Winter Meyer Lemon Cake

It was my mom's birthday so she got to choose the dessert for her birthday dinner. She always prefers fruit over chocolate, so we headed to the supermarket to see what looked good in the produce aisle. Being late December and in Colorado, nothing looked so good. Nothing except a beautiful bag of bright yellow Meyer lemons.

So Meyer Lemon cake it was. I found this recipe here (didn't know Domino did recipes!). Easy, not too many ingredients, and tastes great for days after. I made a few variations to make the glaze extra crunchy and the cake really solid, the way my mom likes it. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

8 tbsp unsalted butter

4 large eggs, separated

3 1/4 cups sugar

2/3 cup buttermilk

6 Meyer lemons (2 for cake, 2 for glaze, 2 for candied lemon slices)

2 cups cake flour (or sifted all purpose flour, unbleached)

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 2/3 cup confectioner's sugar

Preparation of the Cake:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Melt butter in saucepan, set aside to cool

In mixing bowl, use electric mixer to beat egg yolks with 1 cup of sugar until thick and light in color. Add in buttermilk, 1/3 cup Meyer lemon juice (2 lemons), and 1 tbsp Meyer lemon zest.

Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. In separate bowl, beat egg whites until they hold soft peaks, add 1/4 cup of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.

Fold half the flour mixture into the egg -yolk mixture, followed by half the egg white mixture. Repeat with the rest of the flour and egg white mixture.

Take 1 cup of the batter and mix into the cooled butter. Then gently fold butter/batter into the rest of the cake batter. (Gently so the cake stays fluffy!) Pour batter into a buttered and floured 9 inch cake pan or Bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes, until cake is lightly golden and pulls away from the sides of the pan.

Preparation of the glaze:

Combine 1/3 cup Meyer lemon juice (2 lemons) and confectioners sugar in a saucepan. Heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved. Set aside until cake is ready.

Preparation of the candied lemon slices:

Cut 2 Meyer lemons widthwise in 1/4 inch slices- discard end pieces and remove seeds. In a saucepan, combine 2 cups of sugar and 2 cups of water. Bring to boil and gently simmer for 5 minutes. Add lemon slices and simmer for another 5-10 minutes, until rinds seem edible. Remove and dry on parchment paper.

Putting it all together:

When cake is done, let it cool completely, in the pan for 5 minutes and then on a cooling rack. With a long toothpick, poke deep holes for the glaze to seep in. Slowly spoon glaze over the cake, allowing to sink in. Add lemon slices. If you like

the cake warm, serve immediately. If you prefer a more set solid cake (as my mom does), put in the fridge until you are ready to serve.