Spring is here and the sun is finally starting to shine! There is something about the beautiful daffodils that sends me into a bit of a lemon frenzy – It must be the colour! I felt inspired to create something fresh and fruity with a bubbly twist. These super sweet ‘naked’ cakes make the perfect dessert for a spring dinner party and are sure to impress!
Makes approx. 7/8 naked cakes
Lemon Sponge Recipe
Ingredients
– 450g self-raising flour (sieved)
– 330g caster sugar
– 250g butter (very soft)
– 180ml full fat milk (room temperature)
– Zest of 1 large unwaxed lemon
– 4 large eggs
Method
– Preheat oven to 160c fan oven or 180c conventional oven, line and prepare 3 x 8inch round tins with baking parchment.
– Cream the butter and caster sugar together in a large stand mixer (with a paddle attachment) or with a hand held mixer until pale in colour.
– Grate and add the lemon zest, mix until just incorporated.
– Slowly add the eggs (add a tablespoon of flour if the mixture begins to curdle).
– Alternate between adding the flour and milk, making sure to finish with the flour.
– Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for approx. 1 minute.
– Put equal amounts of the cake mixture in each tin and bake until a knife inserted into the sponges comes out clean (approx. 30 mins).
– Let the cakes cool completely on wire racks. Wrap tightly in cling film and leave overnight before cutting.
Ingredients Raspberry Bubble Filling
– 100g of fresh or thawed frozen raspberries
– 100g granulated sugar
– 50ml Prosecco
Method
– Mash and sieve the raspberries, set aside some of the juice for the buttercream.
– Heat mashed raspberries and Prosecco in a pot until they begin to boil.
– Add the sugar and stir well.
– Continue to shimmer mixture for approx. 2 minutes and then remove from the heat.
– Set aside to cool before using.
Ingredients Raspberry Bubble Buttercream
– 500g icing sugar
– 227g (1 block)unsalted butter (very soft)
– Raspberry juice and Prosecco to taste
Method
– Beat icing sugar and the unsalted butter in the bowl of a large stand mixer (with paddle attachment) or with a hand held mixer until combined and the mixture looks similar to breadcrumbs.
– Mix the leftover raspberry juice with some Prosecco and add slowly to the buttercream, ensuring not to add too much! Just enough to loosen the mixture.
– Mix until the butter cream is smooth and light.
Cake Assembly
– Slice the top off the sponge cakes with a bread knife or cake leveller, ideally you would like the sponge to be approx. 1inch thick.
– Using a 2.5inch circle cutter, cut out as many sponge circles as possible (should yield approx. 21-24 from the three sponges – 3 discs per cake).
– Pipe some buttercream onto a cake circle and stack the next one on top. Make a small hole in the middle sponge and fill with the raspberry filling. Again pipe some more buttercream and place 3rd cake circle on top.
– Pipe a buttercream swirl on top (like an ice cream cone!) and decorate with whatever you fancy! I choose a sugared raspberry, half a slice of candied lemon and a paper straw.
BIO
One of RTE’s ‘Domestic Divas’, Cat Lawlor is an award winning baker and wedding cake designer. A former psychology graduate, Cat regularly enjoyed baking cupcakes for family and friends (she was given her first cook book at the age of 3!)and what started off as a love for all things sweet soon became a cake obsession. Her business ‘The Cake Cuppery’ has become a well-known cake studio based in Lucan, Co. Dublin. Her work has been featured on TV3, RTE1 and in numerous publications including; Confetti, Irish Brides, VIP and The Irish Wedding Journal.