Italian Pastry Cream filled Lemon Cake
A soft Delicious Lemon Cake filled with an Italian Lemon Pastry Cream, then baked. The perfect Lemon Lover’s Dessert Recipe. Add a dusting of Powdered Sugar or even a dollop of whipped cream, Lemon Cake never tasted so good.
I had some leftover Lemon Pastry Cream from redoing some delicious Italian Cream Filled Pastries Pasticciotti or a simple Summer Berry Trifle with Pastry Cream. I knew I wanted to make a cake with Pastry Cream but would it work? I wasn’t sure. I have to tell you I have been working on the cake for a while now, which means I have made it a few times.
I discovered there is actually a Cake called Nua. Some say it is French, or German or even Venetian and the woman who invented it was call Nua. What I do know is that it is quite popular here in Italy.
I decided to use my cake recipe because I find Italian cakes to be on the drier side, even though the addition of the Pastry Cream will add some moisture, but I didn’t think it would be enough. And of course I used my Pastry Cream because, well I believe it’s one of the best.
You are going to have a little leftover Lemon Pastry Cream, so you could always fill some tart shells and top them with some fresh fruit or top a Sponge Cake or why not do like the Italian and just grab a spoon!
How to Make an Italian Pastry Cream Filled Lemon Cake
The first thing to do is make the Italian Pastry Cream, the cream takes time to cool down about 1-2 hours, it doesn’t have to be cold just not hot. Whisk the dry ingredients together and set aside.
Once the cream has cooled down, then beat the eggs, yolk and sugar until pale and creamy. Then add the milk, oil and vanilla, and combine on medium speed, add the whisked dry ingredients and again beat until combined.
Pour into the prepared cake pan, drop spoonfuls of the Italian Pastry Cream on top of the batter, do not swirl or stir.
Bake the cake, I would suggest since all ovens are different, check the cake for doneness with a toothpick at about 35 minutes. Let the cake cool then dust with powdered sugar or why not add a dollop of whipped cream?
How to make Homemade Cake Flour
Making your own Cake flour is so easy, from every cup of flour remove two tablespoons of the flour and replace with corn starch, be sure to sift them together to remove any lumps.
Recipe Tip
Check the cake after about 30 minutes and if it seems to be browning too much then cover it with foil and continue baking. I also would advise using a springform cake pan for easy removal.
How to make a Cake Moist:
- Egg whites make a cake drier so add just the yolk instead of the whole egg.
- Substituting cake flour for all purpose will make a softer cake.
- Measure the flour correctly, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level off with the blade of a knife.
- Don’t let the cake over bake.
- Be sure to add the correct amount of fat or liquid, not adding enough can cause a cake to be dry.
How to make the Best Pastry Cream
In a medium pot, over medium low, heat the milk, cream and lemon rind, until very hot but do not boil. Remove from heat and let cool to warm.
In another medium pot add the yolks and sugar, whisk together until combined, then add the flour and vanilla and whisk again until smooth.
Place the pot over medium/low heat, pour the warm milk mixture through a sieve to remove the lemon rind (discard), whisk continuously (don’t stop) until thickened.
Move the pastry cream to a glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap (make sure the plastic touches the cream mixture) and let cool for about an hour, you could also refrigerate it for approximately 30 minutes.
How to Store the Lemon Cake:
Because there is Pastry cream in the cake it should be stored in the refrigerator. Be sure to eat the cake within 3 days.
More Delicious Lemon Recipes:
- Easy Lemon Charlotte
- Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- Best Homemade Lemon Bread
- Tablespoon Italian Lemon Cake
So if you are a lover of Italian Pastry Cream or looking for a different type of Dessert I hope you enjoy this Italian Pastry Cream Filled Lemon Cake. Enjoy!
Italian Pastry Cream Filled Lemon Cake
Ingredients
LEMON CAKE
- 2¼ cups cake flour*
- 1 pinch salt*
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½-1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 large egg yolk (room temperature)
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (180 grams total)
- ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons milk (room temperature) (100 grams total)
- ½ cup + 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (melted butter or light olive oil) (133 grams total)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
LEMON PASTRY CREAM
- ¾ cup milk (180 grams)
- ¾ cup cream whipping/whole cream (165 grams)
- 4 egg yolks
- ½ cup sugar (100 grams)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 2½ tablespoons flour
- peel from 1 or 2 lemons no white part
Instructions
LEMON PASTRY CREAM
- In a medium pot, heat over low the milk, cream and lemon rind, until very hot but do not boil. Remove from heat and let cool to warm.
- In a medium pot add yolks and sugar, whisk together until combined, then add flour and vanilla and whisk again until smooth, place the pot over medium / low heat, pour the warm milk/cream through a sieve to remove the lemon rind (discard), whisk continuously until thickened. Move to a glass bowl, cover with plastic wrap (make sure wrap touches the cream mixture) and let cool 30 minutes, then cover and refrigerate for about 1½-2 hours.
- Pre-heat oven to 350F (180C) Grease and flour a 9 inch (23-24 cm) cake pan (a springform pan if you have it).
LEMON CAKE
- In a medium bowl whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and zest, set aside.
- In a large bowl on medium speed beat the eggs, yolk and sugar until pale and creamy, approximately 5 minutes, then beat in the milk, vegetable oil and vanilla until combined, then add the whisked flour mixture and combine.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and spoon ¾ of the pastry cream on top of the batter, do not stir. Bake for approximately 40-45 minutes. Check the cake at about 30-35 minutes and if browning on top too much, cover with foil and continue baking until done. Test with a toothpick for doneness. Let cool completely before dusting with powder sugar. Enjoy!
The recipe says to put 3/4 of the pastry cream on top of the cake batter, then bake. What happens with the remaining 1/4 of the pastry cream?
Hi Rose, I did write in the notes that there will be leftover pastry cream and you could use it how you wish or use it to fill pastry tarts for example. Hope that helps. Take care.
This recipe suddenly changed from a lemon cake to a lemon cream cake. Where can I find the original recipe? I thought it was wonderful 🙁
Hi Niek, I don’t think so, I didn’t replace this for any other cake, I have quite a few lemon cakes on the site. What was in it and what did it look like?
I am also looking for the original recipe for the Tablespoon Italian Lemon Cake.
Hi Luisa, sorry about that, it just disappeared, but I found and reposted it, https://anitalianinmykitchen.com/lemon-cake/ . Take care. Thanks
Sorry about that Niek, you were right, it did disappear but I was able to find it and repost here is the link https://anitalianinmykitchen.com/lemon-cake/ . Thanks take care.
This recipe brought about a whole host of ideas! Thank you so!
There are almost NO suggestions in the whole of the Web to BAKE with the pastry cream already inside!
I went even further with the layers of the cake: one layer batter, then on top of it a layer of pastry cream, then another layer of batter…… You get the picture.
Then to bake, I reduced the heat to 170C and baked for longer, so that all the cream&batter baked through.
Today I combined your Brownie recipe and the pastry cream, creating layers. I got a layer of brownie batter, then the cream, then another layer of brownie, and finally some globs of cream, which I then swirled round with a knife. Baked at 150C for about 45-50 It turned out heavenly!!
Please try it!
Hi Albina, thanks and wow sounds amazing, I will definitely have to try it out. Have a great weekend.
I made this a few days ago. I really like it. My wife and 14 year-old son were not overwhelmed. Here are my comments.
I made this exactly to the recipe including the tip about replacing flour with cornstarch to make “cake flour”, that’s a great tip!
The pastry cream came out pretty thick. Next time I make some (and there will be a next time!) I will try using all milk, no heavy cream, and corn starch instead of flour. Looking for something lighter. But maybe that wouldn’t hold up well in a cake going in the oven; I don’t know.
I used a nice, coated spring-form pan and it was really easy to get the cake out
I baked it for 40 minutes and I think it was a few minutes too long. Or, I should have taken it out of the pan right out of the oven. I let it cool about 10 minutes in the pan before taking the sides off, then left the bottom of the pan on for 20 minutes more. That might have cooked the crust a bit too long.
This is not a familiar, moist, American birthday cake. It is drier. Maybe too dry? Not sure. Again, maybe baking it a bit less may help. It’s not bad, just different than an American might expect from a “cake”.
Overall I enjoyed preparing and eating this cake. I feel like I have experienced a little bit of Italy in my kitchen and learned a bunch too. I probably won’t make it again because my wife and son weren’t really that into it and then I would eat the whole thing!
Thanks so much for offering this recipe.
Hi Andy, thanks, and yes I can understand your wife and son not being overwhelmed, I felt the same way when I came to Italy and tried the desserts, but now I absolutely love them and cannot eat a cake from home because I find them so overly sweet, especially the frosting. Italian cakes are made drier because they are usually served for breakfast and snack with a cup of tea or an espresso, birthdays or special occasions are when sweeter moister cakes are served. In order to get a moister Italian cake this one for instance you could substitute 1 whole egg for an egg yolk (so it would be 2 yolks instead of 1, which I did adjust to make it less dry-believe it or not). Believe me I have had my share of dry cakes in Italy, that no espresso would get down. 🙂 Pastry cream is suppose to be thick, I would probably make it half cream and half milk, but not all milk. And glad I could bring a little bit of Italy to your kitchen. Have a wonderful Sunday.
AMAZING! It looks so delicious for and a mouth-watering cake. I will definitely try this cake on my mother’s birthday because she is a big lemon cake lover. but I’m a little worried about the cake will take off easily??
Thanks!!!
Hi Ritka, thanks, be sure to grease and flour the cake pan well and use a springform pan if possible. I hope your mother enjoys it, let me know how it goes.
YES!! I’m a lemon lover and I can almost taste and smell it. This is definitely a cake that I would love to make for the family. I know they’d enjoy it. Being from Northern Italy there was quite a bit of German/Austrian influence in our desserts. My mamma was fantastic at duplicating desserts she had sampled when she was young. She did this without a recipe – just remembering the texture and taste. I hope you and your family are well. Un abbraccio forte!
Hi Marisa, thanks so much, your mother sounds like what my mother-in-law would do. We are good and I hope your family is too. 🙂
I would like to try this recipe. (Italian Pastry Cream Filled Lemon Cake) In your comments you indicate egg whites make cakes drier, so add the egg yolk instead of the whole egg, yet the recipe calls for three eggs, then the one egg yolk. So it’s ok to add the whole three eggs and not just egg yolks? I am on your mailing list. Thank you.
Hi Laura, yes it’s 3 whole eggs (instead of 4) and 1 egg yolk. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for joining the mailing list. Have a great weekend.