Lemon Meringue Cupcakes
Printby Sandra Nickerson on Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at 4:26pm
I love these cupcakes. I loved mixing them, filling them and making the meringues. Most of all, I loved eating them.
The cake is moist and tender with a light lemon flavor from zest that is stirred into the batter. It is possible that lemon juice would have added to the intensity, but I don’t think that it would have been necessary since the cupcakes were filled with lemon curd. In fact, as you eat the cake, you will come across a bright burst of tart-sweet lemon in the center; more lemon flavor isn’t even necessary. The meringue makes a nice change from more traditional buttery frostings, too. It is light enough not to take away from the flavor of the cake, but it adds a bit of extra sweetness and a delightful look. And it also gave me an excuse to use my kitchen torch to brown the peaks.
I used a cooked meringue for these, so they would stay stable at room temperature for several hours, though they can be finished and refrigerated for 24 hours. If you don’t have a small kitchen torch, just place the cupcakes on a baking sheet, top with meringue and put them under the broiler for about 3 minutes, until lightly browned.
Lemon Meringue Cupcakes
Lemon Meringue Pie Cupcakes
Makes 18 cupcakes.
- 1 cup cake flour
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup butter, very soft
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon zest (from 2 large lemons)
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup milk, room temperature
- Preheat oven to 375F. Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners.
- Sift together cake flour, ap flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
- In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and lemon zest until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg thoroughly, followed by vanilla. Alternate milk and flour in three additions, ending with flour.
- Evenly distribute in prepared pans.
- Bake at 375F for 18-20 minutes, until a tester comes out clean and the cake springs back when lightly pressed.
- Remove to a wire rack to cool.
Once the cupcakes are cool, fill a metal-tipped pastry bag with lemon curd (recipe follows, or you may use store-bought) and pipe into cupcakes. Poke the tip of the pastry bag 1/2-1 inch into the top of each cupcake and squeeze about 2 tsp lemon curd into it. You might not use all the curd.
Meringue Frosting
- 3 egg whites
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
- Set a glass or metal bowl over a sauce pan with an inch or two of boiling water in it (i.e. use a double boiler) and beat egg whites in it until foamy.
- Add in cream of tartar and beat until fluffy but not yet at soft peaks. Stream in sugar until meringue reaches fairly stiff peaks.
- Spread on cupcakes with a small knife or offset spatula.
- Brown with a blowtorch or place on a baking sheet under the broiler until lightly browned, about 3 minutes.
Lighter Lemon Curd
Makes 2/3 cup.
(adapted from Chocolate and the Art of Low Fat Desserts)
- 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 tsp lemon zest
- 5 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- In a small sauce pan, over medium heat, dissolve sugar into lemon juice. Add zest.
- Lightly beat egg in a small/medium bowl. Whisking constantly, slowly pour lemon/sugar syrup into the egg. Beat for 2 minutes (only 1 if you’re using a mixer), then transfer back into the saucepan.
- Heat over low heat, stirring constantly, until it just starts to bubble at the edges. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
- Transfer to a small container and store in the fridge.