Friday, May 11, 2012

Mother's Day: Schaum Torte with Lemon Curd


Pin It Unless you’re from Wisconsin, you may never have heard of schaum torte (foam cake), a favorite among German immigrant families.  You may have heard of this dessert called simply "a meringue," “Pavlova” or even a "Bizet."  Essentially all of the desserts are one in the same -- meringue, filled with sweetened whipped cream, and topped with fruit.  Like pavlova, there are two schools of thought when it comes to schaum torte -- one side insists that the meringue be crisp on the outside, but squoodgy (marshmallowy) in the center; the other camp insists that a good schaum torte is dried and crisp throughout.  


My family staunchly swears by the first approach. In fact, I actually grew up utterly convinced that the women at church who made the crisp version were simply bad cooks who had made the mistake of baking their schaum tortes too long!


My grandmother made schaum torte for at least one holiday every year while I was growing up.  Hers was always baked in a springform pan, flavored with both vanilla and almond extract, and topped with sliced strawberries (often those she picked and froze from her own garden). And it was always topped with freshly whipped cream.

One of the things about schaum torte is that it uses a boatload of eggwhites, so you end up with quite a few egg yolks that need to be used up.  While you could always freeze them for later use, I find that whipping them up into a deliciously tart lemon curd to serve with the schaum torte is a seriously smart move.  The tartness of the lemon really compliments the sugary sweetness of the torte.  And it goes perfectly with those deliciously fruity spring strawberries.

This will be our first Mother's Day without Grandma, as she passed away this fall. But, her memory will live on in that deliciously sweet squoodgy torte that will inevitably work its way into the Mother's Day menu. 

So, this recipe is a nod to Grandma, and a celebration of all that is good about spring.

Serve each scoop of schaum torte with a spoonful of fresh spring strawberries, a dollop of lemon curd, and plenty of fresh whipped cream. Serve it plain -- or fancy it up by serving in a martini glass.  Either way, Mom will love you for it. 
Schaum Torte with Lemon Curd


You can find this recipe, along with plenty of other mouthwatering dishes, on GoBoldWithButter.com  Seriously -- you should check it out.  So. Much. Good. Food. 

©BURP! Where Food Happens

4 comments:

  1. funny, I'm from that German immigrant stock & this is not something we've ever had. I did have it once as Pavolva made by a Scottish friend & it was the dry variety.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I know I've heard of it before thanks to your blog. If you ever wonder if people retain what they read on your blog, I am offering living proof that someone does!

    I have made similar desserts with meringue and strawberries and cream, but never thought to do the nice obvious thing and use those leftover egg yolksin a lemon curd. I'm sure the whole thing was utterly delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I heart lemon curd (and grandmas). Both are simply the best.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This looks so good! I am so going to have to try it!

    ReplyDelete

We're thrilled that you came to visit us here at BURP! Thanks so much for taking the time to write. We're not always able to respond to every comment, but we'll make every effort to answer questions in a timely fashion. We especially enjoy reading about what's going on in your own creative kitchens. So, don't be shy!

And thanks for stopping by!

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.