Lemon Cake Cream: A Step-by-Step Recipe with Photos

Lemon cream – a classic filling for sponge cakes and Napoleon cakes, as well as a popular filling for éclairs, tartlets, and sweet buns. Today, we'll explain in detail how to make a light and delicious frosting with a vibrant lemon flavor, and offer a detailed step-by-step recipe with step-by-step photos.

Lemon Cake Frosting: A Step-by-Step Recipe

Nutritional value per serving

155.3 kcal

Proteins: 3.7 g
Fats: 4.9 g
Carbohydrates: 24.2 g

*Nutritional value is calculated per 100g of ingredients

Total time: 20 min
Time in the kitchen: 20 min
Complexity:

It's easy and straightforward to prepare, but it does require some experience. Not everyone can do it right the first time.
Number of servings: 1

Lemon curd is a delicacy popular among aristocrats in England and North America since the 19th century. This light and delicate citrus dessert was served as an alternative to fruit and berry jams.

Essentially, this delicacy is a regular custard with lemon (or rather, lemon juice and zest), and the recipe is so simple that even a novice cook can easily repeat it.

Today we'll be making a classic lemon custard with milk, which is perfect for spreading on cakes because it has a thick, stable texture.

Classic lemon custard for cake

Homemade Lemon Cream for Desserts – A Step-by-Step Recipe with Photos

Ingredients

Servings

Milk

500 ml
Egg C1

2 pcs
Sugar

115 G
Cornstarch

40 G
Lemon

1 pcs
Butter

50 G
Lemon extract

1 tsp

Preparation

Step 1

Begin by heating the milk to a boil. It's best to use a saucepan with a thick bottom to prevent the milk from burning.

Step 2

While heating, add the fresh zest of one lemon to the milk.

The zest must be cut very thinly, without cutting into the white layer located under the bright yellow skin, as it can impart an unwanted bitter taste to the dish.

Step 3

In a separate bowl, beat 2 eggs (white + yolk) and 115 grams of sugar.

Step 4

Add 40 grams of corn starch to the egg mixture and mix well, achieving a uniform texture without lumps.

Step 5

You should end up with a liquid, homogeneous mixture, like the one in the photo. The consistency is roughly that of thin pancakes.

Step 6

Once the milk has boiled, remove all the zest from it.

Step 7

While stirring the egg mixture vigorously, add half of the hot (but not boiling) milk in a thin stream.

Step 8

Place the saucepan with the remaining milk back on the stove and pour in the egg-milk mixture, stirring vigorously with a whisk.

Step 9

Cook the cream over low heat until it thickens, whisking constantly to prevent the mixture from burning on the bottom. Once the cream boils, remove the pan from the stove, but continue stirring vigorously until the bottom has cooled slightly.

Step 10

Add 40 grams of freshly squeezed lemon juice to the still hot cream and mix until smooth.

Step 11

If desired, you can add 1 teaspoon of lemon extract, but if you cannot find this ingredient, you can prepare the cream with just lemon; it will be no less delicious.

Step 12

At the last step, add 50 grams of softened butter and mix until completely dissolved and a glossy, homogeneous mass is formed.

Step 13

Cover the finished cream with cling film so that it does not come into contact with air during the cooling process and a thick film does not form on the surface.

The shelf life of this cream, like any custard, is 18 hours. Store a cake frosted with lemon custard in the refrigerator at 5°C for no more than 5 days.

We also suggest trying a delicious lemon cream for a cake with semolina. It turns out even thicker, similar to pudding.

A third interesting recipe that can be used to make a variety of delicious desserts is lemon custard cheesecake, the recipe for which you'll find in the following video: