Saxon Transylvanians have a warm and welcoming culture of baking. They’ll whip up desserts on the average Thursday afternoon as eagerly as they will for special occasions. It’s not uncommon for a host to quickly make a dessert, like papanăși—a curd-cheese fried doughnut served with cream and fruit jam— when guests drop in unexpectedly, or a magnificent lemon-scented slab cake with crème fraîche custard layered on top. In this episode of Milk Street TV, Chris travels to the Saxon villages of Transylvania and learns three special desserts to bring back to Milk Street: a Romanian Crème Fraîche Cake, called Lichiu; the Romanian Apple Pie with Cinnamon and Walnuts, called Plăcintă cu Mere; and a spongy, light meringue-topped cake.

Romanian Crème Fraîche Cake (Lichiu)

While this lemon-scented cake may be known by few outside of Romania, it’s quite popular in the Saxon regions of Transylvania. Part of what makes this recipe special is that every region of Transylvania puts its own spin on the confection, and many families have their own lichiu recipe that’s been passed down through generations.

Romanian Crème Fraîche Cake is a flat slab cake made with a fermented yeast-raised dough as the base layer. Long before the likes of baking powder and baking soda were created and accessible, yeast was the leavening agent of choice (so you know this recipe has been popular for quite some time).

Once the lemon zest-studded dough has risen and is pressed into a pan, the filling is layered on top—but this is no ordinary lemon bar topping. A thick semolina pudding gets lightened with whipped egg whites and spread over the dough. This layer adds bulk, texture and more lemon-y flavor. In a separate bowl, a simple mixture of crème fraîche, egg yolks and a dose of sugar with a pinch of salt gets thoroughly whisked together to form a pourable custard. This is spread in a thin layer over the top of the semolina layer before the whole cake goes in the oven. Once baked and cooled, you’ll find this sturdy-yet-tender cake resembles a thicker and more subtle cousin of the American lemon bar.

Romanian Apple Pie with Cinnamon and Walnuts (Plăcintă cu Mere)

Our Romanian Apple Pie features a cookie-like crust packed with a flavorful apple filling. The filling is composed of spiced shredded apples, which makes it more compact but just as apple-forward as an American apple pie. And with its forgiving crust, it’s less fussy, too.

To make the pastry, butter is blended into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse sand with pebbles. We use a food processor to keep this quick and prevent the tiny pieces of butter from getting too warm, but you also could use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment on low speed. A small amount of sour cream and water are added to bring the ingredients together into a pliable dough. This mixing method is called the “mealy method,” which breaks the cold butter into tiny pieces to result in a tender crust, distinctly different from a flaky dough with big butter chunks. Mealy method doughs stand up well to desserts with fruit juices because the fat coats some of the flour, essentially “water-proofing” it. It’s also very forgiving—even if it cracks or breaks, you can press it into the pan to patch it up.

The dough is split into equal halves and chilled in the fridge. Meanwhile, the apples get shredded with a box grater and tossed with a small amount of lemon juice, which prevents the apples from oxidizing; and sugar, which helps draw out the apples’ moisture. This step is vital for removing water from the apple filling and will ultimately prevent the bottom crust from becoming soggy.

Once the dough has been rolled out and one disc pressed into a spring-form pan, walnuts are scattered over the dough to provide complementary bitter notes and a welcome crunchy texture. To thoroughly drain excess juice, the apples are pressed in a tea towel, tossed with other filling ingredients and sprinkled into the pan.

The second disc of dough is gently pressed on top of the apple filling and docked with a skewer to let out moisture, again to keep both the bottom and top crust crisp. After baking, we like to top the pie simply with powdered sugar to let the apples and sweet, crumbly crust shine.

Meringue-Topped Cake with Cherries

Fruit is featured prominently in our Meringue-Topped Cake with Cherries. While Irina Georgescu’s recipe from “Tava” uses rhubarb, common and available in Saxon Transylvania, its season in North America often can be short. We opt for cherries, which are available frozen year-round, so it’s never a bad time to make this cake.

Our cake is made by whipping the eggs, sugar and lemon zest until thick, foamy and light in color. This aeration is key to the cake’s feather-light texture at the end, which plays well off of the billowy toasted meringue layer. The light batter is poured into a spring-form pan, which helps with easy removal later once the cake is finished with the delicate meringue topping. If you don’t have a springform, go ahead and line a rectangular pan with kitchen parchment before pouring the batter in. You’ll use the overhanging paper to lift the cooled cake out later before slicing.

After the cake is finished baking, the cherries will disappear as they drift to the bottom, forming a jammy layer of fruit. Let the cake cool slightly as you make the meringue. Don’t start the meringue earlier than when you plan to spread it onto the cake. If it sits for long then it can take on a broken or mealy texture. Using it straight after whipping it up will preserve its silky look. Gently dollop the meringue all around the surface of the cake, taking extra care in the center where it’s the most delicate, and spread it out evenly. Adding some swoops and swirls with the back of a spoon creates a beautiful finish that will brown nicely in the oven. Return it to the oven to do so, and about 20 minutes later, this Romanian-inspired cake will be ready for your guests.

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Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

Allie Chantorn Reinmann is a Digital Staff Writer for Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street. She’s a Thai-American chef who earned her diploma for Pastry and Baking Arts at The Institute of Culinary Education and worked professionally for over a decade honing her craft in New York City at places like Balthazar, Bien Cuit, The Chocolate Room, Billy’s Bakery and Whole Foods. Allie took her know-how from the kitchen to the internet, writing about food full-time at Lifehacker for three years and starting her own YouTube channel, ThaiNYbites. You can find her whipping up baked goods for cafés around Brooklyn, building wedding cakes and trying her hand (feet?) at marathon running. She’s working on her debut cookbook and lives in Brooklyn, NY.