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Serves: 16
Prep time: 35 mins
Total time:
Recipe photograph by Martin Poole
Recipe by Sarah Akhurst
This zesty layer cake, drizzled with lemon and elderflower syrup and encased in a sweet elderflower buttercream, sums up spring in every bite
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Party Cakes Birthday cakes Afternoon tea Easter Weekend Lemon Spring Baking Lemon cake
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
538Kcal
Fat
33gr
Saturates
20gr
Carbs
57gr
Sugars
57gr
Protein
3gr
Salt
0.8gr
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst ’s recipes
Sarah Akhurst
Our Food Director Sarah is a food obsessive, and spends most of her time scoping out the latest food trends, experimenting in her own kitchen, or making her family wait to eat while she photographs every dinner she makes for the 'gram! A complete Middle Eastern food junkie, she is never far from a good shawarma marinade, a pinch of Aleppo chilli or a sprig of dill
See more of Sarah Akhurst ’s recipes
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Ingredients
For the cake
- 350g soft salted butter
- 350g golden caster sugar
- 5 medium eggs
- 350g self-raising flour
- 125g lemon curd yogurt
- zest of 2 lemons, plus the juice of 1
- 5 tbsp elderflower cordial
To fill and ice
- 250g soft salted butter
- 450g icing sugar, sifted
- 3 tbsp elderflower cordial
- 4 tbsp lemon curd
To decorate (optional)
- candied lemon slices (see Kitchen tip)
- edible or artificial spring flowers
Step by step
- Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan 160°C, gas 4. Grease and line three 18cm diameter sponge tins. Beat the butter and sugar together until very light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Fold through the flour and then stir through the lemon curd yogurt, zest and 3 tablespoons of the elderflower cordial. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 30 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted.
- Combine the lemon juice and the remaining cordial. Prick the sponges all over and spoon over the syrup while the cakes are still warm. Cool in the tins for 15 minutes, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack (the sponges can be frozen for up to 1 month).
- For the icing, beat the butter until very soft and creamy and then beat in the icing sugar, in two batches. Mix through the elderflower cordial.
- Place one of the sponges on a cake stand or serving plate and spread with some of the icing. Spread on half the lemon curd then top with another cake layer. Repeat with more icing and the remaining lemon curd, then top with the final sponge. Cover the whole cake with the rest of the icing, skimming the sides with a palette knife so you can see some of the cake through the icing. The cake can be assembled a day ahead.
- Decorate the cake with spring flowers, and candied lemon slices if using, just before serving. Leftovers keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container.
Kitchen tip
To make candied lemon, simmer thin lemon slices in a simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water) until translucent, turning once or twice. Lift out and cool on a lined tray.
