Sweet, tart and easy to make from scratch, The Lemon Roulade is an elegant and impressive looking cake. A light and delicate lemon genoise sponge is rolled tightly around a thin layer of lemon curd then dusted with a fine layer of powdered sugar. Served with a dollop of whipped cream and an assortment of fresh berries, this is the perfect end to any meal. This recipe is designed to make two, half sheet pan sized roulades, wrapped tightly in parchment and plastic wrap, the second roulade can be frozen for about a month.
Working with the finished genoise sponge is really the only tricky part of this Lemon Roulade recipe, and even then, it’s not that tricky. After baking, the top is going to be the exterior of the roulade, so you need to flip the entire thing upside down without tearing or damaging it. It might be a little nerve racking the first time you do it, but it’s really not that bad. I’ll give detailed instructions on how to do it in the recipe.
Here is my Lemon Roulade Recipe:
Lemon Curd recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
- 6 Eggs
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- ½ Cup Cornstarch
- 4 Lemons, Zest and Juice
- 2 Lemons, Juice (leftover from the Genoise Sponge recipe)
- 1 Cup Butter, cut into ½ inch cubes
PROCESS:
-Place a small saucepan filled halfway with water on the stove, bring to a boil
-In a heatproof bowl, add all ingredients except butter, and whisk to combine
-Place the bowl over the boiling water, make sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl
-Whisk constantly until the curd is thick and an instant-read thermometer reads 170°F
-Remove from the heat and continue to whisk as you slowly add the butter, whisk until all the butter is incorporated
-Pour into a casserole dish so the curd is only ½ inch thick, place a piece of plastic directly on the surface of the curd to prevent a skin from forming, place in the refrigerator to cool
Lemon Genoise Sponge recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
- 8 Eggs
- 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 1/3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 Lemons, zest only
PROCESS:
-Preheat oven to 350°F
-Combine eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla and zest in a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, whisk the egg mixture to the ‘ribbon’ stage (triple in volume, thick, and a very pale yellow, almost white) About 4-5 minutes in a stand mixer
-In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients together
-Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and gently fold together, adding additional dry ingredients a third at a time.
-Spray two half sheet pans along all four edges, lay a piece of parchment along the bottom, and spray the parchment well with baking oil
-Divide the batter equally onto the two sheet pans and spread very evenly with an offset spatula.
-Place the sheet pans in the oven for approximately 10 minutes, take care not to brown the genoise sponge too much
-Touch the cake in the center, it will be delicate, but firm and spring back when fully baked
-Remove from oven and let cool completely
To form the Lemon Roulade:
PROCESS:
-After the sponge has cooled, run a knife around the edge of the sheet tray so the sponge is loose.
-Dust the top of the sponge well with powdered sugar to prevent sticking
-Lay a piece of parchment on top of the sponge and lay an empty sheet pan directly on top of the sponge
-Turn both of the sheet pans upside down to release the sponge
-Take care not to tear the sponge, gently remove the parchment from the bottom of the sponge
-It may be a little crisp around the edges, so trim 1-inch from all 4 sides of the sponge
-Using the offset spatula, spread a thin layer of curd over the surface of the sponge, a little less than half of the Lemon Curd recipe
-Start at one end of the sponge, begin to roll the roulade, use the parchment sheet underneath the sponge to help you roll it tightly
-Gently remove the parchment and lift the roulade onto the serving platter, dust the top with powdered sugar and enjoy!!!
