lemon Archives | The Vanilla Bean Blog

Lemon Meringue Cake

Sarah Kieffer — Thu, 12 Mar 2026 19:41:16 +0000

This is a re-vamp of the lemon meringue cake from my first book. My mother-in-law requested this cake for her birthday last year, and I changed a few things around with great results. First, I swapped out the yellow cake base for white, and found that to be a big improvement. The white cake was lighter and more tender, and this worked well with the buttercream and meringue topping. I did keep the lemon soak, which adds a lot of great flavor, but I also added a lemon curd layer to bump up the lemon zing even more. It was truly one of the best cakes I have ever made, and now a yearly birthday request. My Ingredient Notes: Why I Use the Reverse Creaming Method I prefer the reverse creaming method for making cakes, where butter is introduced to the dry ingredients instead of initially creamed with the sugars. I prefer the texture of this type of cake over butter and sugar creamed cakes; it isn’t quite as fluffy, and has a very fine crumb that is even throughout. It works well for this reader favorite White Sprinkle Cake, too. The top also doesn’t dome as much as a […]

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Flaky Lemon White Chocolate Scones

Sarah Kieffer — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 01:22:46 +0000

I have a bag of lemons and blood oranges in my refrigerator. Maybe it’s the Minnesota in me, but March and April can drag here, and bright, tart citrus is a welcome addition to the snow covered yards. After years filled with brief moments of blissful warm followed by weeks of dreary cold rain mixed with snow, I don’t trust this ‘second’ spring we often find ourselves in. So, the citrus stays a little bit longer. White Chocolate In Scones? There are some who believe that chocolate does not belong in scones, ever, but I respectfully disagree (and have a similar opinion regarding sprinkle scones and chocolate chip scones). While I love fruit in scones, like my Double Apple Scones and Raspberry Scones ), sometimes a hit of chocolate is just what is needed with a steaming cup of coffee. And white chocolate and lemon is a beautiful match. Make sure to cut the white chocolate into small pieces, because it doesn’t melt as easily as regular chocolate. How I Make My Scones I have made many scones over the years, and have finally settled on this recipe with a buttery scone base, crème fraîche, and an extra egg yolk for rich flavor and tenderness. This scone recipe […]

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Chewy Lemon Sugar Cookies

Sarah Kieffer — Fri, 06 Mar 2026 16:10:23 +0000

I used to work at a coffeehouse that made the most perfect lemon sugar cookies: gigantic in size, with light lemon flavor and a dusting of sugar. However, when the baker left (along with a few important recipes), this cookie was pronounced lost forever. On and off over the years, I have tried to re-create the magic of these cookies, and finally succeeded. These incredible lemon cookies are large in size, bakery-style: the sides are slightly crisp, and the center rich and chewy. They are a perfect way to ward off the lingering winter blues while we impatiently wait for spring. It took awhile to get these cookies just right. The original recipe had a delicate lemon flavor, with crisp edges and a soft, chewy center that almost melted in your mouth. I spent weeks playing around with ratios, and finally settled on 2 tablespoons lemon zest for good flavor, an added egg yolk to help with both softness and richness in the center bite (plus it added a little more yellow color), and both baking powder and soda to help the centers rise while baking, and then gently drop as they cooled, creating a tender, yet chewy center. Important […]

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Glazed Meyer Lemon Snack Cake

Sarah Kieffer — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 23:26:43 +0000

I have been a fan of snack cakes for years (see Chocolate Chip Snack Cake and Powdered Sugar Snack Cake), and am excited to now have a Meyer Lemon version to add to the mix. This recipe comes from Bake From Scratch Vol 5, which was just released. This new volume is a lovely collection of recipes, and I have a few of my own included (such as Cranberry Streusel Bars, Pumpkin Blondies, and Chocolate Orange Sables). A couple things: *Zoë François has a new cookbook coming out, along with a television series. Her new book is entitled “Zoë Bakes Cake” and you can find it here. I photographed the “how-to” pictures in this book, and highly recommend it; Zoë is an amazing baker and her recipes are incredible. *100 Cookies was nominated for a Minnesota Book Award! You can read about the other nominations here, as well as an interview I did for the Minnesota Daily. More Snack Cake Recipes: Powdered Donut Cake Walnut Snack Cake with Raspberry Buttercream Chocolate Chip Snack Cake

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Olive Oil Sugar Cookies with Pistachios and Lemon Glaze

Sarah Kieffer — Tue, 15 Dec 2020 01:21:45 +0000

My mom will often turn down the sweet, gooey confections that I prefer, but she can never say no to a thin, crispy cookie. I created these unique olive oil sugar cookies with her in mind. The olive oil pairs well with the pistachios and lemon in this recipe. I’ve also made another version, Olive Oil Cookies with Blood Orange Glaze – the pink tinted frosting makes them a lovely Easter or Valentine’s Day cookie. What do olive oil cookies taste like? The olive oil flavor here is subtle, but there is still a trace of fruitiness and spice, and the sweet lemon glaze is a nice partner. Olive Oil Sugar Cookie Tips: This dough is very forgiving, so if it cracks at all while you are rolling it out, you can patch it up easily. I call for a 2 in [12 cm] biscuit cutter, but smaller sizes also work well, just take a few minutes off the baking time. You can leave out the pistachios if needed; replace it in the dough with equal parts flour. *Troubleshooting Notes: I have been making this recipe for 6+ years now (during the winter holidays especially), and never had a problem […]

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Whole Meyer Lemon Bars with Toasted Meringue

Sarah Kieffer — Thu, 16 Apr 2020 00:00:45 +0000

I’ve been working hard the last few weeks on finishing up projects, working on posts for Breadin5, and helping my kids with distance learning (which seems like another full-time job). I haven’t had much time to bake from some of the beautiful cookbooks I received the last few months, but I finally was able to sneak in some time and made these beautiful meyer lemon meringue bars from Susan Spungen’s new cookbook Open Kitchen. Susan’s book is about the “concept of ‘get-ahead cooking.’ Once you discover the joy of getting ahead, you will be come a planner even if you never were before…[c]ooking is how you learn to be a good cook. Just like everything else, cooking is a practice, so as you keep cooking you’ll find yourself getting more and more comfortable and better and better at it.” **** A few things: *My friends over at Pure & Clear are now offering delivery for their unique ice and crystal clear ice. They also ship nationwide. *My friend Jess recorded this beautiful song over on Instagram. *I watched the new Emma movie and absolutely loved it. It was perfectly quirky and charming. It inspired me to also reread the novel. […]

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Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake

Sarah Kieffer — Thu, 24 May 2018 03:13:44 +0000

I know it’s spring, and I should be straying away from citrus and moving towards rhubarb, but I made this lemon poppy seed Bundt cake last week and wanted to share it. Making Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake It’s a recipe inspired by a wonderful citrus Bundt cake from Yossy’s book (affiliate link), but I swapped regular lemons for Meyer, and cream cheese for sour cream. I also swirled in some poppy seeds and lemon curd for good measure. It’s tender, moist, and full of lemon flavor. I really love this Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake with the cream cheese, and have a few more variations planned with the base recipe (my family raved about it for days, and thought it was better each passing day, which was a win-win) so stay tuned for those. A few things: *I often share what music I’m listening to in my Instagram stories, and I’ve made a playlist here on Spotify of some of the songs if you want to take a listen. *I’m looking forward to: Molly’s TV show! Seeing Jeremy Enigk perform Return of the Frog Queen A whole summer reading PG Wodehouse (affiliate link) / (I’m addicted now – I don’t […]

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Homemade Lemon Curd (with variations!)

Sarah Kieffer — Fri, 02 Mar 2018 20:04:19 +0000

I was never crazy about lemon curd until I made it for myself. It took me a few tries to get it just right, but I discovered that while I like my curd very yolky, I do prefer the addition of one whole egg. I leave out the zest for a smooth, not-too-tart curd, but you can add some to ramp up the lemon flavor. I’ve included some variations for you, too; lemon-lavender, lime, and grapefruit!

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Citrus Bundt Cake

Sarah Kieffer — Mon, 06 Mar 2017 04:11:49 +0000

‘What we call the beginning is often the endAnd to make an end is to make a beginning.The end is where we start from.’ – TS Eliot, Four Quartets Somehow we’re back to blood oranges. A year ago I made doughnuts with them, and quick bread. I’m not quite sure where the time went – months have flown by, with so many changes, yet somehow it is all a blur. This citrus Bundt cake is adapted from Yossy’s beautiful book (affiliate link) Sweeter Off the Vine (the doughnuts mentioned above are found among its pages, too). I find myself taking far too many trips to the refrigerator to sneak another sliver; the sweet, tart flavors and pieces of citrus flesh scattered throughout the cake (Yossy describes them as ‘jammy pockets’) are worth any extra indulgence on my part. If you don’t have Sweeter Off the Vine, I highly recommend it. It’s a stunning collection of recipes and photographs, and everything turns out delicious. NOTE: My changes from Yossy’s cake were to use blood oranges instead of Meyer lemons in the cake. I also added 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (not noted in the recipe here). I store this in the fridge because I […]

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Iced Lemon Almond Bread

Sarah Kieffer — Mon, 22 Jun 2015 14:48:44 +0000

Happy Monday, dear readers. I woke up this morning to thunder, lightning, and two littles climbing in my bed, sort of scared but mostly using the storm as an excuse to play games on my iPad. Yesterday was 85 and sunny — our first perfect summer day, filled with a family BBQ, swimming, and so much laughing I’m still smiling. Autumn may be my favorite season, but summer is just the best. This lemon almond bread was also a nice way to start the day, with a light lemon flavor and the perfect fluffy-but-not-too-fluffy texture that made each bite a good reason to be out of bed, even on a Monday. Next time I might stir some blackberries or raspberries in to celebrate July’s sort-lived seasonal fruits. This delicious bread comes from Cheryl Sterman Rule‘s new book, Yogurt Culture. I’m really loving this cookbook — so many great recipes involving all types of yogurt, from slightly complex (making your own yogurt) to very easy (coffee yogurt and simple compotes) to everything in-between: cardamom pancakes, artichoke-almond soup, labneh-stuffed peppers, creamy pasta marinara, and salted caramel panna cotta, just to name a few. I’m glad to have this book on my shelf. […]

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