The lemon cake is a perfect dessert for any season, beloved by adults and children alike. A great classic of the Italian culinary tradition, it is particularly popular because it is easy to make, yet soft, simple, and highly fragrant. Due to the absence of butter, lemon cake is also very light and suitable for low-calorie diets: a slice of this delight has only 196 kcal, making it suitable even for those who are watching their figure. Let's discover the recipe to prepare a wonderfully soft and fragrant lemon cake, perfect for a snack, breakfast, or a special occasion. Enjoy it plain—with just a dusting of icing sugar!—or in the more delicious version, filled with lemon curd. 

Lemon Cake: a simple and genuine recipe

The lemon cake recipe is quick and easy, and it becomes even simpler to bring to the table by utilizing the many small kitchen appliances available in the Ariete catalogue. This extremely soft cake, with an authentic lemon flavor, delights everyone's palate using only a few ingredients: flour, eggs, sugar, and grated lemon peel. The great advantage is that the batter and cream are prepared in just 5 minutes, by simply mixing everything in a bowl and baking immediately after.

The ingredients for lemon cake

As mentioned, the ingredients for lemon cake are few and genuine, and all are easy to find. To make the base, referencing a springform pan of about 18-20 cm (7-8 inches), you will need:

• 200g (1.6 cups) all-purpose flour
• 50g (1/4 cup) sunflower oil
• 150g (3/4 cup) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 125g (1/2 cup) lemon yogurt (which can be easily substituted with 200g of Greek yogurt, mascarpone, heavy cream, or ricotta, or even 120g of milk)
• 1 packet of baking powder, equal to 16g (1 tbsp)
• Grated zest of 2 lemons
• 1 sachet of vanilla (or seeds from 1 pod or 1 teaspoon of extract)
• A pinch of salt

For a dessert with a creamy and virtually irresistible heart, we can also prepare the lemon curd for the filling. To do this, we will need:

• 120g (1/2 cup) water (or substitute with milk or a plant-based drink of your choice)
• 120g (1/2 cup) sugar
• 100g (7 tbsp) lemon juice filtered using the practical Ariete juicers
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 35g (1/4 cup) cornstarch (maizena)
• 2 egg yolks
• Vanilla (1 sachet, 1/2 pod, or 1 teaspoon of extract)

How to prepare the lemon cake base

To prepare a tall and soft base for our lemon cake, we must first arm ourselves with a hand mixer like those from the Mixy line by Ariete. Using the electric whisks, whisk the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and grated lemon zest in a bowl until you obtain a creamy mixture. Immediately after, gradually add the oil and yogurt, still mixing with the whisks.

Once this is done, add the flour and baking powder one teaspoon at a time—to avoid the formation of lumps—and mix again with the whisks, this time at the lowest speed. The batter obtained should now be poured into a baking pan, previously buttered and floured. With the oven already very hot for about 30-35 minutes. When the surface of the cake is golden, before completely removing it from the oven, it is advisable to do the toothpick test, which must come out dry. Finally, let it cool for about 15 minutes, then dust the surface with icing sugar.

How to prepare the lemon curd

Lemon cake is delicious plain, but it can be even more decadent by adding a filling of lemon curd. Even in this case, the procedure is very simple. Start by grating the lemon zest and placing it in a saucepan with the filtered lemon juice, using one of the juicers from the Ariete range. Separately, mix the cornstarch, water, and sugar until a creamy consistency is obtained. Place the saucepan over the heat, pour in the cornstarch syrup, and stir with a hand whisk for one or two minutes, until the mixture has thickened slightly. Add the egg yolks, stir over the heat for less than a minute until a creamy mixture is obtained, transfer it to a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap to let it cool.