Nathan Krämer's
The Art of Intentional Food
Lemon Curd Lemon Cake
Indulge in a delightful lemon cake, perfectly complemented by a light and fluffy whipped cream frosting. The layers are enriched with tangy lemon curd, adding a burst of citrus flavor that’s simply irresistible. To top it off, there's a drizzle of more lemon curd for that extra zing.
Prep Time: 50 minutes | Total Time 3 hour | (16 Servings)
Ingredients
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup vegetable oil
1¼ cups buttermilk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Zest of a lemon
Lemon Curd (make ahead)
Sweetened Whipped Cream
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup lemon curd
Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease and lightly flour the sides of two 11-inch round pans (or three 8-inch round pans) and line the bottoms with circles of parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, cream butter for 1-2 minutes until soft and light. Gradually add sugar and beat for 3 to 4 minutes until light and fluffy; scraping down sides once or twice. Gradually add eggs and oil, beating after each addition. Beat about 4-5 minutes until batter is no longer slick.
4. Slowly add part of the sifted flour mixture and part of the buttermilk and mix. Add remaining flour and buttermilk and beat for about 2 minutes. Mix in lemon extract and lemon zest.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake at 350ºF for 40-45 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean.
6. Transfer pans to wire rack to cool. Let cool 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pans. Leave the cakes on a wire rack, tops up, to cool completely, about 1 hour.
Assembling Cake
1. Remove the parchment paper from the bottoms of each cake. Place one cake on a serving platter.
2. Spread about 1/2 cup of lemon curd on top of first layer.
3. Place the second layer over the first.
4. Transfer the platter with cake to refrigerator to firm up lemon curd and chill the cake, about 1 hour.
5. Whip cream until thick, then add powdered sugar. Whip until sugar is fully incorporated and stiff peaks form. Chill for about 30 minutes.
6. Frost cake with the sweetened whipped cream and refrigerate until ready to serve.
7. Just before serving, drizzle more lemon curd on top of cake to garnish.