This lemon layer cake looks striking and has bright lemon flavor at every level. Four layers of tender lemon cake are brushed with a tart citrus syrup, then sandwiched together with lemony cream cheese frosting.
After you make this lemon cake recipe from scratch, you can decorate it with extra frosting, lemon slices and colorful, edible flowers, then double-down on that sunny lemon taste by serving it with old-fashioned homemade lemonade.
Ingredients for Lemon Cake
- Butter: Butter adds richness and moisture to cakes. Let the butter soften for about an hour before you start.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar is creamed with butter until light and fluffy, adding sweetness to balance out the tart citrus.
- Eggs and egg yolks: Eggs bind the cake together, and additional egg yolks ensure a velvety texture. Both the eggs and yolks should be at room temperature before being added.
- Lemon zest and lemon juice: Aromatic lemon zest and bright juice are added directly into the batter in this moist lemon cake recipe.
- Sour cream and milk: Using both sour cream and 2% milk as the liquid for the cake brings an additional layer of richness.
- Flour: All-purpose flour gives the cake structure.
- Baking powder and soda: These leaveners combine for maximum lift.
Syrup:
- Sugar and lemon juice: Sugar and lemon juice are boiled for a bright simple syrup that gets brushed on the cake layers.
Frosting:
- Cream cheese and butter: Room-temperature cream cheese and butter beat up extra smoothly.
- Confectioners’ sugar: Confectioners’ sugar makes for a smooth and sweet frosting.
- Lemon juice: Using only lemon juice as the liquid makes for an exceptionally bright frosting.
- Lemon slices or edible flowers (optional): These optional, but beautiful, garnishes make for an extra-pretty presentation.
Directions
Step 1: Prepare the cake pans
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottoms of two greased 9-inch round baking pans with parchment, then grease the parchment, to ensure the cake doesn’t stick.
Step 2: Make the cake batter
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Add the eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the lemon zest and juice.
In a small bowl, mix the sour cream and milk.
In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Start by adding 1/3 of the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, then 1/2 of the milk mixture, alternating and ending with flour.
Editor’s Tip: Prevent a tough crumb by taking care in this step. When adding flour and milk in an alternating fashion, only mix until just combined. Overmixing at this step will create too much gluten and decrease the cake’s tenderness.
Step 3: Bake the cake
Add the batter evenly to the two prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 24 to 28 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then carefully turn them out onto wire racks to remove the parchment and continue cooling.
Step 4: Make the lemon syrup
In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and lemon juice. Bring it to a boil, then cook until the liquid is reduced by half, and let it cool a bit.
Step 5: Make the frosting
Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Gradually add in the confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice and salt until blended.
Step 6: Prepare the cake layers
Using a long serrated knife, cut each cake horizontally in half (here’s our best tip for cutting cake layers). Brush the top of each layer with warm syrup, then let them cool completely.
Step 7: Frost and decorate the cake
Lay one cake layer on a serving plate, and top it with 1 cup of frosting. Repeat the layers twice, topping with the remaining cake layer. Frost the top and sides with the remaining frosting. If desired, decorate with additional frosting, lemon slices and/or edible flowers like violets or nasturtiums.
Editor’s Tip: For perfect finished frosting, make a crumb coat. Spread a thin layer of icing on the top and sides of the cake and refrigerate it for about 30 minutes. Then add the rest of the frosting for a crumb-free finish.
Lemon Cake Variations
- Add top-tier toppings: In addition to decorative icing swirls, twisted lemon wheels and colorful flowers, try adding additional lemon zest or chopped crunchy green pistachios.
- Go naked: For a modern look, try the barely there naked cake approach to frosting.
- Amp up the citrus: Why stop at lemon? Mix in orange or lime zest to add more color and flavor into the batter and sprinkled over the top.
How to Store Lemon Cake
Finished lemon cake can be stored covered in the refrigerator for two to three days.
Can you freeze lemon cake?
To freeze, wrap unfrosted cake layers well in both plastic wrap and heavy-duty aluminum foil and freeze them for up to three months.
Lemon Cake Tips
How do you make a super-lemony cake?
This recipe uses all our secrets for an ultra-lemony cake. The trick is to add lemon flavor into each step: the batter, the lemon syrup and the frosting. Using both juice and zest brings both the floral aromas from the peel’s lemon oil and also the tart acidity in the juice that makes a lemon, well, a lemon.
What’s the best way to zest a lemon?
A tool like a zester or microplane work well for zesting citrus fruit. If you don’t have either of those, use a vegetable peeler to cut larger pieces of zest from the fruit, then mince them as finely as possible. The most important part is to only use the yellow part of the skin, as the thicker white pith beneath is bitter.
What are some tips for baking a cake?
Baking a great layer cake isn’t hard, but there are some tips to make sure each step goes well. From not beating the flour too much, which overdevelops the gluten and makes a tough cake, to making sure your cake slips smoothly out of the cake pans, here’s a list of our top tips, from baking to decorating, to make the job easier and create beautiful results.
