10th Anniversary - Lime Sponge Cake #recipe from @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: My first post as a member of Mystery Lovers Kitchen was on January 14, 2012--right after my first Key West foodie mystery had been released. I was so excited to be a part of this gang--and I still am! Love the recipes, the cooks, the books, and our readers! Here's how that first post went...

I'm so excited to be here as a part of Mystery Lovers' Kitchen! I love food and cooking and talking about recipes. And I love mysteries! So this blog is the utterly perfect combination. Thank you ladies for inviting me to join you! (And by the way, it happens that this first post falls on my birthday--what a glorious present from MLK!)

Since AN APPETITE FOR MURDER was launched earlier this month, I have a feeling you all must be sick to death of hearing about Key Lime pie. But I could not resist staying with the lime theme, especially because this time of year we have the most amazing thing going on with our indoor lime tree--as you can see in the picture on the right (though sorry it's a little dark.) After we harvest the limes (maybe 8-10 of them), the tree goes back to looking barely alive. Then the cycle starts over. At my husband's insistence, we tried moving the tree outside in the summer. We developed a horrible infestation of aphids that I pinched off the leaves one by one, as I don't like to use pesticides. Obviously, it's never gone out again!

One of my favorite things to make with our limes is a very light but delicious Lime Sponge Cake. It's an excellent cake for spring, but I also made it for a Christmas party and served strawberry ice cream on the side so I'd have that red and green thing going.

INGREDIENTS:

6 large eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated lime rind
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup flour
powdered sugar (optional)

How to put it together:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In large bowl, place the egg whites with the cream of tartar and beat them with an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. (You can test this by slowly withdrawing the beaters from the eggs. Soft peaks should stand up with the slightest droop at the top.) Next, gradually add 1/2 cup of the sugar, beating until whites are stiff but not dry.

In another large bowl, place separated yolks. Beat them with unwashed beaters until thick. Add remaining sugar, one tablespoon at a time, beating until the yolks are very thick and ivory colored.

To the beaten yolks, add the grated lime rind, lime juice and water, beating until just blended. Beat in flour and salt at a very low speed. Add the beaten egg whites to this mixture, and fold them in with a rubber spatula--gently.

Turn the cake batter into ungreased 10" tube pan. Cut through batter several times with a knife to break up any air bubbles and then smooth the top.

Bake at 325F for fifty minutes to an hour. The top of the cake will appear golden and the cake should spring back when lightly touched.

Invert on wire rack to cool. Loosen cake from sides of pan with spatula. Set on serving plate.

When the cake is completely cool, you may sift powdered sugar over top.

(On the left, you will see the most handsome Yoda overseeing the finished product. I don't think he's ever actually tried a piece of cake, but he's fond of posing with them. He is also one of the models for Evinrude the cat, in AN APPETITE FOR MURDER.)

Yoda has since gone on to his great reward, and there's a new cat in town, and 9 books published in the series. (Wow!) You can read all about them on my website or follow me on Facebook and Instagram.



And happy birthday Mystery Lovers Kitchen!

--------------------------------------------------------------

ENTER OUR 10th ANNIVERSARY

10-BOOK (+ TOTE BAG) GIVEAWAY!

And you can carry your books in this clever

tote bag with a special crossword puzzle 

featuring Mystery Lovers' Kitchen authors!

To enter our giveaway,
you must first use

the form below.

Then be sure to leave a
blog post comment.

You must do both
to be entered.

-------------------------------------------------------

a Rafflecopter giveaway

------------------------------------------------------------------

2-WEEKS OF FAVORITE, RETRO POSTS!

We're throwing a two-week party to celebrate a decade of blogging at Mystery Lovers' Kitchen. Every day (through July 13), one of the authors of MLK will post a retro "anniversary" recipe from our blogging past. Stop back each day to see what we post. Each time you leave a comment on a post, you'll earn an extra entry in our drawing and increase your chances of winning our grand prize package. Be sure to use the entry form above to register with our contest *and* be sure to leave a blog post comment. (You must do both to be entered.)

GOOD LUCK and...

HAPPY 10th ANNIVERSARY,

MYSTERY LOVERS' KITCHEN!

-----------------------------------------------------

STRAWBERRIES AND LIME SPONGE CAKE WEDDING TRIFLE #recipe @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: Chef Martha Hubbard brings this dessert to serve at Hayley and Nathan’s wedding reception in A DEADLY FEAST by Lucy Burdette. She layers the ingredients in individual-sized mason jars, but you could also serve slices of the cake garnished with whipped cream and strawberries. It would also be nice with raspberries or peaches, depending on what’s in season.

For the strawberry layer:

2 cups hulled and halved or quartered strawberries

Sprinkle of sugar

For the whipped cream layer:

2 cups whipping cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cake:

6 large eggs, separated

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

1½ cups sugar, divided

2 teaspoons grated lime rind

¼ cup lime juice

¼ cup water

1¼ cup flour

¼ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Sprinkle the strawberries with sugar and set aside.

Whip the cream until stiff with the powdered sugar and vanilla. Put this in the refrigerator while you make the cake.

In a large bowl, combine the egg whites with the cream of tartar and beat with an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. (You can test this by slowly withdrawing the beaters from the eggs. Soft peaks should stand up with the slightest droop at the top.) Next, gradually add ½ cup of the sugar, beating until whites are stiff but not dry.

In another large bowl, place the separated yolks. Beat them with unwashed beaters until thick. Add the remaining sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until the yolks are very thick and ivory colored.

To the beaten yolks, add the grated lime rind, lime juice, and water, beating until just blended. Beat in the flour and salt at a very low speed. Add the beaten egg whites to this mixture, and fold them in with a rubber spatula—gently.

Turn the cake batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. Cut through the batter several times with a knife to break up any air bubbles and then smooth the top.

Bake at 325 degrees for 50 minutes to an hour. The top of the cake will appear golden and the cake should spring back when lightly touched.

Invert on a wire rack to cool. Loosen cake from the sides of the pan with a spatula. Set on a serving plate.

When the cake is completely cool, cut it into bite-size squares. In small mason jars, alternate squares of cake with strawberries and whipped cream. Refrigerate until it’s time to serve.

​ABOUT A DEADLY FEAST:

Before Key Zest food critic Hayley Snow's family descends on the island for Thanksgiving and her wedding to heart throb Detective Nathan Bransford, she has one last assignment--a review of a seafood tasting tour conducted by her friend Analise Smith. But when one of the tourists collapses on the last stop, Analise begs her to investigate before the police destroy her business and shut down the local Key West eateries on her tour. Pressure mounts when Analise calls a second time to request that Hayley meet with Chef Martha Hubbard, who prepared key lime pies for the tasting tour and is terrified that someone poisoned her pies to ruin her reputation. Chefs all around town are preparing their versions of a Thanksgiving feast, but with a murderer on the loose, will Hayley and her friends have anything left to be thankful for?

Praise for Lucy Burdette's Key West mysteries:​

“There’s a lot to love about this series—deft plotting, likeable characters, and an ending that always satisfies. But one of the things I love the best is how the author transports her readers to Key West with every page, describing real landmarks and restaurants with such realism that I feel I’m actually there. Magical and delicious fun!”

—Suspense Magazine

Clinical psychologist Lucy Burdette (aka Roberta Isleib) has published 17 mysteries, including the latest in the Key West food critic series, A Deadly Feast (Crooked Lane Books, May 2019.)  Read more at https://lucyburdette.com. You can also find Lucy on Facebook and Instagram.

Lime Sponge Cake by Lucy Burdette

I'm so excited to be here as a part of Mystery Lovers' Kitchen! I love food and cooking and talking about recipes. And I love mysteries! So this blog is the utterly perfect combination. Thank you ladies for inviting me to join you! (And by the way, it happens that this first post falls on my birthday--what a glorious present from MLK!)

Since AN APPETITE FOR MURDER was launched earlier this month, I have a feeling you all must be sick to death of hearing about Key Lime pie. But I could not resist staying with the lime theme, especially because this time of year we have the most amazing thing going on with our indoor lime tree--as you can see in the picture on the right (though sorry it's a little dark.) After we harvest the limes (maybe 8-10 of them), the tree goes back to looking barely alive. Then the cycle starts over. At my husband's insistence, we tried moving the tree outside in the summer. We developed a horrible infestation of aphids that I pinched off the leaves one by one, as I don't like to use pesticides. Obviously, it's never gone out again!

One of my favorite things to make with our limes is a very light but delicious Lime Sponge Cake. It's an excellent cake for spring, but I also made it for a Christmas party and served strawberry ice cream on the side so I'd have that red and green thing going.

INGREDIENTS:

6 large eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated lime rind
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup flour
powdered sugar (optional)

How to put it together:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In large bowl, place the egg whites with the cream of tartar and beat them with an electric mixer until they hold soft peaks. (You can test this by slowly withdrawing the beaters from the eggs. Soft peaks should stand up with the slightest droop at the top.) Next, gradually add 1/2 cup of the sugar, beating until whites are stiff but not dry.

In another large bowl, place separated yolks. Beat them with unwashed beaters until thick. Add remaining sugar, one tablespoon at a time, beating until the yolks are very thick and ivory colored.

To the beaten yolks, add the grated lime rind, lime juice and water, beating until just blended. Beat in flour and salt at a very low speed. Add the beaten egg whites to this mixture, and fold them in with a rubber spatula--gently.

Turn the cake batter into ungreased 10" tube pan. Cut through batter several times with a knife to break up any air bubbles and then smooth the top.

Bake at 325F for fifty minutes to an hour. The top of the cake will appear golden and the cake should spring back when lightly touched.

Invert on wire rack to cool. Loosen cake from sides of pan with spatula. Set on serving plate.

When the cake is completely cool, you may sift powdered sugar over top.

(On the left, you will see the most handsome Yoda overseeing the finished product. I don't think he's ever actually tried a piece of cake, but he's fond of posing with them. He is also one of the models for Evinrude the cat, in AN APPETITE FOR MURDER.)

I hope you enjoy the cake--and also hope you'll try reading my first Key West food critic mystery. It's filled with food and Key West characters and mystery of course! You can read more about it at my website or on facebook. And Twitter too, of course, where I enjoy tweeting about food, books, writing, and other things that catch my eye.

Thanks again to the women of Mystery Lovers Kitchen--and to all the wonderful readers too. I'll be back again on second and fourth Saturdays.

Love, Lucy