Downey Lemon Cake with Lemon Butterceam

I'll take any excuse I can get to bake a cake and there's none better than a birthday. Well, today is my husband's birthday and his request was for a lemon cake with lemon frosting. It was surprisingly difficult to find a traditional lemon cake recipe -- lots for lemon bunts with glaze, lots of lemon pound cake but none were quite right. The tried & true Cake Bible hit the nail on the head.

All-Occasion Downy Yellow Butter Cake

to be made in 2 9-inch cake pans

6 lg. egg yolks

1 cup milk

1 1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. lemon extract

3 c. sifted cake flour

1 1/2 c. sugar

4 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. lemon or orange zest

12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted softened butter

Preheat oven to 350. Grease cake pans, line bottoms with parchment or wax paper, then grease again and flour. In medium bowl lightly mix the egg yolks, 1/4 cup of the milk, and the vanilla. In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients and mix on low for 30 seconds to blend. Add the softened butter and remaining 3/4 cup milk. Mix on low until dry ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium and beat for 1 1/2 minutes. Scrape down sides, then add the egg mixture in 3 batches, beating for 20 seconds after each addition.

Scrape batter into prepared pans and smooth surface with spatula. Bake 25 to 35 minutes or until the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. The cakes should start to shrink from the sides of the pans only after removal from the oven. Let cakes cool in pans on racks for 10 minutes.

Lemon Buttercream

Equipment - nonstick saucepan, greased Pyrex measuring cup, candy thermometer

6 lg. egg yolks

1 c. sugar

1/4 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (I prefer myer lemons for baking)

1/4 c. water

2 c. (4 sticks) unsalted softened butter

1/4 tsp. lemon extract

Beat egg yolks with electric mixer until light in color. Meanwhile combine sugar, water and lemon juice in nonstick saucepan and heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and syrup is boiling. Stop stirring and boil momentarily. Immediately transfer the syrup to the Pyrex measuring cup to stop the cooking. Pour a small smount of syrup over the yolks in your mixing bowl and immediately beat at high speed for 5 seconds. Stop the mixer and add a larger amount of the syrup. Beat at high again for 5 seconds. Continue with the remaining syrup and use a rubber scraper to get the last bits of syrup. Continue beating until the bowl is completely cool to the touch (this may take 5 minutes or longer). Gradually beat in the butter and the lemon extract.

(If storing for later use, place in an airtight container and bring up to room temperature. If necessary, it can be re-beaten to restore the texture, but not before it reaches room temperature or it may curdle.)

Ice the top on one cake and place the other on top sandwiching them together. Once sandwiched ice the entire cake with a spatula & decorate as you wish. I topped mine with lemon and clementine zest and pinwheeled lemon slices.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RAYME!!

Recipe adapted from The Cake Bible