Lemon Strawberry Cake
There is no better flavor combination for me than lemons and strawberries, especially in summertime when the strawberries are in season. My daughter Claire and I decided to make a layer cake with lemon filling, lemon cake and yummy local berries. I let Claire do most of the decorating and baking which was a fantastic opportunity to work on my control issues in the kitchen. My only strong objection was the chocolate icing she wanted to add to the top. I couldn’t help is, the urge was too strong. So here is, our cake recipe. I have also included the easy version at the very bottom. Remember cake from a box still makes your family happy.
Lemon Strawberry Cake
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
1-1/4 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 TBS fresh lemon juice
2 TBS freshly grated lemon zest
1 cup milk
PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8 inch round pans. Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla and lemon juice. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Then invert onto wire racks to cool completely.
Lemon Filling:
1/4-pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 extra-large eggs
3 extra-large egg yolks (save the whites for the meringue)
1/4 cup finely grated lemon zest (6 to 8 lemons)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 1 minute. On low speed, add the eggs and egg yolks one at a time, and then add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt. Don’t worry; it will look curdled.
Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until thick, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Whisk briskly when it starts to thicken and cook over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Don’t allow it to boil! Let cook before spreading on layers of cake. Save some of the filling if you want to pipe some decoration on the top.
Directions:
Once the cake is sliced into 3 equal layers, smother the bottom layer with lemon filling, layer with sliced strawberries. Then, spread lemon filling on the bottom of the middle layer and press onto the strawberries. Spread more lemon filling on the top of the middle layer, layer with strawberries and then as before put some lemon filling on the bottom of the last top layer and press onto strawberries. Finally, ice your cake with the following icing:
LEMON BUTTER CREAM FROSTING
4 cups icing sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
2 TBS milk
2 drops of yellow food coloring (optional)
To make frosting: In large bowl, beat confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup butter, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 1 teaspoon lemon zest until smooth. Beat in milk, and increase speed and continue to beat until light and fluffy.
Let cool a bit in the refrigerator and then serve with some fresh whipped cream and a bit of mint. So delicious.
Now for option 2: 1 box of lemon cake mix, 1 box of lemon filling mix, container of pre-made icing, strawberries, can of whipped cream. Do the exact same as directions above.
8 Responses to “Lemon Strawberry Cake”
Leave a Reply
Secured by
Hey girls – the cake looks so delicious!!! Let’s have a girls cook night soon xo
YES.
This cake looks really good, but also time consuming….think ima gonna try it!!
That’s funny. I am making it today…
Thanks for the great recipe! I was lazy and used boxed lemon cake & Trader Joe’s lemon curd instead of the filling. The frosting is amazing and loved the idea of fresh strawberries in the layers!
cool
I tried making it today. Followed the directions (as best I could considering the errors in the recipe and not having a mixer equipped with a paddle) but the filling never got stiff enough and the layers slid off of each other. Seems too expensive and time consuming to waste so hopefully my family will scoop it up and eat it even if I can’t slice it or show it off.
Sorry. I will retest the recipe.