Category: Lemons

Poppy Seed & Lemon Buns

  • These little buns are based on one of my poppy seed cakes.
  • This amount makes 12 buns made in bun cases.

INGREDIENTS – buns

  • 100g butter
  • 100g granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 120g plain flour
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • 3 tablespoons of poppy seeds
  • Fine zest of 1 lemon
  • Juice of 1 lemon

    Topping

  • 1 large lemon – rind pared & juice
  • 50g granulated sugar & 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar

METHOD

  • Pre-heat the oven to GM 4 – 180°C.
  • Cream together the butter, sugar and lemon zest.
  • Add the eggs, one by one and whisk again.
  • Mix the flour with the baking powder.
  • Fold in the flour.
  • Mix in the lemon juice.
  • Fold in the poppy seeds.
  • Divide the mixture between 12 bun cases in a bun tray.
  • Bake for 25 -30 minutes.
  • Leave on a cake rack to cool.
  • *
  • MEANWHILE
  • Take the rind parings and boil them in a little water for 2 minutes.
  • Sieve and dry.
  • Add these to 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and mix.
  • *
  • Mix the lemon juice with the 50g of granulated sugar.
  • *
  • Divide the topping over the buns.
  • Sprinkle parings over the buns.

Heathcote, made in England, cake plate.

Duchess Bramble Rose Tea Rose

Lemon Soup

  • Once again this is a soup my mother never made.
  • It does fit in with the Polish love of ‘sour’.
  • It is very refreshing and would be good on  hot summer’s day.

INGREDIENTS

  • 150g of cooked rice – pudding or risotto works well. (around 50g per person).
  • 1½ litres of stock – I used 2 chicken stock cubes & 1 teaspoon of vegetable stock powder
  • 4-5 lemons
  • 2 tablespoons of potato flour (or cornflour)
  • 125ml of soured cream
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

METHOD

  • Cook the rice and leave to cool.
  • Bring the stock to the boil and leave at a gentle simmer.
  • Mix the potato flour with a little water and add this to the stock,
  • Stir well until the soup thickens.
  • Add the juice of 2 lemons.
  • Season to taste.
  • You can add more lemon juice if you wish.
  • Remove the skin from the other lemons and cut them into thin slices.
  • Add the lemon slices to the hot soup.
  • Put some rice into a soup dish for serving.
  • Pour the hot soup over this including some lemon slices.
  • Serve straight away.
  • *
  • Squeeze the juice out of the lemon slices when you are eating the soup.

Lemon Meringue Pie

  • I am sure this would be a popular dessert in Poland and would be a bezowa (meringue) tarta (tart)
  • This is said to have originated in the United States of America.

  • Custard pies of various kinds using egg yolks had been made in Britain and then America for years but the first mention of Lemon Meringue Pie is in a cookery book of 1869.

  • Mrs Elizabeth Goodfellow, who ran a pastry shop in Philadelphia, decided to use the leftover egg whites as a topping over a lemon custard.

  • Mrs Elizabeth Goodfellow also started America’s first cookery school.

     

    INGREDIENTS

    Shortcrust pastry

    *

    40g cornflour

    25g butter

    300ml water

    2 lemons rind & juice

    2 egg yolks

    50g caster sugar

    *

    2 egg whites

    50g & 50g caster sugar

    METHOD

    It is best to use a metal dish especially one with a loose base.

    Any diameter from 18cm to 22cm.

    Grease the dish well.

    Roll out the shortcrust pastry and line the dish.

    Place a circle of baking paper over the base and add “baking beans”.

    Bake blind at GM 7 – 220°C for around 15 minutes.

    Remove the beans and paper and bake for another 5 minutes.

    Leave to cool.

    *

    In a saucepan blend a little of the water with the cornflour.

    Add the rest of the water and the butter.

    Bring to the boil and then lower the heat

    Stir and cook for 3 minutes.

    Remove from the heat.

    Add the lemon rind and juice.

    Add the yolks and 50g of caster sugar.

    Mix well and leave to cool.

    *

    Pre-heat the oven to GM3 – 160°C.

    *

    Fill the pastry with the lemon mixture.

    *

    Whisk the egg whites till stiff.

    Whisk in 50g of caster sugar till stiff.

    Fold in 50g of caster sugar.

    Cover the pie with the egg white mixture.

    Make random peaks over the surface.

    Bake for 25 minutes.

    *

    Leave to cool before serving.

    OPTION

    If you have an extra egg white, say from making the pastry, use this with extra sugar for the topping.

  • Served here on Royal Doulton Tapestry.

Iced Lemon Yoghurt Cake

  • I have been looking for a good recipe, which uses yoghurt but not always with much success.
  • I came across this one the other week and tried it out.
  • Although I made a few alterations – I found that this is the best I have come across.
  • The texture is good and the taste is super.
  • I learnt a new tip, which was to add the lemon rind to the sugar for about 30 minutes – this releases more lemon oil.
  • *
  • I am going to adapt this to make an orange version very soon.

Ingredients

  • 200g plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 200g granulated sugar
  • Zest of 2 lemons
  • 185ml of Greek style Yoghurt
  • 3 eggs
  • 120ml sunflower oil
  • Large pinch of salt

Method

  • Add the zest to the sugar and leave for about 30 minutes.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180ºC.
  • Use a loaf liner to line a 2 lb loaf tin.
  • Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together.
  • Add the yoghurt and eggs to the sugar mixture.
  • Gradually add the flour mixture and mix well.
  • Add the oil and mix well again.
  • Pour the batter into the loaf tin and smooth the top.
  • Bake for around 45 to 50 minutes.
  • Check a little earlier and cover with greaseproof  paper if it is starting to burn.
  • Leave to cool in the tin.

Lemon Icing – Ingredients

  • 100g icing sugar – approx
  • 1 tablespoon of lemon juice

Lemon Icing – Method

  • Mix the icing sugar with the lemon juice.
  • Adjust sugar or juice to make a thin pouring icing.
  • Once the cake is cold, pour this over the cake.
  • Smooth down with a warm spatula.

Tea plates – Greenway Hostess by John Russell from the 1`960s.

Lemony Chicken Sauce

  • This is a lovely easy sauce to have with roast chicken or steamed vegetables.
  • It is served hot.

Ingredients

  • 500ml chicken stock (can be from a cube, powder or concentrate)
  • 50g butter
  • 25g plain flour
  • Salt and pepper
  • Juice of 1 lemon

Method

  • Gently melt the butter in a saucepan.
  • Stir in the flour and heat together.
  • Do not let it brown – just mix and stir for a few minutes.
  • Slowly add the stock – stirring all the time.
  • Cook for a few minutes.
  • Season to taste.
  • Just before serving – stir in the lemon juice.

Lemon Torcik

  • This is such an easy way to make the lemon and cheese mixture.
  • It is adapted from a recipe on a tin of condensed milk.
  • The bottom layer is made from a biscuit base – I have made a chocolate one.
  • You can adapt this base using different biscuits or omitting the chocolate.* see footnote photos
  • I used a little chocolate to decorate the top and this was enough for me.
  • You could add fruit and syrups or many other options.

Ingredients – Biscuit Base

  • 150g of Petit Beurre(morning coffee or similar) biscuits
  • 75g of butter
  • 50g – 75g of dark chocolate

Method

  • Grease a spring-form or loose bottomed tin with melted butter. (Use a 20cm or 22cm diameter tin).
  • Crush the biscuits in a bowl.
  • Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat then add the chocolate and let it melt.
  • Add the butter & chocolate mix to the biscuits and mix them all together.
  • Press the mixture into the base of the tin and leave it to cool completely.
  • Once cool you can put it in the tin and into the fridge for several hours.
  • You can leave this overnight if you wish.

Ingredients – Lemon Cheese

  • 300g of yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 1 tin of condensed milk (397g weight).
  • Juice and fine grated rind of 2 large lemons
  • *
  • Chocolate flake or grated chocolate to decorate.
  • Lemon rind strands from 1 lemon to decorate.

Method

  • If using your own yoghurt cheese, a good idea is to leave it overnight in a large sieve over a bowl to get rid of excess whey.
  • Put the yoghurt cheese, the condensed milk, the juice and rind of the lemons in a big bowl.
  • Whisk the contents together.
  • Spoon the mixture over the base and smooth the top.
  • Leave in the fridge for several hours or overnight.
  • *
  • Put long strands of lemon rind in around a tablespoon of granulated sugar.
  • Leave for around an hour.
  • *
  • Take great care when removing the torcik out of the tin.
  • Use a long thin spatula to ease the edge.
  • Use a tin to place the cake tin on, to move it apart from the base.
  • *
  • Decorate the edges and the centre with chocolate flake and lemon rind.

Served on tea plates by Greenway Hostess by John Russell –  1960-1979

*The following photos are from a version made  without the chocolate in the base and a fluted loose bottomed tin was used.

 

  • Served on Royal Doulton – Counterpoint tea-plates 1973 – 1987
  • Portmeirion Crazy Daisy cake forks by Sophie Conran from 2009.

Lemony Sauce

Sweet cream, either poured or whipped is not used in traditional Polish cooking.

Soured cream with the addition of a little icing sugar is often used to drizzle over sweet dishes such as pierogi with fruit fillings or with Polish style pancakes.

I have previously made a super beetroot & chocolate cake and topping this with a lemon butter icing.

This time I just wanted a lighter pouring sauce to go with the cake.

Ingredients

  • 100g of yoghurt cheese or cream cheese
  • 100g of icing sugar
  • Grated rind of 2 lemons
  • Juice from 1 lemon.

Method

  • Mix all the ingredients together to give a smooth sauce.

The contrast between the sauce and the rich cake is super.

Served on Royal Doulton  – Counterpoint tea plates – 1973 – 1987

Lemon Icing – American Style

I used to work online for an organisation in America and I still correspond by e-mail with one of my old colleagues.

He sent me a recipe for a Lemon Cake which his maternal grandmother, Maude Hodge, used to make, saying that this was his favourite cake and she often made it for his birthday.

My nephew, who is now working in America, loves lemon cake – I made him two types when he was here on a visit over a year ago – see previous posts – Lemon Drizzle and Lemon Cream Roulade.

I am sure he will love this one and if he makes it – the recipe will have crossed the Atlantic and back!

The recipe is for an icing or topping, which is a “cousin” to Lemon Curd and Lemon Meringue Pie filling.

I made two cakes using 4 eggs using a butter sponge as in  – How Did My Sponge Become Sandy? You could also use a fat free sponge. (Use 21 or 22 cm diameter tins)

The original instructions said to cut each cake into two so that you had four layers – my cutting ability is not that good! (Also I liked the thick layer in the middle)

You spread the icing on the layers to sandwich them together and then cover the top and sides.

Ingredients

  • 440g of granulated sugar
  • 250ml of water
  • 3 lemons – juice and finely grated rind
  • 1 egg
  • 5 tablespoons of cornflour
  • 1 teaspoon of butter

Method

  • In a saucepan mix the sugar, egg, cornflour and water together.
  • Add the lemon juice and rind.
  • Cook over a low heat, stirring gently until the mixture thickens.
  • Remove from the heat, add the butter and stir.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Place one of the cakes on a serving plate – one with a lip is best.
  • Spread the icing on the cake.
  • Put the other cake on top.
  • Cover the top and sides.

 

  • The cake is on a Walther  Glas crystal cake plate.
  • Served on Aynsley – Las Palmas tea plates,  from the 1960s.
  • Coffee cups & saucers by Colclough,  Ridgway Concord,  from the 1970s.

 

 

Lemon Cream Roulade

This cake is a roulade – in Polish  – rolada.

I made this cake for my nephew when he came to visit recently as he loves cakes with lemons.

You need to make the sponge for a “Swiss roll” and then fill it with lemon cream.

The sponge cake made using potato flour is very Polish but fresh double cream is not usually found in Polish cookery – soured cream is the norm.  Also lemon curd I think of as quite British although I did come across something similar in one of my Polish cooks books.   You can make your own lemon curd but I  use Sicilian lemon curd from Marks & Spencer as I think this is so lemony.

 

I made the sponge using the recipe  Biszkopt – Sponge Cake using Potato Flour

Or to be easier, use the English Style fat free sponge recipe from

Sponge with Sweet Orange Jam

Use the instructions for how to make and roll the roulade from the first recipe.

Both of  these recipes use 2 eggs.

Lemon Cream

I used a large tub of double cream 250ml/300ml – it was more than enough – I did not use it all.

I would think that 200ml of double cream would be enough.

I  whisked this up till it was thick and stiff.

I then added 3 -4 tablespoons of lemon curd and whisked again.

Unroll the cold sponge, spread it with the cream and roll up again.

Dredge with icing sugar

 

Cake Plate H & K Tunstall

 

 

Served on – Tuscan China – Bird of Paradise – Hand Painted – 1930s

 

 

 

 

 

Lemon Drizzle Cake

This is not a Polish recipe but my nephew loves cakes with lemons and after trying many versions this is the one I baked for him especially when he came to visit recently.  I will be sticking with this recipe from now on.

Ingredients – Cake

  • 175g butter or block margarine
  • 175g caster sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • Zest of 2 lemons
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 160g self-raising  flour

Ingredients – Drizzle

  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 110g caster sugar

Method

  • Grease and line a large (2lb) loaf tin – or use a ready bought liner.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM 4 – 180oC
  • Cream the butter and sugar till soft and fluffy
  • Add the lemon zest and mix again.
  • Add the eggs, 1 by 1, and mix well.
  • Add the juice of 1 lemon and mix well.
  • Fold in the flour with a metal spoon.
  • Put the mixture into the loaf tin and gently level the top.

  • Bake for around 50 – 60 minutes – check after 40 minutes and cover the top with greaseproof paper if needed to prevent the top burning.
  • Leave to cool slightly in the tin and then remove and place on a cake rack and allow to cool a little more.
  • Prepare the drizzle by mixing the sugar and lemon juice until it dissolves.
  • Remove the greaseproof paper or liner and place the cake onto a plate (a long rectangular one with a lip around the side is the best ) so that the base is flat and excess drizzle does not run off.
  • Prick the top of the cake with a skewer
  • Gently spoon all the drizzle over the top of the cake

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