Lemon pastries with protein cream

Scrape the zest from the lemon using a special knife or fine grater. Don't forget to wash the lemon beforehand. Only the yellow part of the peel is suitable for zest, it's better not to touch the white part, otherwise the taste of the pastry may become bitter.

Grate the cold butter on a coarse grater, gradually adding the flour so that the pieces of butter do not stick together. Rub the butter and flour into crumbs. This buttery crumb will be the basis of the shortcrust pastry.

Add the lemon zest, baking powder, raw yolks, powdered sugar and vanillin. Knead the shortcrust pastry from all this, it's better to knead it with your hands.

When the dough becomes homogeneous and elastic, roll it into a ball and place this ball in the refrigerator for 20-25 minutes.

Roll out the chilled raw dough with a rolling pin on a silicone mat or parchment paper. To ensure the pastries are neat and the same size, cut the sheet of dough into a rectangle with sides of 25 cm and 30 cm.

Cut the sheet of dough into 15 equal parts, lay them on a baking tray and send them to the oven. Bake for 11 minutes at a temperature of 200 degrees.

Pour water into a saucepan with a thick bottom, add sugar and place the mixture over low heat for 8-9 minutes. A thick and sticky sugar syrup should result. If you see that the syrup is close to turning into caramel, you can remove it from the heat a little earlier. The ideal syrup should not darken or solidify too much. Pour 3 tablespoons of lemon juice into the prepared syrup.

At this time, beat the egg whites in a kitchen machine until stiff peaks form. This should be done in a dry and clean container. For the best results, the whisking container can also be degreased with lemon juice.

Gradually introduce the boiling sugar syrup into the egg whites in a thin stream, while continuously beating them vigorously. Beat for at least 12 minutes. During this time, the protein cream should become homogeneous, cool slightly and thicken. You can add another teaspoon of lemon juice to the finished cream.

Remove the shortcrust pastry from the oven, trim the pieces with a knife. Any excess crumbs can later be used for sprinkling the pastries.

When the cream has completely cooled, spread it on the prepared pieces of dough. The layer of cream should be at least 4 cm high. The edges of the cream layer can be carefully trimmed with a silicone spatula or a large spoon. Sprinkle the pastries on top with the crumbs of the dough. Place the finished lemon pastries in the refrigerator for a few hours.

If you want to slightly diversify the classic recipe for lemon pastries with protein cream, you can add a layer of lemon or any other jam between the layers and the cream. This delicious dessert based on shortcrust pastry and protein cream can be made not only with lemon, but also with tangerine, kiwi, pineapple, or even grapefruit.