No-bake lemon cold cake, a fresh, creamy, and delicious dessert, without baking, and without gelatin, made with sponge fingers well-soaked in lemon syrup, and a delightful lemon cream, no-bake prepared with mascarpone and whipped cream, making it soft and yummy, finished with a quick and easy lemon gelée prepared with lemon juice and starch, for a more intense color instead of using a coloring agent, I decided to add an egg yolk, making it a real lemon card, but without butter, or a lighter lemon custard, without milk, but only lemon juice, for a decidedly intense and strong flavor, which ultimately made the dessert truly perfect, a truly sublime balance of flavors, so much so that alas the waistline, but you really can’t resist a second helping, luckily once in a while it’s allowed. So let’s see how to make our delicious lemon cheesecake, or no-bake lemon cold cake.

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Economical
Rest time: 2 Hours
Preparation time: 20 Minutes
Portions: 10
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: Spring, Summer

Ingredients for no-bake lemon cold cake

7 oz sponge fingers
1 lemon
1/2 cup sweetened whipping cream
1 3/4 cups sweetened whipping cream
7 oz mascarpone
1/2 lemon juice and zest
to taste powdered sugar
3 1/2 oz water
juice of 1 lemon
3 tbsp sugar
juice of 2 lemons
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
1 egg yolk
2 3/4 oz sugar
1 3/4 oz water

Necessary tools for preparing the no-bake lemon cold cake

1 Bowl
1 Small pot
1 Lemon squeezer
1 Electric whisk
1 Ring mold
1 Ladle
2 Small bowls 2
1 Piping bag

Preparation of no-bake lemon cold cake

LEMON SOAK
NO-BAKE LEMON CREAM
In a small pot, put 3 1/2 oz of water with 3 tbsp of sugar and some lemon peel pieces, only the yellow part, bring to a boil and then turn off the heat. Add the juice of one lemon and let it cool. We’ll use it to soak the sponge fingers.
No-bake lemon cream for no-bake lemon cold cake
1. Whip the cold cream from the fridge, I use already sweetened vegetable cream. I used 1 1/4 cups, but in the end, I had 1/2 cup left from a 2 cup package, so I advise you to use a little more, you will have even creamier layers.
2. Add the mascarpone to the whipped cream, and mix slowly with the beaters to incorporate it.
3. Now add the grated zest of half a lemon, or whole, and a bit of lemon juice, adjust to your taste, but I advise you not to overdo it, because we have the lemon gelée with a really intense taste, so it tones it down a bit.
4. Finally, adjust to taste if you want to add a bit of powdered sugar, a little is enough, about 3 tbsp, or a little more, but it’s fine without, of course, decide according to your tastes.
LEMON GELÉE
Lemon Gelée
1. In a small pot, put cornstarch and sugar, if you want it sweeter add a little more, or vice versa, add an egg yolk, mix without forming lumps, and then add the juice of 2 lemons and 1 3/4 oz of water.
2. Cook stirring, until boiling. Turn off and place in a bowl covered with cling film in contact. We use it still warm, so prepare it at the last moment, even after preparing the no-bake lemon cold cake, or you can always heat it quickly later.
ASSEMBLE OUR NO-BAKE LEMON COLD CAKE
1. On a serving plate, place our ring mold, better with a hinge, so it can be opened and widened to remove the cake, from 7-8 inches. Here you find the same one I used – Adjustable Ring.
2. Dip the sponge fingers in the lemon soak and place them at the bottom, to cover the entire base.
3. Cover the sponge fingers with half of the lemon cream.
4. Make another layer of sponge fingers soaked in the lemon soak, be careful not to skip this step.
5. Cover with the remaining lemon cream. Smooth well.
6. On the lemon cream, pour the lemon gelée, still warm, as it is liquid it spreads easily over the entire surface. Do not pour it boiling, but warm, so leave it in the bowl for a few moments, and stir it with a spoon before pouring.
7. Let our lemon cake cool well in the fridge, for at least 2 hours, or even overnight.
8. Remove the cake from the mold, helping to detach the edges with the blade of a knife.
9. Whip the remaining cream, and garnish our no-bake lemon cold cake. With a piping bag with a star nozzle, decorate with tufts around the circumference of the surface. A tuft also in the center. If a little cream is left, smooth well even the edge, so you can also add lemon slices for decoration as in the photo.
Leave our no-bake lemon cold cake in the fridge until ready to serve. It keeps for a couple of days, it can also be frozen, in this case, I recommend taking it out of the freezer at least an hour before serving.
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If you don’t have a springform pan, you can also prepare it in a dish like a classic tiramisu, for a fresh lemon tiramisu version.