Simply Lovely Lemon Cake
With its firm yet tender texture this Simply Lovely Lemon Cake will become a staple in your cake making arsenal. The time tested recipe contains buttermilk and lemon zest to guarantee a flavorful cake that's perfect for weekday dinners or a simply elegant dinner party!
Equipment
- Mixer
- 9" round baking pan
- Parchment circle
- Zester
- Flexible spatula
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 stick butter, softened ½ cup or 4 ounces
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 3 Tbsp grated lemon zest 3-4 large lemons
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
For the glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 5 tsp lemon juice
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 325°
- Line a 9" round baking pan with parchment paper or lightly spray with cooking spray.
- Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest and set aside.
- In a small measuring cup, combine lemon juice, buttermilk and vanilla.
- With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides with spatula.
- With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time,beating well between each addition. I like to turn off the mixer while I'm adding the eggs in case a bit of egg shell gets in there -- easier to fish it out with the machine off!
- Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrap the sides with spatula as needed.
- Pour batter into pan, smooth the top, and bake for 30 minutes til a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan for about 15 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely before drizzling with Lemon Glaze.
To make the glaze:
- Sift powdered sugar into a glass measuring pitcher or bowl.
- Whisk in the lemon juice. Adjust consistency by adding more powdered sugar or lemon juice to make a thickish but spreadable glaze.