over each ramekin.
Grill for 2/3 minutes until sugar has caramelised. Serve at once.
Preheat oven to 170 C and grease and line two 8in sponge tins.
In a large bowl, beat together 6oz soft margarine, 6oz caster sugar, 3 eggs, 8oz self raising flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, grated rind of 1 lemon and enough lemon juice to make a soft consistency.
Bake in center of oven for about 30 minutes until well risen and springy to touch. Cool on racks and then sandwich together with lemon curd. Sprinkle with sifted caster sugar.
Preheat oven to 170 C
Melt 3oz butter and leave to cool for a minute or two. Whisk 3 eggs with the grated rind and juice from 2 lemons. Whisk in the melted butter, 3oz caster sugar and 5 fl. oz double cream. Pour into a prebaked sweet pastry shell ( you can make your own or buy one) and bake for around 40 minutes until just set.
Leave to cool. This tart is delicious served cold or slightly warmed. You can also sprinkle icing sugar on it and flash under a hot grill to caramelise. Serve with cream.
Grease a 2 pint ovenproof dish. In a large bowl beat together 3oz soft margarine, 9oz caster sugar, 3 egg yolks, 3oz self raising flour, grated rind and juice of 2 lemons and 425ml milk. Don't worry if it looks curdled
Whisk 3 egg whites together until they form soft peaks and fold gently into the lemon mixture.
Pour the mixture into the dish and place the dish in a roasting tin . Pour enough hot water to come halfway up the dish, into the roasting tin and bake for about an hour at around 170 C until pale golden brown.
Serve with cream - the top of the pudding is a light sponge and underneath is a delicious lemon sauce.
Grease and line either a 2lb loaf tin or 7in deep cake tin. Preheat oven to 160 C.
Beat together 6oz soft margarine, 6oz caster sugar, 2 eggs, 6oz self raising flour, level teaspoon of baking powder, grated rind of 1 lemon and enough milk to make a fairly soft consistency.
Put into tin and bake for about 50/60 mins until well risen and springy to touch.
Mix together 4 level tablespoons caster sugar and 3 tablespoons lemon juice in a pan over very low heat.
As soon as cake comes out of oven prick top of cake with needle and pour syrup over it. Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes then transfer to rack to finish cooling
If you like icing you can also mix lemon juice and sifted icing sugar to make a thin icing and drizzle it in a zigzag pattern over the top of cooled cake.
*** Catherine Shilton has sent in this tip:
Take the rind off the lemon with a potato peeler, much easier than grating. Then, using a food processor or blender, blend the rind with the sugar. The lemon oil goes into the sugar and makes the finished cake yellow and taste much more lemony.
Individual Lemon Sponge Puddings
Grease 4 individual pudding tins or ramekins Preheat oven to 180 degess C.
In a large bowl beat together well 4oz soft margarine, 4oz selfraising flour, 4oz caster sugar, half teaspoon baking powder, 2 beaten eggs, the finely grated rind and about a dessert spoon of the juice from one lemon.
Put a small amount of lemon curd (lemon cheese) in the bottom of each pudding tin and spoon mixture on top, smoothing top evenly. The mixture should come about 3/4 way up tin.
Bake in center of oven for around 20/25 minutes or until well risen and golden.
Turn out of tins and serve with whipped cream or custard.
Grease a couple of baking trays and preheat oven to 170 C.
ingredients:
4oz softened butter, 4oz caster sugar, grated rind and juice of 1 lemon, 1 beaten egg, 12oz plain flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon milk, and icing sugar for dusting.
Cream the butter, sugar and lemon rind until light and fluffy. Add the egg and lemon juice gradually, beating well between each addition. Mix in the sieved flour and baking powder and add enough milk to form a dough.
Roll out dough on lightly floured board to biscuit thickness and cut into rounds. Place on baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes until pale golden brown.
Leave to cool on wire rack then dust with icing sugar.
Ingredients: 6oz softened butter or margarine, 6oz caster sugar, 3 large eggs, 5oz selfraising flour, 4oz plain flour, pinch salt, grated rind and juice of half a lemon.
Grease and line a 7" cake tin and preheat oven to 160 C.
Cream together the fat and sugar until pale and soft. Add the beaten eggs gradually beating well between each addition. Fold in the remaining ingredients.
Spoon into prepared tin and smooth top. Bake for about 60 - 70 minutes until golden brown and springy to touch. Cool for a few minutes in tin then turn out onto rack to finish cooling.
Ingredients: One and half oz margarine, 4 tablespoons clear honey, grated rind and juice of one lemon, quarter pint milk, 5oz plain flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, half teaspoon grated nutmeg, 2oz semolina, 2 egg whites, 2 teaspoons sesame seeds.
Preheat oven to 190 C. Grease and line a 7/8 in square cake tin.
Heat the margarine and 3 of the tablespoons honey in a pan until melted. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice and stir the rest of the juice and the milk into honey mixture.
In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and nutmeg. Mix in the semolina then beat in the honey mixture. Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks and fold in.
Spoon into prepared tin and bake for about 25 mins until golden and firm.While still in tin and warm, drizzle with the remaining honey and lemon juice. Cool in tin then turn out and cut into fingers.
Ingredients: 6oz muesli, 3oz melted butter, finely grated rind and juice of 2 lemons, half oz powdered gelatine, 8oz cream cheese, 150 ml plain yoghurt, 4 tablesps clear honey, 2 egg whites.
Grease an 8" loose bottomed flan tin. Stir the muesli into the melted butter and press the mixture into tin.Chill until set.
Make the lemon juice up to 150ml with water. Sprinkle the gelatine on the water and leave until soft then stand in a pan of hot water and heat gently until gelatine has dissolved.
Mix together the lemon rind, cheese, yoghurt and honey, then stir into the gelatine.Whisk the egg whites until stiff and gently fold into the mixture. Spoon over the base and chill until firm.
Delia Smiths Lime & Lemon Refrigerator Cake
I found this delicious recipe on Delia Smiths site.
Ingredients: Finely grated zest and juice of one large lemon, finely grated zest and juice of one lime, 4 digestive biscuits crushed to crumbs, 1oz grapenut cereal, 2 level tablespoons soft brown sugar,1oz melted butter, 3 large eggs separated, 2 and half oz caster sugar, 1 level teaspoon powdered geletine, 150 ml double cream.
Brush a 2lb loaf tin with oil. In a small bowl mix together the biscuit crumbs with the Grapenuts and brown sugar. Pour in the melted butter and mix thoroughly. Sprinkle a third of the mixture over the base of the tin.
Put the egg yolks, grated zests, lime and lemon juice, caster sugar and gelatine into a bowl. Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water and whisk with electric hand whisk for about 10 minutes or until mixture thickens. Then remove from heat and whisk again for further 7/8 minutes until mixture cools.
Now clean and dry the whisk and whisk the egg whites until stiff. Then whisk the cream until floppy. Using a metal spoon fold the egg whites then the cream into the lemon and lime mixture. Pour into the tin, sprinkle the rest of the crumb mix over the top, cover with kitchen foil and put in the freezer overnight.
Three hours before serving transfer from freezer to fridge, then turn out onto serving dish and serve cut into slices. Any leftovers can be left in fridge where it becomes more like a mousse.
Ingredients: 4fl oz lemon curd yogurt, 10 oz selfraising flour, 1 teasp. baking powder, 2.5 fl oz corn oil, 6oz golden caster sugar, 2 eggs, lemon curd for filling.
Preheat oven to 180 C /gas 4. Place all ingredients in mixing bowl and beat for few minutes until well mixed to smooth batter. Grease tin and pour in batter.
Cook in center of oven for about 40 mins until well risen, golden and firm. Turn out onto wire rack to cool. When cool split and fill with lemon curd, dredge with icing sugar.Eat within a day or so.
This cake can be made with any flavour yogurt - eg orange, raspberry and the filling changed accordingly. It can also be made in a hollow ring tin, the centre filled with fresh fruit and served as a dessert with creme fraiche or cream.