~~~CITRUS-LEMON CURD CAKE~~~my 1st xmas tree '09

we simply loved all the little pockets of lemon curd & a thin layer too!!!

YIPPEEE.................The winds have changed,yeah the winds brought an almost windy cool breeze today & yeah ,finally after a day or 2 of "too much" hot weather it seems like we are steping into winter..

Oh am looking foward to my early morning cuppa tomorow to catch the morning dew on the foliage around...(slept in late today working on a few post drafts late or rather early into the morning light.
On my minds also,what do i bake next,have'nt even yet finished frosting& clicking my french sables but was thinking about another nm cookie too.
Finished with frosting and my experiments with lemon curd -----read here----i was itching to bake a cake or cuppies that had lemon curd combined in the batter,oh what a texture that would be & yes i mean ----this rich buttery lemon curd=------- is just perfect for that me thought...
Browsed online ,inbetween a busy day but found none that apealed and incorparated the batter in,then when i was almost close to hitting the sack,all sleepy with moony eyes,eureka ...eureka...i found it ....on alpineberry(cute cute blog & name too)
Oh & she spoke about meyer lemons all way thru,i've been dreaming dreams about the famous meyer lemon since i first read about 'em,oh wouldnt i have loved to have meyer lemons growing in my backyard(am sure going to research on the possibilities of these)& at the moment we have a small basket filled with lemons & talks over dinner do steer across to lemon & lemon curd & sweet lemon pickle(pure goan style) every so once & yeah i'm going to pop in a lemon curd cake for dinner,yeah.But then finally changed my mind coz of the egg white beating & made this one instead.

Ok the zesty buttery tangy lemon curd lay hidden ,right behind in the refrigerating system...no.no ,i didnt save it for any rainy days,with a zesty curd as this there are only sunny days ahead(minus the heat that accompanies) so was looking,left ,right ,centre and around for a citrusy cake as planned looking for a zesty cake with lemon curd incorporated into the batter ,not as a topping or filling...and finally finally finally i found one...so that was set....but wait ...that calls for beating egg whites real well & 6 of them ,oh yes i'd love to save the yolks for some more lemon curd but i dont have a stand mixer(yet)as a kitchen assistant & with an extremely tight weekly schedule of classes to attend,project work to wind up,a few lunches & dinners to be fixed,shopping to be done(right away sir) & linen to be sorted(oh... i'm already begining to sound like my mom-she's my adorable darling bdw) without even being a wife yet or anywhere close but i love what am up to & when am doing it with mom & dad its even more enjoyable....So bookmarked that recipe for 'soon to try' & chose this one instead.

And i actually had to stop any baking for a few days coz there was actually no butter in the market and if it hadnt been for a replenish yesterday i was soon going to begin baking with clarified butter.I was stumped,how can there be a shortage of butter,what will happen to us bakers who dont believe in substitutes unless its clarified butter,(which am going to stock on too)i called all the supermarkets a few times,till yesterday evening i got the news that one of 'em had reciv'd stock in 100 grms stick.i use those anyway coz makes for eaiser weighing in(for soemone who doesnt have a scale).We usually have around 14 sticks in supply all the time ,but exactly at this time we didn but now i heave a sigh of relief....the 2 b's ,breakfast & baking just got better again.....

But i had to tweak it to conjure what i had in mind,so brought down the butter to 100 grams from 185 grams coz was going to replace the juice with lemon curd that was already high on butter and eggs so for the same reason the eggs got down to 3 smallish instead of 3 largish.....
And i know dec is round the corner so i already begin to feel christmacy around the end of oct, ringer tone changes to 'mistletoe & wine' & so was itching to bring out my xmas tree cake tin,i had a feeling its going to be a little small but yet when ahead'lining it high all around yet had a spill but cool it was just as delicious....

LEMON CURD CAKE
----adapted from exclusively food---
100 grams butter
3/4 cup sugar(granulated)
3 smallish eggs
1.1/4 cup a.p. flour sifted with 2 tsp baking powder
7 tbh + 1/2 cup---b z lemon curd---
 TO BEGIN NOW
1. Beat butter with sugar till your hands can take it or till very creamy,almost mouussy,whichever comes earlier,if u have a stand mixer,well 20 mins is all it'll take while u fix urself a chilled pepsi or coffee,whatever goes best with the weather or ur mood.
2. Add in eggs ,one at a time beating well,between each addition.

I MANAGED TO DO THE BEATING BY HAND(& THEY DONT HURT YET)

THE REMAINING PICS ARE AFTER ADDING EGGS,ONE @ A TIME

3. Add the flour in 2 batches,mix well & tip in the 7 tbh ---lemon curd----.Fold in well
4. Pour into prepared pan(20cms),lined with baking paper & tap lightly. Spoon over remaining lemon curd & swirl into the batter.
5. BAke in pre-heated oven @ 180*c till done or springs back to touch.




 DRIZZLE ICING
All u need to do is blend AROUND 1/2 CUP OF----THIS SIMPLE LEMONY ICING HERE---WITH A TBH OF WATERand pour over.

I'M ALREADY FEELING LIKE ITS CHRISTMAS......