I’m so excited to share Erin’s take on this beautiful Lemon Olive Cake with Swiss Meringue! Be sure to check out her blog, The Sparkle, which features a great mix of beauty tips, fashion advice, and delish recipes like this.
I was looking for something to take to my girlfriends place for a lovely Sunday lunch, and came across this recipe. The cake looked perfectly delicate with an impressive flair because of that pillowy Swiss meringue. Lemon is usually a crowd pleaser; a perfect finish to a light lunch with friends. It’s always a tad nerve-racking baking something for the first time to share with others (what if the cake falls? What if it tastes, well, gross?). I was up for the challenge, and borrowed a kitchen blowtorch from a friend. It didn’t fail me: the cake was moist, perfectly dense, yet fluffy, very lemon-y and plain delish.
OK, so it may look difficult, but it’s no more so than any other cake – just think of the meringue topping as icing! Using a spring form pan is definitely the way to go with this one, especially if you’re transporting it like I was. The easiest way to do this, so the topping doesn’t get completely crushed, is to let the cake cool in the pan and then top with the Swiss meringue, and torch as you normally would, peeling off the pan with you get to your destination.
As I found out, it’s important to use a light extra virgin olive oil as to not overwhelm the subtle flavor of the cake. I used a darker variety because it was what I had on hand, and you could taste the EVOO more prominently. It’s also crucial to zest your lemons with an actual zester to get the most zing out of the lemon and mince finely as opposed to zesting it with a microplane. If you don’t have a zester, peel off only the yellow part of the lemon (making sure you miss the white stuff) with a pairing knife, and mince it. Allowing the ingredients to get to room temperature makes for a much more fluffy cake.
I left the rest of the cake with my friends, but I did think twice about breaking the code of etiquette and bringing it home with me! Here’s how to make it: Read more »
