I was hired to make a gluten-free sweet treat for a kind lady's 82nd birthday, and these beauties from Katarina Cermelj's Baked to Perfection gluten free cookbook were the perfect celebration bake! This lemon poppy seed sponge filled with tangy lemon curd and topped with a poppy seed Swiss meringue buttercream is so well balanced in flavor and sweetness, and the crumb is so tender, you'd never guess it's missing the gluten.
I'm including the base recipe as I made it below, but I highly recommend investing in the entire Baked to Perfection cookbook to anyone seriously interested in gluten-free baking. Cermelj is an expert in developing exceptional gluten-free recipes, including loads of tips, tricks, and invaluable information. This is why there is some detailed and specified instructions in this recipe, like specific temperatures, swapping out stand mixer attachments, and using room temperature ingredients. These little secrets make a big difference in this specialized world of baking, but they ensure you will end up with killer gluten-free bakes each and every time!
Gluten-Free Lemon Curd Poppy Seed Cupcakes
(Original recipe: Baked to Perfection)
Cupcakes
200g gluten-free flour
60g almond flour
200g sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp salt
4 TBSP poppy seeds
Zest of 2 lemons
130g unsalted butter, softened
160g whole milk, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
2 egg whites, room temperature
2 TBSP lemon juice
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
Preheat the oven to 320F and prep a 12-count cupcake tin with liners.
Into the bowl of a stand mixer, sift together the gluten-free flour, almond flour, sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt. Stir in the poppy seeds and lemon zest. Add the butter and use the paddle attachment to work it into the dry ingredients until it resembles breadcrumbs.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, egg whites, lemon juice, and vanilla paste. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture in two batches, mixing well after each, until you get a smooth batter with no clumps of flour.
Pour the batter equally into the 12 cupcake liners. Each should be 3/4 full. Bake for 22-24 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Once baked, allow to cool on a wire rack.
Lemon Curd
60g lemon juice
75g sugar
1/4 tsp salt
3 egg yolks
50g unsalted butter
Add all ingredients except the butter to a saucepan. Whisk until evenly incorporated.
Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until it reaches 168-172F and starts to thicken.
Remove from the heat. Stir in the butter until melted and well combined. If needed, strain through a sieve to remove any chunks or pulp.
Place a piece of cling film over the top to prevent a skin from forming, and allow to cool completely.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream
6 egg whites
375g sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
400g unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp TBSP poppy seeds
Mix the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a heatproof bowl. Place over a double boiler and stir continuously until the mixture reaches 149F and all the sugar has dissolved.
Remove from the heat and transfer to a stand mixture fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium-high speed until it has cooled to room temperature and has greatly increased in volume, about 7 minutes.
Switch the stand mixer to the paddle attachment, and lower the speed to medium. Slowly add the butter in 1-2 TBSP chunks until fully incorporated and the buttercream is smooth and fluffy.
NOTE: It's normal for Swiss meringue buttercream to appear curdled while it's coming together. Keep whisking. However, if it still looks curdled after you've been whisking for a long time, your butter was probably too cold. Place the bowl over the double boiler again for a few seconds (or use a hair dryer to warm up the bowl) and continue whisking the buttercream. It should come together.
Fold in the poppy seeds and salt, gently mixing to incorporate them.
To assemble the cupcakes, use an apple corer to remove the center of each cooled cupcake, and fill with the cooled lemon curd.
Fill a piping bag with the buttercream, and pipe it on top of each cupcake. I used a Wilton 1M piping tip.
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