Citrus Butter Cake with Meringue and Pink Grapefruit Flavour Pearls

 This recipe for Citrus Butter Cake with Meringue and Pink Grapefruit Flavour Pearls is just divine. A simple Butter Cake made a little bit special with the addition of luscious Meringue rather than a heavy icing and our deliciously pretty Limited Edition Pink Grapefruit Flavour Pearls

By all means change the flavours to suit yourself. Tangerine Flavour Pearls and Orange zest in the Cake. Lemon Myrtle Pearls and Lemon zest in the Cake. Raspberry Flavour Pearls and some Freeze Dried Raspberry Powder in the Cake (1 tbs ish). You get the idea!

What you’ll need – makes a 32 x 22cm slab cake

• 32 x 22 cm cake/brownie tray – grease and line
• 1 cup Butter – soft
• 2 cups Sugar
• Pink Grapefruit – fine zest
• 4 Eggs – large
• 1 cup Milk
• 2 2/3 cup plain Flour
• 3 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Salt

Meringue

• 4 Egg Whites (room temp)
• 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 3/4 cup Caster Sugar
• 1/4 cup Icing Sugar

Garnish

• Pink Grapefruit Flavour Pearls
• Mint sprig if desired
• Slice Pink Grapefruit and Demarara Sugar – gratinate *see below
• Blow torch

To do

Set your oven to 180c. Grease and line the cake tray.

Combine the soft Butter, Sugar and fine Pink Grapefruit zest and beat until light and fluffy. A hand mixer is fine but a benchtop mixer will save you standing there! Add the Eggs one at a time. Beating well between additions. Add the Baking Powder and Salt, then 1/3 of the Flour, then 1/3 of the Milk until just combined. Continue with the rest of the Milk and Flour. Scrape the mix into the tin, level it out and into the oven until it’s cooked. Half an hour or so. Just keep an eye on it. *This can be baked the day prior*

Next

For the Meringue – all equipment must be super clean. Any greasy residue will cause issues.

On a medium speed, whip the Egg Whites with Cream of Tartar and Salt until frothy. Then SLOWLY add in the Caster Sugar a tablespoon at a time. This will take a good few minutes. Rub a little of the mix between your fingers. If it feels gritty please keep mixing. We want the Sugar dissolved. Next add in the Icing Sugar and mix at full speed until it’s super thick and glossy. A dash of Vanilla is nice too if you have some handy. This is ready to use now.

To serve

If you’d like to add a brulee’d slice of Pink Grapefruit garnish lets prepare that first. Lightly oil spray a metal tray. Slice Pink Grapefruit aprox 3 – 5mm thick. Cut into 1/4’s or 1/6ths depending on the slice size. Place onto the greased tray. Sprinkle a layer Demerara or other coarse Sugar on top. Now carefully Blow Torch until the Sugar is melted and caramelised. Allow to cool before touching!

Next lets cut the cooled Cake into portions. Pop them onto serving plates. Add a good dollop of the lovely glossy Meringue onto each portion. Carefully Blow torch each Meringue cloud until nicely coloured. If you accidently burn one, just scape it off and start again…no one will ever know!

Lets add a generous spoonful of our Limited Edition Pink Grapefruit Flavour Pearls, Grapefuit slice and a sprig of Mint if desired. 

Until next time

From the Peninsula Larder Team

“You know you’re getting old when the candles cost more than the cake.”

– Bob Hope