Welcome back to week 2 of finding the perfect cake for Cake Picnic! It’s been so warm and sunny in SF lately, it barely feels like fall, so this bright and zesty cake feels very fitting. To be honest, I have no idea where this idea came from and I suspect it was probably birthed out of me wanting an excuse to purchase and play with a blowtorch. Either way, I’m quite pleased with the way it turned out and I hope you’ll enjoy it too!

Follow along my journey to find my Cake Picnic cake on TikTok! There will be many more cakes to come :)

@heatheryuann 4 hours and 15 lemon lemons deep … 🍋 #cake #cakepicnic #baking #lemon #lemonmeringue ♬ Refreshing and light indie pop(1552207) - Cheng Lee

@heatheryuann the torching looked soooo cool trust me bro just trust me #cake #baking #cakepicnic #lemonmeringue ♬ What Floor? - idokay

Lemon Meringue Cake

Ingredients

Vanilla Cake - adapted from Preppy Kitchen

• 3¾ cups all-purpose flour (420g)
• 3⅓ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoons salt
• 2½ cups granulated sugar (500g)
• 1 cup + 1 tablespoon unsalted butter room temperature (255g)
• 4 large eggs + 1 egg yolk room temperature
• 1½ tablespoon vanilla (15mL)
• 1½ cup buttermilk (240mL)

Lemon Curd - adapted from Preppy Kitchen

• 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
• 6 large egg yolks
• 7 tablespoons lemon juice (100mL)
• ½ cup butter unsalted cold (113g)

Graham Cracker Crust Crumble

• 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs (about 12 full graham cracker sheets)
• 2 tablespoons sugar (24g)
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar, packed (13g)
• 7 tablespoons butter, melted (99g)
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Lemon Syrup

• ½ cup lemon juice (120g)
• ½ cup granulated sugar (125g)
• 2 tablespoons of lemon zest, about 2 lemons
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice

Mascarpone Whipped Cream

• 8 ounces (227 g) mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, cold
• ½ cup (60 g) powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ⅛ teaspoon salt

Italian Meringue - adapted from Entirely Elizabeth

• 3 egg whites, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
• ½ cup water
• ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Special Equipment

• Blow torch
• Stand mixer¹

Instructions

Vanilla Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line three 9 inch pans with parchment paper and butter the sides.
2. In a small bowl, sift and whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on high until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. With the mixer on low, add the eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla.
4. With the mixer on low, add the flour in three batches alternating with the buttermilk and ending with the flour mixture. Mix until almost combined, then stop the mixer and finish folding the batter until just combined. Do not over-mix the batter. Divide batter equally between the pans and smooth the top into an even layer.
5. Bake at 350F for about 30 minutes or until the edges pull away from the pan, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with a few moist crumbs. Allow to cool in pan for about two minutes, then invert layers onto a cooling rack, remove the paper, and set aside to cool completely. Move on to assembly or wrap with plastic wrap if assembling the next day.

Lemon Curd

1. In a small bowl, massage the lemon zest and sugar together with your hands or a fork to release the citrus oils into the sugar.
2. In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar mixture and the egg whites until slightly lightened in color.
3. Place the saucepan on low heat and stir constantly with a whisk, making sure to get the corners and scrape the sides with a silicon spatula if necessary. Continue stirring and cooking until the mexture thickens and just starts the bubble or coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove saucepan from heat and mix in the cold, cubed butter until melted and incorporated.
5. If desired, strain the final mixture to remove any bits of zest or overcooked curd. This will make the final curd extra smooth.
6. Allow to cool then transfer the curd into a storage container and cover with plastic wrap, pushing it down to make contact with the top of the curd to prevent a skin from forming.

Graham Cracker Crust Crumble

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Use a food processor or blender to grind graham crackers into fine crumbs. You can also put them in a zip-loc bag and crush them with your hands or a rolling pin, but ensure that you get them as fine as possible.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, both sugars, and salt, then mix in the melted butter. Try to get the melted butter evenly distributed. The texture should be similar to wet sand.
4. Pour the mixture on to the baking sheet and press down the crumbs into a compact cracker crust with your hands or the bottom of a flat bottomed cup/bottle. Use your other hand to guide the shape of the crust. The crust should end up around ½ an inch thick.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Allow to cool completely on a cooling rack then break up the crust into a rough crumble.

Lemon Soak

1. In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Bring to a light simmer, stirring until sugar is fully dissolved, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool completely, at least 30 minutes or overnight.

Mascarpone Whipped Cream

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, whisk the mascarpone on low just until smooth. Then mix in the vanilla, powdered sugar, and salt until just combined.
2. With the mixer running on high, slowly pour in the heavy whipping cream and whip until the frosting is light and fluffy. DO NOT over mix.

Assembly

1. The cakes should not have domed very much, but if they have, use a large serrated knife to slice off the domed portions to achieve leveled cake layers.
2. Fill a pastry bag or a large Ziploc bag with the mascarpone frosting and cut off the corner to create a hole about 1-2 inches in diameter.
3. Apply a small dollop of frosting on a cake board or flat plate to help the first cake layer stick to the surface.
4. Lay down a cooled cake layer and brush on a generous layer of lemon syrup. Squeeze on about ½ cup of frosting and spread evenly. Using the pastry/Ziploc bag, pipe a border of frosting around the edge of the cake layer. Spread an even layer of lemon curd (about ½ cup) inside the frosting border. Sprinkle on an layer of graham cracker crumble. Place a second cake layer on top and repeat the same filling process. End with the third and final layer of cake on top.
5. Using the remaining frosting, crumb coat the top and sides of the cake. Place in the fridge the cool and set while you prepare the meringue topping.

Torched Meringue

1. If you’re separating the egg whites from whole eggs, ensure that none of the egg yolk seeps into your egg whites. I will typically separate the eggs in an individual bowl and transfer each cleanly separated egg white into the final container so that any yolk leakage doesn’t spoil the whole batch. Also, make sure the bowl and whisk attachment of your stand mixer are completely clean. Any residual oil or yolk will prevent the egg whites from whipping properly.
2. Heat sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Do not stir at all. Once the mixture looks a bit cloud, about 5 minutes, start gently stirring it until all the sugar has dissolved. Allow the sugar mixture to come to a boil.
3. Once the sugar is at a boil and reaches about 230° F, start whipping the egg whites in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on high speed until stiff peaks.
4. While the egg whites are whipping, keep a close eye on the sugar mixture and regularly take it’s temperature. Once the temperature reaches 240° F, remove the pot from the heat and allow the sugar to stop bubbling.
5. With the mixer on medium-high speed, slowly stream the sugar syrup into the egg whites, avoiding the metal whisk attachment and sides of the bowl. Once all the sugar syrup is in, add the cream of tartar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
6. Allow the mixture of whisk for another 3 - 5 minutes, or until the sides of the mixing bowl is no longer warm and the meringue has reached stiff, glossy peaks.
7. Take the cake out of the fridge and cover the cake with the italian meringue, focusing on piling most of it on top of the cake.
8. Using the round edge of a small offset spatula or spoon, indent the side of the cake starting at the bottom and rotate the cake on the cake stand while slowly lifting the spatula or spoon to reach the top of the cake to create horizontal ridges on the side. Then using the spatula or spoon, create tall swoops with meringue on top of the cake.
9. Evenly toast the italian meringue with a blowtorch until it reaches a dark toasted color.
10. Best served on the same day. It can be stores in the fridge for up to 3 days, but note that the italian meringue may start deflating or sliding off the cake.

Footnotes

1. A hand mixer could also work, but it would take a lot more elbow grease to whip up the egg whites and it will be more difficult to multi-task on the meringue step. I’m not sure if it’s possible by hand lol ↩