Inspired by Victorian sponge cakes, these elegant, mini stacks make clever use of a muffin pan. Once completely cooled, the cakes are split and filled with the un-doctored preserves and lemon-swirled whipped cream, with a little of each dolloped on top for a finishing flourish. They’re impressively charming but simple to execute, perfect for any springtime celebration.
Lemon curd adds nuance and brightness to a simple whipped cream
Lemons are prized for their ability to lighten and brighten. They not only temper aggressive bitterness and salinity, but make sugary desserts less cloying by providing a hit of acid, which affects the way other flavors interact with your taste buds. But adding straight lemon juice to whipped cream wouldn’t do these cakes many favors. Lemon juice is clean and tart, with a tiny bit of sugar, but it isn’t exactly complex. The complexity lies in the peel of the fruit, which is packed with an aromatic bouquet of oils that impart floral, citrusy notes with hints of lemongrass.
Instead of zesting and juicing a pile of lemons, we turn to Bonne Maman Lemon Curd. Made with both lemon zest and juice, you get all the best parts of the lemon in one convenient jar, without any bitter pith or seeds. The two are cooked down with sugar, butter and eggs, giving the curd a spoonable, almost pudding-like consistency. Unlike juice—or even zest—the curd can be swirled into softly whipped cream, for ribbons of tangy sweetness that heighten the richness of the dairy and keeps it from falling flat on the tongue.
Using a blender ensures the wet ingredients are fully emulsified
Creaming together butter and sugar is the first step in many cake recipes. Bashing the fat and sugar against the side of a mixing bowl ensures the sugar is evenly distributed, but it also introduces air, adding volume to your batter with “mechanical leavening.” Most of the time, this is done with a stand mixer, hand mixer, or heavy wooden spoon. Once the butter and sugar are “light and fluffy,” the eggs are added, one at a time, making sure each one is fully incorporated before adding another. Eggs add richness and body, but they also help marry the water and fat in your recipe, creating a stable emulsion.
Poppyseeds and strategic muffin tin usage gives these cakes pleasing textural contrast
There are two main ways you can add texture to a tender cake: inclusions (like nuts, chips, or other crunchy or crispy bits), and browning (which happens as the cake bakes in a hot oven). We take advantage of both. First, we add lightly crunchy poppyseeds to the batter, which highlights the fluffiness of the filling and cake. We also bake the mini cakes in a muffin tin, which increases the amount of surface area in contact with the heated metal, leading to a greater amount of browning.
But what we don’t do is just as important. Instead of using every cup in the muffin pan, we leave the middle four unfilled. The eight outer cups get better air circulation around them for more even baking and better browning, so every cake is consistently delicious.
Raspberry preserves tie it all together
Fresh fruit is nature’s candy, but like any other plant part, the sugar and water contents can vary greatly. Bonne Maman Raspberry Preserves are consistently and perfectly sweetened, and marry the bright, lemony curd with the tender, sweet sponge and fluffy whipped cream. There’s no need to doctor it in any way—just spread an anchoring layer of preserves in between the cake layers before dolloping on the whipped cream mixture. Gently place the top of the cake on the layered fillings—do not press down—and finish with a few more spoonfuls of preserves and whipped cream.
Timing matters
Heat is the enemy of whipped cream. Letting the cakes cool completely before slicing ensures they keep their shape—warm cake is much more likely to fall apart—but it also prevents the whipped topping from melting the moment it comes in contact with the cake.
If you’re a planner, the baked and cooled cakes can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days, but be sure to bring them to room temperature before splitting and filling them, and don’t do so until you’re ready to eat them. They’re best served right away, or within an hour of assembly, but we doubt they’ll last that long once they hit the dessert table.
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