Peanut Butter and Jelly Macarons

This month's Improv Challenge ingredients, peanut butter and jelly, couldn't be a better fit for me. I remember as a child if my mother put anything in my lunch besides PB&J I would just return home with it. I'm not sure if it was the peanut butter or the homemade jelly that was the star of my lunch, but I guess you just can't separate them. I'm glad that all my kids love peanut butter and jelly, and it is a serious grocery emergency if we happen to run out of either ingredient. While the sandwich is a lunch box staple, the combination of creamy peanut butter and sweet jelly is delicious in other ways as well. For this challenge I made peanut macarons with a white chocolate and strawberry jam buttercream filling.

I started with my usual macaron recipe, substituting finely ground peanuts for part of the ground almonds and came up with a nice peanut flavored cookie that still had the characteristics of a regular macaron. I knew I didn't want to fill them with plain jam, or a plain buttercream, so I put the two together to get a smooth creamy frosting with sweet strawberry flavor. As much as our family loves PB&J, we all thought it was pretty awesome to be able to make the cookie version of our favorite sandwich and have little bites of PB&J available in the cookie jar all week long. 

 

Peanut Butter Macarons

2 egg whites (100 grams)

1/2 cup ground almonds

1/4 cup ground peanuts

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1. Process the nuts with the powdered sugar in the food processor to combine. 

2. Beat egg white until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the granulated sugar. Continue beating until you have firm glossy meringue.

3. Add the nut mixture in two additions. Sprinkle 1/2 of the nuts over the egg whites and fold in. Repeat with the remaining nuts. Be careful not to over mix. You will know that batter is ready if a ribbon of batter dropped from a spoon on top of the batter in the bowl disappears in 30 seconds.

4. Line cookie sheet with parchment or silpat.

5. Spoon the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch tip. Pipe batter on your prepared pan in one inch dots, they will spread to about 1 1/2 inch diameter dots. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to develop a crust  before baking

6. Bake in a 280 degree oven for 15-20 minutes until cookies just start to color. Cool on parchment paper.  Store in an air tight container.

White Chocolate Strawberry Jam Butter Cream

1/2 cup room temperature unsalted butter

3 ounces white chocolate, melted and cooled to room temperature

3/4 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons strawberry jam

Pinch of salt

Whip the butter and salt until fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar followed by the white chocolate, beating to incorporate. Add the strawberry jam and continue beating until light and fluffy. Fill each cookie with the butter-cream and refrigerate for 24 hours to allow flavors to mellow.

Printable recipe

If you interested in joining the Improv challenge visit Kristen at the Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker.

Link: Foodie Friday

Apricot Oatmeal Scones

  

When Mimi Jr. first told me how much she loved this recipe, I have to admit, I was a little skeptical, especially since the recipe called for rolled oats. When I think scones, I think light and delicate, and in my mind, oatmeal just doesn't fit into that equation. Since Mimi Jr. loved these so much, I decided to try them for myself. And I'm glad I did. They turned out with the perfect balance of delicate flaky layers and toasty oat flavor, with a texture just hearty enough to satisfy, without being dense or heavy. 

Scones are a great breakfast treat because they can be shaped and frozen, then baked straight from the freezer either for a quick, warm breakfast, or to feed a crowd with minimal effort (for these scones, just increase the baking time to 25-30 min). While we do love our traditional orange zest scones, these are quickly becoming another family favorite, and we all like to know that there is a bag of ready to bake scones in the freezer whenever the craving strikes.

Apricot Oatmeal Scones

adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

1 1/2 cups old fashion rolled oats

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup heavy cream (you can use 1/2 cup 1/2 & 1/2 instead of the milk and cream)

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling on the top of the scones

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 tablespoons unsalted butter (5 ounces) cut into small dice

1/2 cup chopped dried apricots.

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Spread the oats out over a baking sheet and toast in the oven until lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Let cool. Measure out 2 tablespoons of the toasted oats for dusting the counter.

2. Increase the oven heat to 450 degree F. Whisk the milk, cream, egg, almond and vanilla extracts together in a large measuring cup. Reserve 1 tablespoon for brushing the tops of the scones.

3. Pulse the flour sugar, baking powder and salt in the food processor until combined. Scatter the butter evenly over the top and process until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, 12-14 pulses.

4.Transfer the flour mixture to a medium mixing bowl and stir in the cooled oats and the apricots. Fold in the milk mixture using a rubber spatula until large clumps form.  Gently knead the mixture in the bowl with your hands until the dough forms a cohesive mass.

5. Dust the counter with half of the the reserved oats. Turn the dough out onto the counter and dust the top with the remaining oats. Gently pat the dough into a 7 inch circle about 1 inch thick. Cut the dough into eight wedges and place on baking sheet lined with a slipat or parchment paper. Brush the tops with reserved milk mixture and sprinkle with sugar.

6. Bake until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes let cool and serve.

printable recipe

Links: Foodie Friday

Chocolate Potato Cake with Espresso Mascarpone Buttercream

Time again for the Improv Challenge, hosted by Kristen at Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker. For March the 2 mandatory ingredients were potatoes and cheese.  I knew right away that I wanted to make a potato cake. This is not your traditional potato pancake, but a dessert cake with soft creamy mascarpone butter cream.  I knew my old Victory Garden cookbook had a Potato Cake recipe so that is where I started.

The cake itself was moist and velvety with a mild chocolate flavor. The frosting was light and delicate with a hit of espresso that didn't over power the mascarpone. All around, it was a good dessert. My biggest issues with most chocolate cakes are that they are overbaked and dry, and don't really taste like chocolate. This cake was soft and moist, but the chocolate was a little lacking. Next time I make this cake I will definitely increase the amount of chocolate in the cake itself for a moist and chocolatey cake. 

Chocolate Potato Cake

adapted from The Victory Garden by Marian Morash

4 oz unsweetened chocolate
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp instant espresso powder
1 cup butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup mashed potatoes
1 cup buttermilk.


Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour baking pan(s). You can use a 9x13, (2) 9" cake pans, or make cupcakes.
Melt the chocolate; cool slightly. Dissolve the instant espresso powder in the vanilla and add to the chocolate. Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cream together the butter and sugar, beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the chocolate and mashed potatoes.  Beat in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk. Pour into prepared pan(s) and bake. 
9x13 pan  40 minutes
2 -9 inch round pans  25-30 minutes
cupcakes  15-18 minutes

Espresso Mascarpone Butter Cream

6 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
6 oz macarpone cheese, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar 
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp instant espresso powder
pinch salt
Milk/cream if needed
Dissolve the instant espresso powder in the vanilla. Cream together the butter and mascarpone. Add the vanilla/espresso mix to incorporate. Gradually add 2 cups powdered sugar, beat at low speed until light and fluffy.  If mixture is to stiff add a few drops of milk or cream until frosting is light and spreadable.
printable recipe

Link: Foodie Friday



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Blonde Rocky Road

Things have been a bit crazy over here at Mimi's Kitchen. Five baby chicks have moved into our house and they are a lively bunch. They keep us pretty busy, from building them a brand new home in our backyard, to holding them and getting to know their personalities so we can appropriately name them, and keeping an eye out for cats ready to pounce at any moment. We did, however, have time for some Marshmallow Madness in the midst of all the chick madness. Homemade marshmallows are nothing like the ones you buy in the grocery store. While those work just fine for campfire roasting, the made-from-scratch marshmallows that result from just a little bit of effort are in an entirely different category. We actually enjoyed popping them in our mouths plain, which is something we never do with the store bought bag. 

Marshalllow Madness, the new book by Shauna Sever, published by Quirk Books, is full of fun and tasty marshmallows and marshmallow treats. Shauna covers all the basic of marshallow making, from marshallow creme, flavored marshmallows,  and other treats with marshmallows as a component. Her recipes are well written and easy to follow, which is important when attempting something that sounds as complicated and intimidating as marshmallows (even though they are actually pretty easy!). We had success with all three of the recipes that we made, so I know we will use this book again for any marshmallow related creations. 

First, we made the marshmallow creme for our Tropical Carrot Pie. It was smooth and creamy with a delicious vanilla flavor. 

Next, we tried the classic vanilla marshmallow, but since we had never made miniture marshallows before we decide to give that a try. They couldn't have been easier, both to make and to snack on!

 Once we had those mini mallows in hand we made the Blonde Rocky Road candy featured in the book. This was spectacular. It was sweet from the butterscotch, salty and crunchy from the peanuts, and the marshmallows were soft and melt-in-your-mouth tender. It was those fresh little marshmallows that really made this candy special.We made it as written the first time, and were surprised that we liked the butterscotch flavor since it is not usually a favorite. We see all kinds of flavor combination for repeats of this recipe, and I think Mini Me would be pleasantly surprised to see a peanut butter version in her next care package. 

Blonde Rocky Road
Marshmallow Madness by Shauna Sever.

1- 12 ounce bag butterscotch chips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup unsalted butter cut into tablespoon size pieces.
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups homemade mini marshmallows, divided
3/4 cup salted peanuts, divided.

Line and 8x8inch (I used a 9x9inch) pan with a large sheet of aluminum foil pressing is neatly into the corners.
In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine the butterscotch chips, peanut butter and butter.  Microwave on 50% power for about 3 minutes.  Stop to stir well.  Place back in the microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds on 50% power and stop to stir again- it should be smooth after a bit more stirring.  If not, give it a couple more 20-second bursts of high power and stir until smooth.
Stir in the vanilla and salt.  Stir in 2 cups of the marshmallows and 1/2 cup of the peanuts.  Turn the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Sprinkle the remaining marshmallows and peanuts evenly over the top and press lightly into the candy with your palms.  Chill until set, about 15 minutes in the freezer or 1 hour in the refrigerator.
Remove the candy slab from the pan and cut it into 1 1/2 inch squares. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Printable recipe

Classic Vanilla Marshmallows

Marshmallow Madness by Shauna Sever

4 1/2 teaspoons unflavored powdered gelatin

1/2 cup cold water.

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup, divided.

1/4 cup water

1/8 teaspoon salt.

2 teaspoons pure vanilla

1/2 cup classic coating, plus more for dusting

For regular marshmalows: Lightly coat an 8x8 baking pan with cookling spray

Whisk together the gelatin and cold water in a small bowl and let soften for 5 minutes.

Stir together the sugar, 1/4 cup of corn syrup, water and salt in a medium saucepan over high heat.  Boil, stiring occasionally, until the temperature reaches 240 degrees F.  Meanwhilw, pour remaining 1/4 cup corn syrup into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Microwave gelatin on high until completely melted, about 30 seconds.  Pour it into the mixer bowl. Set the mixer speed to low and keep it running.

When the syrup reaches 204 degrees F., slowly pour it into the mixer bowl.  Increase the speed to medium and beat for 5 minutes. Increase to medium-high and beat for 5 minutes. ** Beat on the highest setting for 1-2 minutes more and beat in the vanilla: the finished marsmallows willo be opaque white fluffy, and tripled in volume.  pour into prepared pan.

** for mini marshmallows omit the last 1-2 minutes of beating on high speed instead add the vanilla during the last minute of beating on medium high speed. Load the batter into a large pastry bag fitted with a large round pastry tip.  Pipe long lines of marshmallow in parallel rows across a bakaing sheet dusted in clasic coating. Dust more clasic coating over the marshamllows and let cure.  When set, use kitchen siccors to snip the marshmallow ropes into 1/2 inch wide bits.  Roll the mini mallows in the coating right on the baking sheet, dusting off excess. Store in air tight continer.

Classic Coating:
Sift together 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar and 1 cup cornstarch or potato starch.

This was a really fun book and we will be making many more of Shauna's recipes.  If you want to add this book to your cookbook shelf you can find it at Amazon.com.

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Links: Foodie Friday @Designs by Gollum

Carrot Ginger Cream Pie

It's time for the February Improv Challenge, hosted by Kristen at the Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker. Our must-use ingredients for February were carrots and ginger. I knew from the start that I wanted to make a dessert, but I wanted to challenge myself to create something different than carrot cake or cookies. That left me with mousse, pie, souffle, and parfait as my main options. After some thought, I came up with Carrot Ginger Cream Pie.

Light and sweet with a tropical undertone,  the carrot part is a carrot-ginger-pineapple puree with freshly made marshmallow creme and whipped cream folded in, all piled into a gingersnap crust. I used Trader Joe's triple ginger gingersnap cookies for the crust. They have a great punch of ginger flavor with ground, fresh and crystallized ginger, and are nice and cripsy so they are perfect for crusts. The crust was slightly spicy and crisp, but nicely balanced by the sweetness of the carrot-pineapple puree. The hint of ginger in the filling complemented the crust, and really pulled everything together. The whipped cream/marshmallow creme mixture was excellent all on its own, and would make a great frosting or filling for other cakes and cookies.

This was a pretty simple dessert to put together. The most challenging component was the marshmallow creme, and although you could buy some at the grocery store, I think it is worth the effort to make it at home, especially since the rest of the dessert is easy. The marshmallow creme comes from a soon to be published book, Marshmallow Madness by Shauna Sever (Quirk Books). I'll post more about this book in my next post.

Carrot Ginger Cream Pie

Carrot puree:

1 lb carrots

1 can crushed pineapple or pineapple juice

1/3 cup sugar

Crystallized ginger - I used 4 nice sized pieces, chopped.This resulted in a very mild ginger note. I will probably use a bit more next time.

Peel and cut the carrots into one inch pieces and place in a sauce pan with enough juice from the pineapple to cover the carrots. Add the sugar and crystallized ginger and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to a simmer and let the carrots cook until soft, about 20 minutes.

When carrots are soft remove them from the heat and allow to cool. Puree carrots and juice in blender until smooth and velvety, adding additional water as necessary to get an ultra smooth puree. Return puree to sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly to evaporate the liquid. You will know that it's done when you drag a wooden spoon across the bottom of the pan and the puree doesn't flow back together.Transfer to a small bowl and refrigerate until needed. This can be made a day or two ahead of time.

Crust:

1 1/2 cups ginger snap crumbs

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine crumbs and butter until thoroughly mixed. Reserve 1/3 cup for garnish and press the remaining crumbs into 6 individual pie dishes or one 9 inch pie dish. Place pie dish(es) on a rimmed cookie sheet. Put the reserved crumbs in an extra dish baking dish and bake along side the pie crust. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 7-10 minutes to set crust and toast remaining crumbs.

Marshmallow Creme

Marshmallow Madness by Shauna Sever

1/2 cup light corn syrup 

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1. Stir together the sugar, light corn syrup, water and salt in a small saucepan over high heat. Boil, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 204 degrees F.

2. Place egg whites and cream of tarter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Start whipping the egg whites on medium speed. You want them to form soft peaks. The goal is to have the egg whites whipped and ready, waiting for your syrup to be drizzled in.  If they're whipped faster than your syrup is coming to temperature, just stop the mixer until the syrup is ready. 

3.When the syrup has reached 240 degrees F, set the mixer to low and slowly drizzle a tiny bit of syrup, a couple tablespoons' worth, into the egg whites to warm them. (If you add too much syrup at once, the egg whites will scramble.) Slowly drizzle in the rest of the syrup and then increase the speed to medium -high. Beat until the marshmallow creme is stiff and glossy, 7 to 9 minutes; towards the end of the beating time, beat in the vanilla. Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Cream

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

In electric mixer fitted with whisk attachment combine heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla.

Start mixer at low speed and gradually increase the speed to high. Whip until cream hold medium to firm peaks.

Assembly: 

Remove the carrot puree from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Prepare and cool crust. Fold in about 2/3 of the marshmallow creme into the carrot puree until completely incorporated. Now fold in the whipped cream until no streaks of white remain. Divide among prepared crusts. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.

Garnish: 

2/3 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoon sugar 

1/2 teaspoon vanilla 

remaining marshmallow creme.

Reserved ginger snap crumbs

In bowl of electric mixer whip cream, vanilla, and sugar until soft peaks form. Slowly add the marshmallow creme to the whipped cream. Pipe a decorative boarder around edge(s) of pie(s) and sprinkle the reserved crumbs in the center.
printable recipe

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Heart Cakes

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, it's time to pack up a box of treats to send to Mini Me. She loves homemade granola, so she always get a big container of that, and this time we threw in some cute Valentine's socks, a box of Tagalogs (her favorite Girl Scout cookie) and some heart cakes.

I've tried several vanilla cake recipes in search of the "perfect one". I wanted a recipe that didn't use cake flour and didn't leave me with too many orphaned egg yolks. After many trials, we finally came up with this recipe; it has a velvety crumb and a delicate vanilla flavor. Be sure and use very good vanilla extract since that is what makes these cakes so tasty.

Vanilla Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 egg whites.

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add vanilla to milk and set both aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until fluffy again. Add egg and then egg whites, mixing until just combined.
4. Add 1/2 the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating until just combined. Slowly add the milk mixture and beat until combined. Add the remaining flour and beat until blended. Scrape the sides of the bowl between each addition and at the end, making sure all the ingredients are mixed in.
5. Divide the mixture evenly among 12 muffin tins and bake in a 350 oven for 22-25 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack. Frost when completely cool.

 printable recipe

To make the heart cakes, I used a silicone heart shaped muffin pan and even though it says non stick, I greased and floured the muffin wells to ensure easy release from the pan. When they were completely cool I dipped them in Wilton candy melts, making sure to completely cover all sides because when the cake is completely covered it helps to keep them fresh. For these cakes, I decorated them with sugar hearts I had on hand but sometimes I drizzle a contrasting color of candy melts over the top or use food writers and decorate them like conversation hearts.

Link:Foodie Friday

Sprinkle Cookies

My friend Little E came to visit me recently because he wanted to make some cookies. I am not too sure if he was visiting me or my sprinkle drawer, but we had a fun time regardless. He loves all colored sprinkles and sugars- but can you blame him? They come in so many pretty colors, sizes and shapes that the possibilities for creations are endless.

Obviously, from the size of my sprinkle drawer, I too have a thing for sprinkles, so I'm glad to have a friend who is willing to spend the entire afternoon playing in my sprinkle drawer with me. I knew we would need a cookie where sprinkles would be the star, and Mini Me's chewy sugar cookie   recipe was perfect. She got the recipe from her friend T many years ago when they were in grade school and has been making them for any and all occasions since 3rd grade. Although she is back at school and couldn't join our sprinkle party, I borrowed her recipe because I knew they would be the perfect to make with a three year old. 

These cookies are super fast to put together, and can be decorated for just about any holiday or theme you can imagine. They bake up soft and chewy in just a few minutes, which is especially important when you have an eager taste tester at the ready. 

Mini Me's  Sprinkle Cookies

2 3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

sprinkles

1. Mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

2. In mixing bowl cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually beat in the dry ingredients.

3.Shape into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls. Moisten the top of the ball with either buttermilk or milk (this helps the sprinkle adhere to the cookie.  However, Little E and I skipped this step and went straight to the sprinkles) and dip in sprinkles. 

5.Place on cookie sheet lined with a slipat and bake. In a regular oven at 375 for 10 minutes or convection oven at 350 for about 8 minutes.

Makes about 4 dozen cookies
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Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum

Lemon Meringue Cake

The Improv Challenge for this month, hosted by Kristen at the Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker, was to use lemon and sour cream in a recipe. There are so many ways to use these two ingredients, and there are several recipes that I love for cakes, frostings, and doughnuts using lemon and sour cream, but I wanted to make something new. I had a big bowl of egg whites that I needed to use, so I put together a few of our favorite things and ended up with this Lemon Meringue cake. I made discs of crispy meringue, layered them with a lemon curd filling, and finished the whole thing with whipped cream combined with sour cream. I do have to admit that the sour cream is an afterthought in this recipe. It gives the topping a nice tang, but honestly you could omit it. 

We liked that this dessert is easy to make ahead, either in its entirety, or just the components. Boy Mimi liked the crispy, just assembled version best, while Mimi Jr. liked it once it had been in the refrigerator for a few hours; it still had a slight meringue crunch, but the lemon filling had begun to soften the layers just a bit.If you are in a jam and you don't have time to make the meringue and lemon curd, you could easily make this with store bought lemon curd and meringue cookies. In that case, I would use a spring form pan to help hold the layers together. Once the cake has chilled for a few hours, release the sides of the pan and cover the the sides and top of the cake as directed in the recipe.

Lemon Meringue Cake

Meringue disks 

Lemon curd

2 cups heavy whipping cream 

1/4 cup sour cream 

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

lemon zest 

Meringue disks

4 egg whites

1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter

1 cup sugar 

1 teaspoon vanilla 

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Grease and flour 2 baking sheets or line with silpats. 

In a stand mixer whisk the egg white and cream of tarter until frothy. Continue beating and add the sugar one tablespoon at a time. When all the sugar is incorporated, add vanilla and beat for 1 –2 minutes more. When the beater is lifted out the whites should be very stiff with unbending peaks.

Using a pastry bag or spoon and spatula pipe or spread meringue onto prepared pans in three 8 inch circles (I put 2 on one pan and the third on the second pan).

Bake in a 250 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours. Meringues should be white to pale amber when done. Turn off the heat and leave meringues in the closed oven for 3 to 4 hours. Store cooled disks airtight at room temperature as long as 5 days.

Lemon Curd

Via the Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum 

4 large egg yolks 

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon sugar  

1/2 cup lemon juice

2 oz unsalted butter, softened 

pinch of salt 

2 teaspoons lemon zest

In a heavy (Non-corrodible) sauce pan beat egg yolks and sugar until well blended. Stir in the butter, lemon juice and salt. Cook over medium-low heat without bringing to a boil, stirring constantly until thickened and the mixture coats the back of a spoon (I cooked mine for a total of 10 minutes). The mixture will be opaque. When the curd has thickened, pour through a fine mesh strainer over a bowl, pressing with the back of a spoon until only coarse residue remains. Stir in the lemon zest and cool. Pour into an air tight container and refrigerate until cold. The curd will continue to thicken while it chills. 

To assemble: 

Beat 1 1/2 cups of the heavy whipping cream with 1/4 cup sugar until stiff peaks form. 

Fold 2/3 of the cream into the lemon curd. Set aside 1/2 cup of the lemon curd mixture.

Place one meringue disk on a plate and cover with 1/2 of the lemon curd and cream mixture. Top with a second meringue layer and cover with remaining lemon mixture. Top with the third meringue layer. 

Add the reserved lemon curd/cream mixture to the remaining whipped cream. Fold together until fully incorporated. Use this to lightly cover the sides and top of the cake.

Beat together the remaining 1/2 cup of cream with 1/4 cup sour cream and 2 tablespoon sugar until soft to firm peaks form. Cover the top of the cake with this and sprinkle with lemon zest.

Refrigerate cake for 3 hours or overnight to mellow for easy cutting, or serve soon for a crispier (and slightly messier) cake. 

printable recipe

Link:Foodie Friday at Design by Gollum