Lemon & strawberry cake

A new strawberry cake, but this time with a lemon touch ! Strawberry cakes are always a rather fresh and fruity dessert, but I wanted something even lighter and with peps, and I love the strawberry & lemon combination, so the idea seemed pretty obvious : a sponge cake with lemon zest, and a lemon cream combined with lots of well-scented strawberries. The result is a perfect summer dessert that didn't last long around here ! I used both lemons and limes, but you can use only one or the other according to your preferences. You can also make a raspberry cake on the same base, in this case I advise you to use limes that go very well with raspberries.

Prep time : 1 hour + 15 minutes cooking + some time in the fridge
For a 18 to 20cm strawberry cake :

Lemon sponge cake :

100g eggs

60g caster sugar

60g flour

The zest of a lemon and a lime

Whisk the eggs with the sugar and lemon zest until the mixture is well blanched and puffy.

Add the sifted flour, mixing very gently with a maryse, then pour into a mould 18 or 20cm in diameter.

Bake in the preheated oven at 170°C for 15 to 20 minutes (check with a toothpick or the blade of a knife).

Lemon mousseline cream :

300g milk

75g liquid cream

90g egg yolks

90g sugar

30g cornstarch

The zest of a lemon and a lime

20g butter (1)

80g butter (2)

Crème pâtissière :

Put the milk, cream and lime and lemon zest in a saucepan. Bring to the boil.

Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and cornstarch.

Pour the hot milk over it, whisking well, then pour it back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat until thickened.

Off the heat, add the butter (1), stirring well, then pour into a container and put a plastic wrap on it.

Let it cool.

Crème mousseline :

When the cream is cold, soften the butter. Put it in the food processor with the whisk.

Gradually add the pastry cream, whisking at low speed. Continue to whip for several minutes, until the cream is smooth, frothy and airy, then proceed to the assembly.

Punch :

35g lemon juice

25g of water

100g of sugar

Pour all the ingredients into a saucepan and bring to a boil to dissolve the sugar.

Assembly :

500g strawberries

Place your circle/mold on the serving dish, then place a strip of rhodoid around the edge. Cut slices of strawberries and place them on the rhodoid.

Cut the sponge cake in half, and soak both parts with the lemon punch.

Place the base of the sponge cake in the circle, then pipe half of the mousseline cream.

Arrange the chopped strawberries in the cream (remember to keep a few for decoration), then cover with cream.

Place the second sponge cake, then finish with a little cream to smooth the top.

Place in the refrigerator for a few hours.

For decoration, I used freeze-dried fruit powder from Koro with some strawberries and lemon & lime supremes, you can also use whipped cream or marzipan.

And there you have it, your strawberry cake is ready, you can enjoy it !