A rolled sponge, a sharp lemon curd and a Swiss meringue browned with a blowtorch: the fresh Christmas log that wakes up the end of a hearty meal.
It's lemon meringue pie rolled into a log: a light sponge, a thick, punchy lemon curd and a silky meringue with caramelized tips. After foie gras and turkey, it's often the dessert people actually finish.
Three preparations, none of them hard, and nothing goes to waste: the yolks from the meringue whites go into the lemon curd. Swiss meringue, heated over a water bath to 60 °C (140 °F), is more stable than a classic one: it holds on the log without weeping.
Grate the zest of 2 lemons, then squeeze all 3. In the saucepan, whisk the eggs, yolks, sugar and cornstarch, then add the juice and zest. Heat over medium-low heat, whisking constantly and scraping the bottom well. The curd thickens suddenly around 80 °C (176 °F): as soon as the first big bubbles appear, keep whisking for 1 more minute so the starch cooks.
Off the heat, strain the curd into a bowl if you want to remove the zest. Wait 3 minutes, then add the cold butter in three goes, whisking (or with a stick blender): it turns smooth and glossy. Press cling film onto the surface (touching the curd, or a skin forms) and chill for at least 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (400 °F), conventional heat, and line the tray with baking paper. Wet the towel and wring it out well. Separate the 4 eggs. Beat the yolks with 70 g sugar and the zest for 3 minutes, until pale. Beat the whites with the salt, then firm them up with the remaining 30 g sugar until stiff and glossy. Loosen the yolks with a quarter of the whites, sift in the flour, add the rest of the whites and fold with a spatula, lifting, until no streaks remain.
Spread the batter into an even 30 × 40 cm rectangle and bake in the middle of the oven for 7 to 9 minutes: the sponge should be just golden and supple. Flip it straight onto the damp towel, peel off the paper, and roll it up with the towel from a short side. Leave it to cool rolled for at least 30 minutes.
Unroll the sponge. Whisk the lemon curd for 10 seconds to loosen it, and spread it in an even layer, leaving 2 cm bare along the far edge. Roll it up tightly, without the towel. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hour (or until the next day).
In a heatproof bowl, mix the whites, sugar and salt. Set it over a pan of simmering water and whisk constantly by hand for 4 to 5 minutes, until the mixture reaches 60 °C (140 °F): it's hot to the touch, foamy, and you can't feel any sugar grains when you rub it between two fingers.
Take the bowl off the water bath and beat with the mixer on top speed for 8 to 10 minutes, until the meringue is lukewarm, very thick, satin-glossy and forms a firm peak that doesn't droop.
Set the log on the serving plate, seam down, and cut the ends at an angle. Cover it with meringue: piped in long strips or small tight flames, or with a spatula, dabbing to make peaks. Brown the peaks with the blowtorch, sweeping 5 cm away without stopping in one spot. No blowtorch: 2 to 3 minutes under the oven grill preheated to 220 °C (425 °F), door ajar, without taking your eyes off it.
Put the log back in the fridge until serving, at least 30 minutes. Slice it with a knife dipped in hot water and wiped between each slice.
Check off every step to celebrate.
The lemon curd keeps for 4 days in the fridge in a closed jar: make it up to three days ahead. The filled log, without meringue, waits overnight in the fridge in its film. Once covered in meringue, it keeps for 24 hours in the fridge; beyond that, the meringue softens. It doesn't freeze with its meringue.
The sugar wasn't fully dissolved: the water bath was too short or not hot enough. Take it all the way to 60 °C (140 °F), until you can't feel grains between your fingers. A log kept too long in the fridge also makes meringue bead.
Yes, under a very hot oven grill, 2 to 3 minutes, door ajar and without looking away: it browns in seconds at the end. The log should come straight out of the fridge.
With this recipe, nothing is left over: the 3 yolks separated for the meringue go into the lemon curd, and the 4 eggs in the sponge are used whole.
Add this recipe to your meal, then come back for appetizers, a drink, cookies with coffee: Popotam brings them together, with the shopping for your whole table and the timeline up to dessert. Free, no account.
