January Food Holiday's and The Top 5 "Eatables" It Remind's Us Of !

The December holidays are over, the New Year has begun and we are all left with "What to plan for dinner's and dessert's?" January is full of possibilities and only the beginning of the next 365 days of different food festivities to titillate our taste buds and there is an entire month of food holidays.

January is also National Baking Month, National Tea Month, National Soup Month and National Bagel Month. Every day during the month of January also carries it's own special celebration! Chilly weather may have you dreaming of creamy hot chocolate rather than the produce isle but January is the best Month for Citrus Fruit. Especially the Meyer Lemon !

Being that I am a baker, the whole idea of a month of making sweet concoctions is especially enticing. So, here it is January, Baking and Citrus all together at the same time and to create and share an Original Recipe. We are talking Italian Limoncello Cake.

Italian Limoncello Cake photography by Stephanie Tonini

January 2020

Italian Limoncello Cake photography by StephanieTonini

January 2020

photography by Stephanie Tonini

January 2020

Limoncello is an Italian spirited lemon infused vodka with simple syrup. It is often served after a meal in Italy and Italian restaurants, deliciously citrus sweet served as a cocktail, such as Limoncello Martini or Lemondrop or standing alone. This wonderful concoction is also found in a dessert called Italian Limoncello Cake. This cake dessert became one of my favorites after tasting it at Fuzzy's Pizza on Antoine Dr. Cool and creamy, complimenting my Italian meal. Since then I set out to create my own original version of this wonderful dessert and I am quite pleased as well as my Italian husband is of the outcome! So, with his word's being "This is the most delicious cake I have ever tasted!", here is my original recipe for Italian Limoncello Cake.

photography by Stephanie Tonini

January 2020

Italian Limoncello Cake

by Stephanie Tonini

Cake Ingredient's

1 box French Vanilla white cake mix

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cups water

1/8 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons Adam's Lemon Extract

1 cup sour cream

4 large egg whites

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease and *flour 8" cake pan's. Line bottom of cake pan's with parchment paper rounds.

Place all dry ingredients in a large mixer mixing bowl with wire whisk attachment and stir till blended.

Add water, oil, lemon extract, sour cream and egg whites, blend into dry ingredients. On medium speed, mix for 2 minutes.

Pour into greased and floured pans, dividing equally. Tap cake pans onto counter surface. This will bring air bubbles to the top of batter.

Place cake pans into preheated oven and bake for 32-35 minutes. Varying the cake pan size will change amount of cooking time. I begin watching the baking layers at 20 minutes in. Using tester toothpick the cooked cake will come out clean. Cool completely on wire racks. Leave parchment on until cooled and remove just before placing on cake plate and frosting.

Lemon Syrup

1 cup water

1/2 cup granulated sugar

4 tablespoons Limoncello (lemon infused Vodka)

In medium saucepan combine your water, sugar and Limoncello. Heat over medium flame till boiling. Turn down heat and simmer for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

Limoncello Frosting

12 ounces cream cheese, brought to room temperature

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup whipped heavy cream, whipped will give 2 cups.

1 teaspoon lemon extract

1 tablespoon Limoncello

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

In your mixer mixing bowl add your softened cream cheese and with paddle attachment mix on medium speed until creamy looking. Add powdered sugar, lemon extract, Limoncello and lemon zest. Once combined add 3/4 cup of whipping cream and let mixer paddle give a slow stir. Remove bowl from mixer and add fold in 1/2 cup of remaining whipped cream.

This frosting is a very light, creamy yet stable frosting as you will see.

If before adding whipped cream the cream cheese mixture appears to runny add more powder sugar. Sometimes heat in the kitchen can cause this to happen. A nice cool environment is always best for making frostings and fillings.

Assembly of Cake:

Once cake layer's are completely cooled remove parchment rounds from cake layer slowly. Place one layer on cake pedestal and with a pastry brush put on 3 tablespoon's of cooled limon simple syrup. You can use more but be careful not to over saturate the cake. You can save the remaining syrup for a cocktail or two! Place 3/4 cup of frosting on top of layer and spread evenly. Place second (2) layer on top of frosted layer and repeat with 3 tablespoons limon simple syrup and frost top of cake. Using spatula ice sides of cake and decorate as desired. A lovely thin slice of lemon on top is always a great touch!

Limoncello Cake photography by Stephanie Tonini, 2020

Happy January and Happy Baking !

'Ross and Stephanie Tonini's Family Cookbook'

by Stephanie and Ross Tonini

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