This Italian cream dessert is very simple but fancy enough to serve as a birthday cake. It\u2019s low on sugar and big on flavor. You can swap the lemon zest for orange or lime to change things up. You can also add a layer of jam on top of the first layer of dough\u2014raspberry jam, marmalade jam or even Nutella work well. \u2014Maria Morelli, West Kelowna, British Columbia<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7061,"featured_media":1685120,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"tags":[303971,304158,305488,305744,304328,304288,305487,304430,303966,304408,304368,306848,304268,324623,304388,305819,303994,304395,304150,304353,307818],"categories-v2":[308500,310461,309438,310802,311389,308988,308319,308984,308481,259620,310796,308830,308495,308813,308745,309603,259483,309177,308752,311449,308528,308782,309434,309005,310596],"coauthors":[],"recommended_recipes":[{"post_title":"Italian Cream Cake","post_link":"\/recipes\/italian-cream-cheese-cake\/","post_image":"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Italian-Cream-Cake_EXPS_TOHD24_28232_EricKleinberg_8.jpg"},{"post_title":"Cream-Filled Coffee 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Cake","post_link":"\/recipes\/pizza-cake\/","post_image":"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Pizza-Cake_EXPS_FT22_17867_F_0323_1.jpg"},{"post_title":"Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Custard Sauce","post_link":"\/recipes\/chocolate-zucchini-cake-with-custard-sauce\/","post_image":"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/exps21527_TH132767D05_02_9b_WEB.jpg"},{"post_title":"Neapolitan Cake","post_link":"\/recipes\/neapolitan-cake\/","post_image":"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Neapolitan-Cake_EXPS_FT21_22515_F_0521_1.jpg"}],"acf":{"long_pin":"https:\/\/tmbidigitalassetsazure.blob.core.windows.net\/rms3-prod\/attachments\/37\/1200x1200\/Italian-Cream-Filled-Cake-_EXPS_RC21_261473_B07_15_1b.jpg"},"recipe_schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Recipe","@id":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/recipes\/italian-cream-filled-cake\/","name":"Italian Cream-Filled Cake","datePublished":"2021-08-04","dateModified":"2022-08-25","prepTime":"PT30M","cookTime":"PT30M","totalTime":"PT60M","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.tasteofhome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Italian-Cream-Filled-Cake-_EXPS_RC21_261473_B07_15_1b.jpg","height":1200,"width":1200},"recipeCategory":["Desserts"],"description":"This Italian cream dessert is very simple but fancy enough to serve as a birthday cake. It\u2019s low on sugar and big on flavor. You can swap the lemon zest for orange or lime to change things up. You can also add a layer of jam on top of the first layer of dough\u2014raspberry jam, marmalade jam or even Nutella work well. \u2014Maria Morelli, West Kelowna, British Columbia","recipeIngredient":["3\/4 cup butter, softened","1\/2 cup sugar","4 large egg yolks, room temperature","1-1\/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest","2 teaspoons vanilla extract","2 cups all-purpose flour","1 teaspoon baking powder","Dash salt","FILLING:","2-1\/3 cups plain whole milk yogurt","1-2\/3 cups sour cream","1\/3 cup all-purpose flour","2 teaspoons vanilla extract","4 large egg whites, room temperature","3\/4 cup sugar","Confectioners' sugar, optional"],"recipeInstructions":[{"@type":"HowToStep","text":"In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in zest and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture."},{"@type":"HowToStep","text":"Divide dough in half. Shape each into a disk; wrap. Refrigerate 1 portion and freeze 1 portion for 30 minutes."},{"@type":"HowToStep","text":"Preheat oven to 350\u00b0. On a lightly floured surface, roll refrigerated portion of dough to fit a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Refrigerate while making filling."},{"@type":"HowToStep","text":"Meanwhile, for filling, in a large bowl, combine yogurt, sour cream, flour and vanilla. With clean beaters, beat egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating on high after each addition until sugar is dissolved. Continue beating until stiff glossy peaks form. Fold into yogurt mixture. Spread evenly over crust."},{"@type":"HowToStep","text":"Using a box grater, grate frozen dough portion over filling. Press lightly into filling. Bake until puffed and edges are light brown, 30-35 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars; if desired, sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. Refrigerate leftovers."}],"recipeYield":"2 dozen","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Taste Recipes Editorial Team"}],"nutrition":{"@type":"NutritionInformation","calories":" 198 calories","fatContent":"11g fat (6g saturated fat)","cholesterolContent":"53mg cholesterol","sodiumContent":"99mg sodium","carbohydrateContent":"22g carbohydrate (12g sugars","fiberContent":"0 fiber)","proteinContent":"4g protein."},"aggregateRating":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"AggregateRating","ratingValue":3,"reviewCount":1,"worstRating":1,"bestRating":5},"review":[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Review","datePublished":"2021-10-04","author":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Person","name":"DDPLoeches"},"reviewBody":"When I saw the name of this recipe and the low level of sugar, I decided to try it. My mom\u2019s Italian Cream Cake recipe is loaded with black walnuts but has no lemon, so I eliminated the lemon zest and sprinkled black walnuts over part of the cake. I suspect that the lemon would have helped it, because the part without the walnuts was kind of blah (and I don\u2019t like black walnuts). It was better while still warm, because it had a little tang from the sour cream. After it was chilled, it lost that. I\u2019m giving it 3 stars even though it might have gotten 4 in our family with lemon extract.","reviewRating":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Rating","ratingValue":3,"worstRating":1,"bestRating":5}}]},"video":{"data":{"status":204},"message":"No shortcode found in recipe"},"rms_legacy_id":"261473","romance_copy_dek":"This Italian cream dessert is very simple but fancy enough to serve as a birthday cake. It\u2019s low on sugar and big on flavor. You can swap the lemon zest for orange or lime to change things up. 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