Monday, February 21, 2011

Everyday Yumminess: Lemon Pudding Cake

I bought this bag of lemons at Costco a while back, and then a change in menu plans left me with 5 pounds of lemons in the fridge and no plans to use them. Luckily, lemons make me think of one of my all-time favorite (and healthy, too!) desserts: Lemon Pudding Cake.
From the time I first saw this recipe while flipping through a Gourmet magazine in grad school, I never ceased to be amazed by how easy and satisfying this dish is. The only changes I made are: (1) using slightly less sugar than the recipe calls for, (2) replacing the milk with dry milk and water, since I was out of milk when I decided to make this, and (3) I bake the servings in individual ramekins and adjust cooking times accordingly (30 minutes instead of 45-50).
Simple ingredients: eggs, milk, lemons, flour, sugar.
The eggs are separated, and yolks are combined with sugar, milk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Flour and salt are whisked together, then combined with the wet ingredients, while egg whites are whipped to soft peaks.
Fold the contents of these two bowls together, divide among ramekins, and you're ready for the oven.
The recipe calls for cooking in a water bath...
... and the cakes are done when they're starting to be a lovely golden brown on top.
From the outside, this appears to be just your average soufflé, but it's much more than that...
When you cut into the cake with a spoon, you see that this airy top layer hides an oozy, delicious pudding layer.
It had been a few years since last I baked this... for reasons that I cannot fathom. So easy. So delicious. What's not to love?

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