When life gives you lemons, put them in a bowl and pour a glass of champagne. This Gluten Free Champagne Cake with Yuzu Swiss Meringue is a celebration of flavors, and a cake worth toasting with a glass of bubbly.

This light and delicate layered cake is as delicious as it’s stunning. The bubbly champagne lends to an airy cake. With it’s bold bright kick of citrus, the yuzu perfectly compliments the champagne while balancing the sweet frosting.

Light as Air

As airy as this cake is, the creamy cloud of marshmallow like Swiss meringue frosting is equally as light. Let’s break down both what Swiss meringue is, as well as how to make it.

The easiest way to describe a Swiss meringue frosting is to compare it to marshmallow fluff. In fact, you aren’t that far off from making a marshmallow base when you make a Swiss Meringue. The two components of a Swiss meringue are egg whites and sugar, making this naturally dairy free.

To begin with you’re going to add your egg whites and sugar to a metal or glass bowl and whisk for 4 minutes, or until the sugar begins to dissolve and it starts to get a little lighter in texture.

The second part of this process begins with making a double boiler. Bring a pot of water to a low simmer and put a glass or metal bowl over it, ensuring the bottom of the bowl never touches the water. Wisk continually for 5-8 minutes, or until the mixture reaches 160 degrees. At this point it will look slightly foamy.

The next step in the making of your frosting for your Gluten Free Champagne Cake with Yuzu Swiss Meringue is pouring the hot mixture into the bowl of your mixer. Be careful not to splatter, because ouch!

You are going to mix at high speed for 10 minutes. At this point the mixer is going to do all of the work aerating and increasing the volume. Continue mixing until it’s beautifully glossy, white, thick, and luscious, like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man in Ghostbusters.

Putting the Yuzu in Gluten Free Champagne Cake with Yuzu Swiss Meringue

This frosting is taken over the top with the addition of yuzu chocolate. Yuzu is a citrus fruit with a taste mashup of grapefruit, lemons, and mandarin oranges. Like I said, when life gives you lemons, make Gluten Free Champagne Cake with Yuzu Swiss Meringue.

Naturally dairy free, Yuzu Inspiration is melt in your mouth, or meringue, creamy with cocoa butter, and bright and citrusy with yuzu. The only thing that could make this cake better is a generous sprinkle of fresh juicy berries. You’ll want to add them between the layers and pile them on top as the yuzu compliments the sweet-tart berries.

Pop open that bottle of champagne, and let’s make a Gluten Free Champagne Cake with Yuzu Swiss Meringue.

Top Tip

When you create a double boiler, it allows you to cook or melt something at a gentle heat without worry of over cooking it. This is useful for making custards, meringues, melting chocolate, etc. The best part is you don’t need any special tools.

Armed with a pot of simmering water and a glass bowl, you can easily create a double boiler at home. The key is to make sure the water never touches the bottom of the bowl. You want the steam created from the seal to do all of the work.

Love citrus? Make sure you check out my recipe for Easy Pesto Chicken Citrus Quinoa Salad.