New Orleans Lemon Doberge Cake

Story, recipe and photo from Cooking with Herb St. Absinthe

Lemon Doberge Cake

Last Sunday, we made a Chocolate Doberge Cake, the gold standard by which all New Orleans Doberge cakes are held. You could also combine to make a half/half Doberge Cake like Gambino’s Bakery (available for $74.50, including shipping).

Photo from the World-Famous Gambino's Bakery in NOLA

Follow the same recipe for the cake as Chocolate Doberge Cake. the filling is essentially a lemon curd recipe, I would bet that a straight lemon curd would be very good in this cake. The first frosting is a simple flavored decorator’s icing.

However, the traditional Doberge Cake uses a poured fondant frosting, the kind that “snaps” under the knife, I am also including that recipe for purists. I highly suggest that you make the frosting 24 hours before you are ready to assemble your cake. It is also wise to make the filling the day before so that it is nice and chilled when you go to spread it on your cake layers. EDIT: to get the fondant frosting to stick well, many bakers will frost with another kind of frosting first. Use the first frosting recipe as a first layer and then use the poured fondant for better coverage and a more professional looking cake. No one said we didn’t like sugar in New Orleans!

Lemon Filling

1 1/2 cup sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup water
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons lemon peel
2/3 cup lemon juice

Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan and slowly add water. Bring to a boil while stirring, boil mixture for 1 minute. Add half of hot mixture to egg to temper, then blend in rest of mixture. Bring back to a boil and boil for another minute. Remove from heat and add butter, lemon peel and juice. Refrigerate before filling cake layers.

Lemon Frosting

1 box (1 lb.) confectioner’s sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1/2 cup shortening
2 egg whites
pinch of salt
yellow food dye

Sift sugar and cornstarch over shortening and mix thoroughly. Blend in egg whites, salt and flavoring. You may need to add a little water to thin this out, weather and humidity can affect this frosting. Add dye at the end, add as many drops to achieve desired hue of yellow.

Poured Fondant Frosting

2-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup

Heat sugar, water and corn syrup to the soft-ball stage (238°F; 114°C). Pour into a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Wash the candy thermometer well and reinsert into the syrup. Let the syrup cool undisturbed in the workbowl to 140°F (60°C), about 30 minutes. Remove the thermometer.

Add any coloring or flavoring (1 to 2 teaspoons lemon oil and/or 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel, 2 to 4 ounces melted unsweetened chocolate, etc.) and process 2 to 3 minutes, until the syrup completely converts from a glassy syrup to an opaque paste. When thoroughly cooled. store sealed at room temperature for 24 hours. Use or refrigerate for later use.

Linking to Mellow Yellow Monday