Savarin Cake with Lemon (French Gâteaux Savarin au Citron)

A savarin is a French type of cake that has the shape of a crown that was invented in the 19th century. Its creators called it "savarin" as a tribute to the French gastronome and writer Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin. Savarins have the shape of a crown because of the mould they are baked in. Any type of cake can be made in this type of mould, but these moulds are better adapted to thick batters, such as the savarins. The crown mould is also practical for a short baking time to give a light and aerial texture. Indeed, the opening in the middle helps to spread the heat from the center of the cake outwards, assuring a homogeneous cooking. Don't worry if you have leftovers, most savarins are made with a lot of butter and taste even better the next day. You can easily keep them for a few days in an air-tight box, or even freeze slices (if you do freeze some, be sure to separate each slice with parchment paper to avoid them sticking to each other).

Savarin:
2½ cup all-purpose flour, unbleached (300 g)
2 tsp. baking soda
1 pinch sea salt
1⅓ cup butter, melted (300 g)
1½ cup white sugar (300 g)
2 Tbsp. lemon zest, freshly grated
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk (25 cl)

Syrup:
¾ cup white sugar (150 g)
6 Tbsp. lemon juice, freshly squeezed
4 Tbsp. water

Preheat an oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). Butter and flour the bottom of the mould.

Sift the flour, baking soda and a pinch kosher or sea salt over a bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the butter with the sugar and lemon zest using an electric mixer. Whisk until the mixture whitens.

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks, and incorporate the egg yolks progressively into the bowl. Add the flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk to the mixture without stopping whisking.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites until firm, and add them gently to the batter. Pour the batter in the mold and bake it for 45-55 minutes. The cake is done when you insert a blade of a knife into the center of the cake and it comes out clean.

Let it cool down 10 minutes and unmold the cake.

For the Syrup:
In a saucepan, combine all the ingredients and bring the mixture to a boil. Then, pour the syrup on top of the cake. You can recover the syrup that leaked on the plate and pour it back on the cake until it is fully absorbed.

Savarins tend to be rich and one cake can serve from 8-12 people.