In the next day or two lots of us will feel like we overdid it in the food or drinks department. I thought therefore you might appreciate my light lemon roularde. In this recipe I decided to make my own Lemon Curd to show you how very easy it is to make and homemade can make a big difference to the taste of of any dessert. This particular version I created is egg-less so it has a longer shelf life. It's zesty and has a nice clean lemon taste so it's great in this popular dessert and also delicious on warm buttered toast.
Meringue
5 egg whites
Pinch of salt
150g (6oz) caster sugar
250ml (8fl oz) double cream
vanilla pod
Lemon Curd
6 lemons zest & juice
75g (3oz) caster sugar
3 Tbsp custard power
60g (2 oz)butter
1. Preheat the oven to 170 deg.C/325deg.F/Gas Mark 3,
2. Using a scrupulously clean bowl and whisk, beat the egg whites and salt.
3. Begin to add 150g of sugar and whisk until stiff shiny peaks.
4. Line a non-stick shallow baking tray 9"x 13" (Swiss roll tin) with parchment paper.
5. Bake in the oven on the bottom shelf for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch.
6. Sprinkle another piece of parchment with icing sugar and turn out the merginue onto it.
7. Leave for 15 minutes then remove the parchment paper the meringue was baked on.
8. Roll up the meringue on the icing sugar coated paper on the long side and allow to cool.
9. Whisk the custard power and 75g of caster sugar into the lemon zest and juice and bring to the boil in a nonstick saucepan.
10. Allow to thicken stirring well for several minutes then remove from the heat and cool over a bowl of ice. When luke warm whisk in the butter.
11. Scrap the vanilla seeds from the pod into the cream then whisk until soft peaks.
To assemble
Gently unroll the cool meringue and spread the cream on evenly.
Next spread half the lemon curd on top of the cream then gently roll up as neat and tight as you can. Allow to set for one hour in the fridge before cutting into portions and serve with the remaining lemon curd.
Cut the roularde using a sharp carving knife using a sawing motion (and not pressing down), so you don't make the slices look crushed.
Chef's Tip
As you can see from the photo I also made a sauce anglaise to serve with the roularde because I felt it added an extra dimension to the dish.* If you can find custard powder then you could substitute with
3 Tbsp cornstarch,2 egg yolks and a few drops of good quality vanilla essence.
