Lime Curd Cake

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 250 g butter, room temperature
• 350 g sugar
• 2 packets of vanilla sugar
• 250 g wheat flour type 405
• ½ pack of baking powder
• 8 eggs
• 125 g low-fat curd cheese
• 6 lime(s), untreated, juice and grated zest
• 2 pinches of salt
• possibly grease for the form, or baking paper

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 2 hours 30 minutes

Cake with lime cream and meringue topping

Preheat oven to 180°C (top/bottom heat) and line and/or grease a 26cm springform pan with baking paper. Grate the zest and juice all of the limes. Half of the juice and zest are for the batter and half for the curd, so collect them in separate containers if necessary. Separate 3 eggs. For the base, cream 125g butter with 100g sugar, 1 sachet of vanilla sugar, and half of the lime zest until fluffy. Stir in 2 eggs and the quark one after the other. Mix all of the flour with the baking powder and a pinch of salt and sift it into the butter, egg, and quark mixture. While continuing to stir, add half of the lime juice to the batter. Then spread the batter out in the prepared springform pan and bake for about 30 minutes. The skewer test determines whether the batter is cooked through but still moist. The curd and egg whites for the topping can be prepared while the pastry is baking. For the curd, slowly melt the remaining 125g butter in a large saucepan over low heat. In another bowl, beat 3 eggs and the separated egg yolks with 100g sugar and the rest of the grated lime zest and juice until thick and foamy. Then pour the egg and sugar mixture into the saucepan with the melted butter and start mixing everything together as quickly as possible. Now set the stove to medium heat and continue stirring with a whisk until the mixture noticeably thickens; it should have the consistency of a thick hollandaise sauce (Caution: Always stir the bottom of the pan, as the mixture can quickly set here). Once the curd is ready, remove the pan from the heat and turn it off, but continue stirring occasionally, as the residual heat can cause the cream to stick to the bottom of the pan. For the meringue topping, thoroughly rinse the mixer attachments again (they must be grease-free) and then, in a bowl that is also as grease-free as possible, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 150g of sugar to the beaten egg whites, continuing to beat for at least 5 minutes. If necessary, return to the refrigerator briefly. In the meantime, the base should be fully baked and have cooled slightly for perhaps 5-10 minutes (leave the base in the tin and the oven on!). Now pour the curd over the base and spread it evenly. Then, using a piping bag, spread the meringue mixture evenly over the curd layer. Return the cake to the oven for another 20-30 minutes, depending on the desired degree of browning of the meringue. Once the time has elapsed, turn off the oven and loosen the meringue from the sides of the tin to prevent cracks from forming. Then let it rest for about 30 minutes with the door slightly ajar (use a wooden spoon or something similar between the two). When removing from the pan, carefully loosen the meringue, curd, and any remaining batter around the inside edge with a knife or wooden skewer. It’s best to store the cake covered with a kitchen towel to keep the meringue crisp. I created this recipe to use up leftover limes after a party. 420 kcal per serving.