Lemon Curd and Almond Cake – something special for dessert.

Beautiful sunny winter days in my part of the world, and a happy time for harvesting citrus fruits.  Oranges, limes, lemons, mandarins and grapefruit are just dripping from the trees right now and everyone is madly swapping recipes and giving away their abundance.  Heart harvest, I call it, where folk take the trouble to pick their fruit and just put a box of it for free outside their place which, I think, is a wonderful idea and I wish everyone would do it.

So, what to do with all those lemons – that is the question?  I have been dying to try this recipe since I saw a version of it from a restaurant in Cobargo on the South Coast of NSW.  The answer is – make some delicious lemon curd – then make a cake with it and save the rest for; hot buttered morning toast, dolloping on meringues, making a lemon tart or just eating it by the spoonful cold from the fridge (shhhh!).

RECIPE

Lemon Curd

• 100ml lemon juice
• zest of 1 lemon
• 225g white sugar
• 3 eggs, beaten well
• 100g unsalted butter

Cake

• 5 eggs
• 250g caster sugar
• 250g almond meal
• 150g wholemeal self raising flour (OR 150g brown rice flour and one teaspoon baking powder)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

To make lemon curd:

1. Place the sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest and cubed butter into a heavy based saucepan on a low heat.
2. Stir with wooden spoon on very low heat until butter and sugar are dissolved.
3. Turn off heat and whisk in beaten eggs and keep stirring.
4. Turn on heat again to low and keep stirring until mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon.
5. Remove from heat and allow to cool

To make cake:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and line 21cm springform pan with baking paper.
2. Put sugar and eggs in food processor and whiz until pale, thick and creamy.
3. Add almond meal and flour and combine.
4. Spread two thirds of cake mix into the tin, then spread over a layer of lemon curd.
5. Add the rest of the cake mix and smooth over.
6. Put another layer of lemon curd over the top.
7. Place in the oven for 40 minutes or until the centre of the cake is cooked.
8. Allow to cool then serve.

This tastes as good as it looks with the lemon curd topping turning golden in the oven.

My favourite lemon – the Eureka – hardy, prolific, terrific taste and lots of juice.