Lemon-Lime Pudding Cake with Warm Raspberries

When my sons were a bit younger, they would often ask me about my favourite dessert.  (Just one of those kid questions).  The query would go something like this: "Mommy, if you were stranded on a desert island and could only eat one dessert for the rest of your life... what would it be?"

I would hem and haw and stammer in my response, flustered by the sheer vastness of possibilities and hesitant to lock myself in to any one dessert.  Nevertheless, beyond my predictable dark chocolate reflex, this luscious pudding cake would always come up in the discussions as one of my very favourites.

Now, if you don't like citrus, flip to a different page.

Good, you're still with me. Phew.

This is a light and creamy dessert with a gorgeous tart citrus flavour.  The creaminess is derived from the whipped egg whites and milk (not cream) and, true to its name, it offers up a lip-smacking combination of moist pudding and textured cake (especially if you follow the recipe).

Lemon-Lime Pudding Cake with Warm Raspberries

• Zest of 1 lemon and 2 limes
• 2 eggs, separated
• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1/2 cup golden demerara sugar
• 1/3 cup lemon or lime juice or a combination of both
• 1/4 cup whole grain flour
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups raspberries (I used frozen)

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Notes:

You can use lemon or lime zest/juice for this pudding cake or a combination of both (which is what I've done here).

If you're like me and tend to be a little slapdash in the measurement department, this is one recipe where you might want to tighten it up a bit.  Too much flour and you'll end up with a firm cake, too much juice and you'll end up with a lake.  I have made this recipe many, many times and the measurements are pretty bang on to achieve the perfect harmony (!) between pudding and cake.

You can bake this pudding cake in 6 ramekins (1 cup each/125mL) or a singular baking dish (6 cups/1.5L). 

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Warm oven to 350 F.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together citrus zest, egg yolks, butter and sugar.  Add citrus juice, followed by flour and milk.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form; fold into batter.

Pour pudding cake batter into individual ramekins or singular baking dish.  I like to add another sprinkle of zest at this stage.

Place ramekins or baking dish into a larger pan and add boiling water such that it comes up about 1 inch (2.5 cm) along the sides of the pan.  The water prevents the pudding cake from drying out while baking and also minimizes cracking (I omitted this step and immediately regretted it).

Place pudding cake with pan in oven and bake for approximately 40 minutes.

In the meantime, place frozen raspberries in a small pot over low-medium heat on the stove.  Add 1 Tbsp of water and 1 Tbsp of maple syrup, allowing berries to thaw and warm.

Remove pudding cake from oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes. 

Scoop into individual serving dishes and spoon warm berries over top.

You can also refrigerate and serve this dessert cold (including the berries).  Both are delicious!