On your marks.....

Well the wee one's First Birthday cake is made. I went for a Lemon Mascarpone Layer cake as I figured all that calcium would surely cancel out the effect of the sugar!!
There's no artificial colours and gubbins in it, it's just (like many cakes) got a heap of sugar and a fair bit of fat in it, so as with everything - moderation. After all, it is her birthday...

(p.s. - this isn't a single portion! Actually you could probably get 12-16 slices out of this puppy, I had to send friends away with cake and this was the section I kept for us to have a taster more....)

I must say....it was absolutely delicious, this is a definite make again cake. Not difficult, a little time consuming but I split the steps up over a couple of days so it wasn't a chore. Melt in the mouth divine - almost..........almost better than the Hokitika double layered baked cheesecake (but that, as they say, is another story....)

(p.p.s. - It was a big hit with the birthday girl who was able to use her baby led weaning skills to full effect. She had the cheese icing all over her, the table , the chair, the floor and the dogs....everyone was happy.)

Lemon Mascarpone Layer Cake
You will need to make Lemon Curd, Lemon juice and sugar syrup, True Sponge Cake and the Filling/Icing.

The Lemon Curd I used is the one I make at home and you can see that recipe on this blog.

The True Sponge Cake is one that has lightness (sponge) due to the air you have managed to incorporate and not through any raising agent.
I use the following ingredients to fill two 7 1/2 inch round cakes tins that have been lined with parchment paper (ungreased tin, ungreased paper).

5 eggs
1 Cup caster sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Cup plain flour (sifted)
1/4 tsp salt

Separate the eggs. Whisk up the whites into soft peaks then add 1/4 cup of sugar and whisk to stiff peaks. You can now use the whisks without cleaning to take the yolks in a bowl, whisk up. Add the lemon juice and whisk, gradually add 3/4 cup of sugar whisking as you go until you have a nice, thick, smooth, pale yellow mixture that flows in ribbons from the whisks and slowly melts back into the mixture in the bowl.
Now pour the yolk mixture into the whites bowl and gently fold the two together to combine evenly.
It should be an almost foamy consistency.

Divide mixture between the two cake tins and bake at 180 degrees celsius for about 35-40 minutes. Use a skewer to test (should come out clean). When you press the top of the cake it should also spring back when you release your finger.

Once baked, cool on a wire rack. To be used in this recipe you will be slicing each cake in half horizontally so you have 4 layers.

The Lemon Syrup is super easy and, as with the sponges, I have made that in advance of the construction day. It is just too difficult to get a few hours of quiet in the kitchen at once. The wee ones demand attention at regular intervals (quite rightly they chime in!) and so I try to split projects into steps that can come together at a later date in an attempt to reduce anxiety and increase the likelihood of success!

I used :

1/2 Cup caster sugar
1/4 Cup Boiling water from the kettle
1/4 Cup fresh lemon juice

I simply pour the water over the sugar in a bowl, whisk thoroughly to help dissolve the sugar, then add the lemon juice. If you find the sugar isn't dissolving you can always do this in a microwave proof dish and give it a zap to help it along but I have never needed to, kettle seems to be fine and dandy.
Needs to be cool before pouring over the sponges later on.

The Lemon Mascarpone Filling/Icing is pretty straightforward.

I used :

480 ml full cream
1/2 Cup caster sugar
600 g mascarpone cheese (cold from the fridge)

I whisked up the cream with the sugar to form peaks in one bowl. In a separate bowl I whisked up the mascarpone with about 2 cups of the lemon curd - just on the slowest setting so not to beat it up too much but to get the lemon curd well in - you will need to taste and check for tartness, I wanted to have a hint of tartness in the filling/icing to cut through the cream and the cheese rich 'fat' flavour.
Then I added the cheese to the cream and gently folded with a wide spatula until evenly combined.

Then it is the building phase - lay one sponge layer on your choice of platter, board or cake dish. Brush with the lemon syrup without completely drenching, then spread over a layer of lemon curd before spreading a layer of the cheese filling. Lay the next sponge layer down and repeat, do this again with the next layer, with the final sponge layer finish with the cheese icing and carry on to cover the whole cake. Add piped decoration if you wish.