As a lemon lover, I couldn’t resist making these Lemon Sponge Cups. They are a little like a soufflé, with a beautiful crust on top and a scrumptious lemony custard beneath.
These are impressive for sure. They are exquisite treats that taste like you spent hours in the kitchen, when in reality, they are simple and quick. They are light, fluffy, and oh so lemony!
Just to note, I did not pour enough batter into the ramekins. These sponge cups would have looked a lot better if they had spilled a little over the tops of the ramekins. I would suggest you pour the batter to the top of the cups so that the finished result is just puffed over the top. That is how they looked in the lovely picture in the book. Oh well, I wish they had mentioned that; although I am sure mine tasted just as delicious.
This is a perfect dessert to thrill your family or guests. If you are a lemon-lover like me, I dare you to eat just one!
This recipe is courtesy of Food 52 book, Baking. It has so many uncomplicated desserts; I will be baking many of them for future blogs. Who knows? Maybe I will become an accomplished baker sooner than I thought!
Ingredients for Lemon Sponge Cups
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
Pinch of salt
3 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups milk
Thin slices of lemon, for garnish
Preheat oven to 350.
Put the butter, sugar, flour lemon zest and juice, and salt in a large bowl.
Using an electric mixer or creaming vigorously with a wooden spoon, beat until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is thoroughly mixed.
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.
Add the milk and whisk until smooth.
Gradually stir into the butter-sugar mixture, whisking by hand as you pour.
Put the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl.
Using an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or whisking vigorously by hand, whip until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold egg whites into the sugar mixture. Since the sugar mixture is loose and liquidy, your batter might be a bit lumpy after folding in the egg whites–do not be alarmed.
Pour the mixture into four to six ramekins or individual soufflé dishes.
Put them in baking pan and pour enough hot water to reach about halfway up to the sides of the ramekins.
Bake for 45 minutes. When done, the sponge cups will be lightly browned on top, with a layer of lemon custard beneath.
Let cool slightly before serving, either in the ramekins or turned out onto serving plates.
Garnish with a slice of lemon.
It’s that simple!
