Lemon Paradise Cake

To prepare the lemon paradise cake, start with the preparation of the cake base. Combine the softened butter at room temperature with the granulated sugar in a bowl. Mix the ingredients with electric beaters until you get a creamy and homogeneous mixture 1. Grate the zest of the untreated lemons 2 and continue mixing the ingredients 3.

Take the eggs and separate the yolks from the whites (you will only need 4 whites, with the remaining you can prepare delicious meringues!): then add 8 yolks to the butter and sugar mixture 4, one at a time, always leaving the electric mixer running. Before adding another yolk, make sure the previously added ones are well mixed. Sift the flour and add it to the mixture 5. Still continuing to mix the ingredients with the beaters, also sift the cornstarch and baking powder into the bowl 6.

Whisk the mixture 7 until it achieves a homogeneous and compact consistency 7. Then proceed by adding a pinch of salt to the whites of 4 eggs that you set aside 8 and start whipping the egg whites until stiff 9.

When the egg whites are stiff 10, add them to the mixture 11. Gently mix them with a spatula using an upward motion to avoid deflating them 12.

Then pour the mixture into a 9.5-inch pan lined with parchment paper 13. Level the mixture with a spatula or a spoon to allow even baking 14. Now bake the paradise cake in a preheated static oven at 356°F for 60 minutes (or in a fan oven at 320°F for 50 minutes). When it is ready, take it out of the oven 15 and let it cool slightly, then remove it from the pan and transfer it onto a wire rack to cool completely.

While the cake is baking, prepare the Lemon Cream. In a small bowl, pour the yolks and granulated sugar 16 and with a hand whisk, mix the ingredients until the mixture is light 17. Then gradually add the sifted flour and cornstarch and continue mixing well to get a lump-free mixture 18.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a saucepan (it should not reach a boil), to which you add the grated zest of untreated lemon 19. Be careful to take only the yellow part of the peel because the white part has a bitter taste. When the flavored milk is almost boiling, incorporate it into the egg, sugar, and flour mixture, filtering it with a fine-mesh sieve to keep the lemon zest 20. Using a hand whisk, vigorously mix the ingredients to obtain a homogeneous and slightly thick mixture 21.

Pour the obtained cream into a saucepan (if you prefer, further filter it with a fine-mesh sieve to catch any lumps) 22. Heat the lemon cream over low heat, continuing to stir with the hand whisk 23 until the cream has thickened sufficiently and has a compact but soft consistency: it will take about 15 minutes. Finally, transfer the cream into a low and wide bowl and cover it with cling film touching the surface to prevent a crust from forming 24. Let it cool at room temperature, and when it has cooled, transfer it to the refrigerator for at least an hour.

At this point, the paradise cake will have cooled. With the help of a long-blade knife, mark a guideline on the edge halfway through the cake. Then make the cut along the guideline 25. Then transfer half of the cold lemon cream into a piping bag (the other half will be used to decorate the cake) and fill the base of the paradise cake with the lemon cream. Start from the edges and proceed with concentric circles until covering the entire surface 26. Place the other half of the paradise cake on top of the lemon cream and apply very light pressure with your hands 27. Transfer the assembled cake to the refrigerator.

Finally, whip the cream 28 and add it to the remaining lemon cream 29. Mix the whipped cream and lemon cream with the hand whisk to make the mixture homogeneous 30.

Then take the cake from the fridge and distribute part of the lemon and cream mixture, covering the entire surface evenly, using a spatula 31. Transfer the remaining cream into a piping bag with a star nozzle and create diagonal lines of cream on the sides of the cake for decoration 32. To finish the decoration, create dollops of lemon cream and whipped cream next to each other, starting from the outer edges of the cake's surface 33. Decorate the entire surface of the cake this way.

Now, on a cutting board, cut the candied lemons into small cubes 34 and scatter them over the decorated surface of the cake 35. Your lemon paradise cake is ready to be enjoyed 36!