Raspberry Lemon Torte Food

RASPBERRY, LEMON & FRANGIPANE TART

Steps:

• To make the pastry, put the flour and butter in a large bowl and rub them together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Tip in the sugar, lemon zest and a pinch of salt and mix slightly. Now work in the egg yolk and vanilla extract until you have a smooth dough. Roll the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).
• While the pastry is chilling, make the lemon crème pâtissière (lemon custard). Put the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk together using a balloon whisk for 1-2 minutes until the mixture turns pale. Tip in the flour and cornflour and mix well. Put the milk and lemon zest in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Pour the boiling milk over the mixture in the bowl, whisking continuously until everything is smooth.
• Pour the custard into the pan, place over a medium heat and simmer for 2 minutes, stirring continuously until it has thickened. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and butter. Pour the custard into a clean bowl and cover the surface with cling film to stop a skin forming. Leave to cool, then put in the fridge until completely cold. (The custard will keep in the fridge for up to 2 days.)
• To make the frangipane (almond cream), tip all the ingredients into a bowl and mix until everything is well combined. (The frangipane will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days.)
• On a floured surface, roll out the chilled pastry to the thickness of a £1 coin, then use to line a 25cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Trim the pastry with a small knife but leave a lip hanging over the edge. Chill the tart case for at least 1 hour - if you have room to put it in the freezer, this would be ideal.
• Put a baking tray in the oven and preheat the oven to fan 180C/ conventional 200C/gas 6. Using a spatula, stir the crème pâtissière until smooth, then spread three quarters of it over the base of the tart case.
• Spoon the frangipane into a piping bag fitted with a smallish nozzle (about 1cm). If you don't have a piping bag, spoon the mixture into a tough plastic bag, squeeze it into the end, then cut off the tip. Pipe lines of frangipane evenly over the custard. Don't worry about the gaps, as the frangipane will spread while cooking.
• Put the tart tin on the hot baking tray and bake for 30-40 minutes until the frangipane is golden brown and the pastry is biscuity brown. The frangipane will puff up during the baking. Trim off the overhanging pastry with a small knife to give a professional finish. Lift the tart and base from the tin and leave on a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make the topping, put the cream in a bowl and lightly whip until billowy. Using a spatula, gently fold the remaining crème pâtissière into the cream, then spread the mixture evenly over the frangipane.
• Arrange the raspberries on top, placing them upside down in concentric circles as closely as possible. Put the jam and kirsch in a small pan and bring to the simmer, stirring, until it lightly coats the back of the spoon. Using a pastry brush, gently brush the raspberries with the glaze. Cool slightly, then, using a palette knife, ease the tart off the base on to a serving plate.

LIMONCELLO RASPBERRY TORTE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, using a fork, mash 3/4 of the berries with the sugar and liqueur until fruit is broken down but still slightly chunky. Refrigerate for 20 minutes and up to overnight for flavors to meld.
• When ready to serve, put the cheese on a plate with a rim. Fold the remaining whole berries into the chilled berry/liqueur mixture until combined and spoon it over the top of the cheese. Serve with a cheese knife to smear the delicious mixture on the shortbread cookies.

CINNAMON RASPBERRY TORTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a mixing bowl place the margarine, ground almonds, flour, cinnamon and egg.
• Mix until everything is mixed well.
• Spread half of this mixture in a greased and base lined with parchment paper 8 inch spring-form baking tin.
• Use a fork and flatten slightly.
• Top this with the raspberries, and then top that with dots of the remaining torte mixture, try to cover most of the fruit.
• Stand the tin on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes; cover it with foil if the top is getting too brown.
• Remove from the oven when the torte feels just firm and slightly springy.
• Leave in the tin to cool for approx one hour.
• Make the sauce in the meantime, puree the raspberries in a food processor or blender with the lemon juice and the sugar, and then push through a sieve to remove the pips, taste the sauce and add more sugar if you find it too tart.
• Remove the cooled torte from the tin, dust with the sugar/cinnamon.
• Serve a slice of the torte slightly warm with some of the raspberry sauce and the cream/yogurt mix.

LEMON TORTE

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Add vanilla and cream of tartar; beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1 cup sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, beating on high until stiff and glossy peaks form and sugar is dissolved. , Spread in a well-greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Bake at 300° for 1 hour. Cool on a wire rack. , Meanwhile, in the top of a double boiler, whisk egg yolks until lemon-colored. Add the lemon juice, zest and remaining sugar. Cook over hot but not boiling water, stirring occasionally, until thickened and a thermometer reads 160°. Cool to room temperature. , Spread half of whipped cream over meringue shell; cover with lemon mixture. Top with remaining whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate. Best made one day before serving.

LEMON RASPBERRY CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Cut out two 9-inch round segments of parchment paper to line your cake pans with. Spray each pan generously - sides and bottom - with nonstick cooking spray, then place the parchment paper cut out in the bottom of the pans and spray again. It's important to make sure every bit of pan and paper are sprayed so your cakes don't get stuck. Set pans aside.
• In a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer (or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), combine the butter, both sugars, lemon zest, lemon extract, and vanilla extract; beat on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes (don't skimp on time here!). Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Set aside.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, mixing well to evenly combine the ingredients. Add the dry mixture into the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until everything is just barely combined. You should still see some lumps and dry streaks. Turn mixer off. Add in the milk, sour cream, and lemon juice; use a rubber spatula to fold the ingredients into the mixture, stirring until everything is incorporated, but being sure not to overmix. Set aside.
• In another bowl, gently toss the raspberries with 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Add the raspberries, and any remaining flour, to the batter and fold in by hand, using a rubber spatula, until just combined. Again, be sure not to over mix! Over mixing is very easy to do, and will result in a dry, dense cake.
• Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the tops are firm and slightly golden, and a cake tester (or toothpick) inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist (but not wet) crumbs clinging to it.
• Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes before gently running a knife around the edges to loosen any stuck bits, then turning them out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
• While the cakes cool, you can make the frosting.

SPECIAL RASPBERRY TORTE

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°. Line bottoms of two greased 9-in. round baking pans with parchment paper; grease paper., In a large bowl, cream butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in extract. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition., With clean beaters, beat egg whites on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter., Transfer batter to prepared pans. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and edges are golden, Cool in pans 10 minutes before removing to wire racks; remove paper. Cool completely. In a large bowl, beat shortening and butter until combined. Beat in confectioner's sugar alternately with extract and enough milk to reach a spreading consistency., Using a long serrated knife, cut each cake horizontally in half. Place one cake layer on a serving plate; spread with half of the preserves. Top with another cake layer and 3/4 cup frosting. Place third cake layer over frosting; spread with remaining preserves. Top with remaining cake layer., Frost top and sides of cake with 1 cup frosting, forming a crumb coating. Refrigerate cake until frosting is set, about 30 minutes. Remove from refrigerator and cover with remaining frosting. Top with raspberries.

RASPBERRY-LEMON TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Using your fingers, combine the butter, ½ cup of the sugar, and 1 and ½ cups of the flour and blend together until coarse crumbs form.
• Pour mixture into an ungreased nonstick 9 inch springform or cake pan and press evenly to form a crust.
• Bake the crust until lightly golden, about 20 minutes.
• Remove the crust from the oven and reduce the temperature to 325 degrees.
• Scatter the drained raspberries evenly over the baked crust.
• Beat the eggs with the remaining ¾ cup of sugar.
• Whisk in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and the remaining ¼ cup of flour.
• Pour the lemon cream over the raspberries.
• Bake the tart until the custard is set, about 30 minutes.

ELEGANT RASPBERRY LEMON TORTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 F and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper. Trace an 8-inch circle on one sheet of parchment and flip it over so the ink is on the bottom.
• Prepare the lady finger batter (as above) and fill a piping bag fitted with a plain tip. Pipe a spiral of batter, following the circle and pipe spiraling inward to fill the circle. On the second baking tray, pipe 18 to 22 ladyfingers about 3 inches long. Bake for about 8 minutes (the circle of batter will take about10 minutes) and allow the ladyfingers to cool on the tray before lifting off.
• For the lemon mousse, bring the lemon juice and ½ cup of the sugar up to a simmer. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the remaining ½ cup of sugar. Slowly pour the lemon syrup into the eggs while whisking and then return the entire mixture to the pot. Whisk this over medium heat until it just begins to bubble, about 2 minutes, then remove this from the heat and whip with electric beaters or in a stand mixer until cool. Add the butter and zest and beat in until smooth.
• Whip the cream to a soft peak and fold this into the lemon mixture in two additions.
• To assemble the torte, place the disc of ladyfinger cake in the bottom of an ungreased 9-inch springform pan. Trim bottom of the lady fingers so they can stand upright around the inside edge of the pan, and so that they are the same height as the pan (2-inches). Arrange these in the pan. Spread a 1-inch layer of mousse over the cake and arrange half of the raspberries overtop. Spread the remaining mousse over the berries and use an offset spatula to ensure the mousse is level. Chill the torte for at least 4 hours.
• To serve, remove the springform ring from the pan and slide the torte onto a serving platter. Arrange the remaining 1 cup of raspberries on top of the torte and serve.

LEMON RASPBERRY TARTS

Steps:

• For the curd: Whisk together the sugar and eggs in a heatproof bowl until the sugar is completely dissolved. Reserve 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest for garnish, then stir the lemon juice and remaining zest into the sugar-egg mixture. Put the bowl over a double boiler and cook, whisking, until the mixture thickens, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter. Scrape into a clean bowl and press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the curd. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
• For the raspberry sauce: Reserve 12 raspberries for garnish and put the rest into a small pan. Add the sugar and cook over medium-low heat, breaking up the raspberries to release their juices. Do not let boil. Strain the juice into a bowl and let cool; discard the solids.
• For the tarts: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Put the phyllo shells on a baking sheet and bake until lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the shells to a rack to cool.
• To assemble the tarts: Spoon a small amount of the raspberry sauce into each tart shell. Whisk the cream with a spoonful or 2 of the raspberry sauce and a splash of vanilla. Fill each shell with the lemon curd and then top with a dollop of whipped cream and a whole raspberry. Sprinkle with some of the reserved lemon zest and add a mint leaf.

FOUR-LAYER LEMON TORTE WITH LEMON CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch-diameter springform pans with 2 3/4-inch-high sides. Combine first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 28 minutes. Cool cakes completely in pans on racks.
• Using small knife, cut around sides of pans to loosen cakes. Remove pan sides. Using serrated knife, cut each cake horizontally in half. Place 1 cake layer, cut side up, on platter. Spread with 1/4 cup preserves, then 3/4 cup frosting. Top with second cake layer, cut side up. Spread with 1/4 cup preserves, then 3/4 cup frosting. Repeat with third cake layer. Top with fourth cake layer, cut side down. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Press almonds onto sides of cake. Chill until frosting sets, about 2 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled.)