Lemon delights (delizie al limone) – Italian recipe (VIDEO)

The lemon delights (delizie al limone) are delicious mini sponge cakes filled and topped with a smooth lemon custard, a traditional recipe of the Amalfi coast… you’ll fall in love with them!

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These wonderful lemons of Sorrento will be the main ingredient of today’s recipe, delicious dome-shaped sponge cakes filled and topped with a smooth custard: the delizie al limone, that is the lemon delights.

Let’s see what we’ll need:

For the mini sponge cakes, we’ll have:
• 1 ½ cups (300 g) of sugar / just under 2 ½ cups (300 g) of flour
• 1 ¼ cups (300 g) of egg whites / 2/3 cup (150 g) of egg yolks
• and the grated zest of 1 organic lemon (zest)
For the soaking syrup, we’ll use:
• the grated zest of 1 organic lemon (zest)
• ½ cup (100 g) of sugar / less than ½ cup (100 ml) of water
• 2/3 cup (150 ml) of lemon liqueur (limoncello) For the lemon custard, we’ll have:
• the grated zest of 2 organic lemons (zest)
• 2 cups (500 ml) of heavy cream
• Less than 1 cup (200 ml) of water / 1 cup (200 g) of sugar
• 1 ¾ sticks (200 g) of butter / less than 1 cup (200 g) of egg yolks
• just under ½ cup (50 g) of powdered sugar
• 1/5 cup (50 ml) of lemon liqueur (limoncello)
• ¾ oz (20 g) of gelatin sheets

Let’s prepare together the lemon delights:

Begin to prepare the lemon delights by beating the egg yolks with ¾ cup (150 g) of sugar, until pale and foamy. Beat the egg whites with the remaining ¾ cup of sugar, this time adding the sugar little by little. When stiff peaks form, combine the 2 mixtures; after that, add the sifted flour and the grated zest of a lemon. Stir gently to blend all the ingredients.
Put the mixture in a pastry bag, to fill the moulds easily; as you can see, the moulds are round with a diameter of about 3 inches (8 cm), and they can be made of silicone or metal. So, fill the moulds, then bake the pan in static oven at 350°F (180°C) for about 20 minutes.
Now, prepare the lemon custard: melt the sugar in water; as soon as it comes to a boil, add the grated zest of 2 organic lemons, turn off the heat and let it steep for at least half an hour.
Strain the syrup and put on the stove again; then, in a bowl, beat the egg yolks with a whisk. As soon as the syrup comes to a boil, add it to the egg yolks in a thin stream, stirring with the whisk.
Soak the gelatin in very cold water and let it stay for 10 minutes, until softened. In a pan, pour the yolk mixture and the syrup. Now that it’s come to a boil, pour in the lemon liqueur and the butter. When the butter begins to melt, let it cook on a very low flame for at least 2-3 minutes.
When the gelatin has softened, strain and add it to the mixture, that is boiling. Stir for a few seconds and the gelatin will melt immediately, as you can see. Now pour the custard into a large shallow container, like this one; cover the custard with cling film, so that it clings closely to the surface, then put everything in the fridge, until nice and firm. To speed up, you can keep it in the freezer.
Now it’s time to prepare the soaking syrup, so pour the water into a saucepan, the lemon liqueur, the sugar, the grated zest of 1 organic lemon and allow the sugar to melt; as soon as it comes to a boil, turn off the heat and let it cool. Once cold, strain the mixture to remove the lemon zest.
When you take the custard out of the fridge, it will look gelatinous and firm, so put it in a blender and let it run until creamy. Then whip 2 cups (500 ml) of heavy cream with just under ½ cup (50 g) of powdered sugar, and add it to the custard. Stir gently to blend. If you see any lumps, strain the custard: the consistency will remain the same.
Now, we’ll assemble the dessert: take a mini sponge cake, pull some dough out of the middle and form an indentation for the filling; keep the dough aside, since you’ll need it later. Now soak the inside with the soaking syrup, that is now cold, and pipe in the custard, that has been put in a pastry bag so that it’s easier to handle. Close it with the dough that has been set aside, and continue this way with all the mini sponge cakes.
Now we’ll make the custard to top the lemon delights, so: take the remaining lemon custard and thin with a few tablespoons of milk, light cream, or lemon liqueur, as you prefer.
Put the sponge cakes on a cake rack and place a plate below to catch any drippings. Now soak the surface with the soaking syrup, then cover with the thinned custard, use plenty of custard so that it pours down the sides to top the whole dessert. Do the same with the remaining lemon delights.
Keep your lemon delights in the fridge for at least an hour, then garnish with whipped cream and candied lemon zest. From Sonia and Giallozafferano, bye and see you next video recipe.