Best Lemon Layer Cake
This is a very time-intensive cake that I have made as a special dessert for Easter and birthdays. Its a hybrid of 3 different recipes, as I wasn't able to get great results from any of them until I started monkey-ing with them. Its well worth the chore of making this cake- the end result is light and tart, perfect for Spring.
Prep Time2 hours hrs
Cook Time2 hours hrs
Servings: 10 people
For cake:
- 3 1/4 cups cake flour
- 8 large egg yolks
- 2 tbsp grated lemon peel
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice (can be a combination of lemon/lime or lemon/pineapple)
For lemon curd:
- 1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 8 large egg whites (whisked until blended but not foamy)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole milk
For syrup:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup boiling water
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (can be a combination of lemon/lime or lemon/pineapple)
For filling and frosting:
- 2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 8- ounce containers chilled mascarpone cheese (cream cheese can be substituted)
For cake:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°Butter and flour four 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Sift flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt into medium bowl. Beat sugar and butter in large bowl until fluffy. Add egg whites in 4 additions, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Beat dry ingredients into butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
Divide batter among prepared pans. Bake cakes until golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer pans to racks and cool 5 minutes. Turn cakes out onto racks; cool completely. Layers will be thin. (Lemon curd and cakes can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill curd. Wrap cake layers separately and store at room temperature.)
For filling and frosting:
Putting it all together:
Place 1 cake layer, flat side up, on platter. Brush with 1/4 of syrup. Spread 1/4 cup lemon curd over, then 1 cup lemon-mascarpone filling. Top with second cake layer; brush with 1/4 of syrup and spread with 1/4 cup lemon curd and 1 cup lemon-mascarpone filling. Repeat with third cake layer, syrup, lemon curd, and filling. Top with fourth cake layer. Brush with remaining syrup, then spread remaining lemon curd over. Spoon 2 cups lemon-mascarpone filling into pastry bag fitted with 1/4-inch star tip (to be used for rosettes). Spread remaining lemon-mascarpone filling as a frosting over sides of cake. Pipe small rosettes of frosting over top of cake, covering completely. Cover cake with cake dome; refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 1 day.