Lemon Cake
A delightful lemon cake topped with a secret fluffy lemon frosting, perfect for birthdays and gatherings.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 cups plain / all-purpose flour cake flour OK too
- 2.5 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 4 large eggs (50 – 55g / 2 oz each), at room temperature
- 1.5 cups caster / superfine sugar granulated/regular OK too
- 115 g unsalted butter, cut into 1.5cm / 1/2” cubes or so
- 1 cup milk, full fat
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract the best you can afford
- 3 teaspoons vegetable or canola oil
- 3 tablespoons lemon zest from 2 lemons
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon natural lemon extract optional
For the Frosting
- 6.5 tablespoons plain/all-purpose flour
- 1.33 cups milk, full fat low fat OK, 0% fat no good
- 1.33 cups caster/superfine white sugar or granulated/ordinary
- 300 g unsalted butter, softened
- 3 teaspoons lemon zest from 1 lemon
- 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
Preparation
- Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) for 20 minutes before you start.
- Grease three 20cm/8” cake pans with butter and line them with parchment paper.
Combine Dry Ingredients
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set this mixture aside.
Beat Eggs
- In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, beat the eggs for 30 seconds at speed 6.
- Slowly add the sugar while still mixing for about 45 seconds.
- Continue to beat on speed 8 for about 7 minutes until it becomes white and has tripled in volume.
Finish Cake Batter
- While the eggs are whipping, heat the butter and milk together until melted.
- Gently incorporate the flour mixture into the egg batter, alternating with the hot milk mixture, and mix until just combined.
Bake
- Pour the batter into the prepared pans and knock out any big air bubbles.
- Bake for around 23 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool & Frost
- After baking, cool the cakes in their pans for about 15 minutes and then turn them out onto cooling racks.
- Frost with the fluffy lemon frosting once cooled.
Notes
Tips: Use room-temperature ingredients for better mixing. Ensure the cakes are completely cool before frosting to prevent the frosting from melting.