Petit fours

Method

• Sponge: Beat egg yolks and sugar together until thick and creamy. Add lemon rind.
• Sift flour and gently fold into egg yolk mixture. Add melted butter and mix lightly.
• Beat egg whites until foamy, then gradually add extra sugar, while beating constantly, until stiff peak stage. Gently fold egg whites into creamed mixture, using a metal spoon.
• Spoon mixture into a lined and greased 24 x 34 cm oven pan. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 20 minutes. Leave in pan for a few minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut cake in half.
• Filling: Cream butter and icing sugar together. Add essence, lemon rind and juice and mix to a smooth, spreadable consistency. Sandwich two cake layers together with filling.
• Topping: Brush surface of cake with warm jam. Roll out marzipan on a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar, to as thin as possible. Cover cake surface with marzipan and trim edges neatly. Cut cake into shapes and sizes of preference, such as rounds, squares or ovals. Place on a wire rack.
• Icing: Add a few drops of food colouring to glace icing and mix well. Pour icing over marzipan topping and sides of each small cake. Leave to set. Decorate as desired, using more glace icing in different colours.