Lemon Butter Layer Cake with Lemon Silk Buttercream

Makes: 1, 8 inch, layer cake Prep time: 90 minutes, including decorating Bake time : 25 to 30 minutes

Ingredients

Cake

2/3 cup unsalted butter at room temperature

1/3 cup canola oil

2 teaspoons Nielsen Massey vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

1 and 1/2 cups whole buttermilk

1 tablespoon lemon zest

2 and 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 and 1/2 cups Dixie Crystals sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Lemon Buttercream

4 sticks softened, unsalted butter

2 teaspoons Nielsen Massey vanilla extract

8 tablespoons heavy cream

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

8 cups Dixie Crystals confectioners sugar

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1/8 teaspoon salt

8 drops yellow food coloring

Decorative buttercream

2 sticks softened, unsalted butter

1 teaspoon Nielsen Massey vanilla

5 tablespoons heavy cream

4 cups Dixie Crystals confectioners sugar

pinch salt

divide the buttercream into 3 bowls and add 2 drops of blue, red, and green food coloring into each for decorating

Directions

Preheat your oven to 325. Grease, flour and line 2, 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter, oil, vanilla and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add in the eggs, one at a time.

Now, add in the egg yolks and mix until combined.

In another bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients.

Now, alternate the dry ingredients and buttermilk into the batter.

Mix until just combined, being careful not to over mix.

Evenly divide the cake mix between your two prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for 25 to 33 minutes, being careful not to over bake them.

The middle should spring back when touched and the edges should be lightly browned.

Let the cakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes.

Turn the cakes out onto cooling racks and let them sit until they are completely cool before frosting.

You can also put them in the fridge for about 20 minutes or until they are chilled before frosting them.

Make the buttercream while the cake layers cool.

Make the lemon buttercream

In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix the butter, vanilla, lemon juice, lemon zest and salt.

Mix in the confectioners sugar, one cup at a time with your mixer on low.

Add in the heavy cream in between adding in the confectioners sugar.

When you have added all of the confectioners, turn up the mixer and beat the frosting until light and fluffy.

Add in 8 drops of yellow food coloring and mix until all of the coloring is evenly distributed and there are no streaks.

Set aside while you make the decorative frosting.

Make the decorative frosting

In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix the softened butter and vanilla.

Add in the heavy cream and confectioners sugar, alternately.

Add in a pinch of salt.

Divide the frosting into three separate bowls.

Add 2 drops of blue, red and green food coloring into each bowl.

You will have one bowl each of light blue, pink and light green buttercream.

You will need piping bags and tips to decorate the cake as you see in the pictures.

Crumb coat the cake and chill.

Frost the cake, then add the rosettes to the top of the cake with the lemon buttercream.

Pipe the border along the bottom of the cake with the green buttercream.

I used small heart shaped cutters and pressed them into the buttercream. Then,I outlined them with a small round piping tip. You can then add the small Spring edible decor into each heart.

I also piped polka dots all over the cake in different colors.

I found some chocolate, marshmallow, small eggs and placed those on top of the cake over the grass sprinkles.

I used Wilton round and star tips to make the decorations you see on the cake.

You can add whatever decorations you choose to make this delicious cake look so pretty and perfect for Spring.

Let me know if you have any questions or if you get to make this delicious cake.

Happy Spring!!

xo