Lemon & Elderflower Cake

It’s not often that I get to post a celebratory recipe here but today I’m doing just that. What am I celebrating? The Marmalade Teapot! This tiny corner of the internet that I call mine. Today marks not only the blogs 6th year anniversary but this post also marks my 200th recipe! If you’d have asked me 6 years ago if I’d reach this milestone then I never would’ve believed it.

Lemon & Elderflower Cake

This tiny corner of the internet has seen me through thick & thin in my life, it’s helped me get jobs, it’s given me drive & focus at times when I’ve felt lost, it’s shown me support & community… it’s my own little canvass to be pour my creative energies into. Any of you who’ve been with me from the early days will know that it’s been through quite a few makeovers over my blogging journey too. The photo’s may look a little different (read: a lot different, & for the bloody better too), my voice & tone may have developed (& grammar, somewhat, still hitting that spellchecker), but my passion for baking remains unchanged.

Lemon & Elderflower Cake

Obviously, no celebration is complete without a cake. Seeing as I already started this page with my favourite cake recipe of all time, for this celebration I’ve chosen a few of my favourite flavours to work with instead. Combining the sharp citrus hit of lemon with the sweet, floral notes of elderflower was always going to be a winner (I’m a sucker for anything elderflower).

Lemon & Elderflower Cake

For this three tiered beauty, I’ve created a moist elderflower sponge, sandwiched with bright & zesty lemon curd, & covered it all in a rich elderflower Swiss meringue buttercream. This lemon & elderflower cake is so light & flavourful whilst still remaining subtle & summery. It’s just delightful, fit for any kind of celebration.

Lemon & Elderflower Cake

LEMON & ELDERFLOWER CAKE
(makes an 18cm layer cake)

Ingredients:

For the cake:

  • 210g plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 180g caster sugar
  • 180ml yogurt
  • 3 large eggs
  • 100ml rapeseed oil
  • 5 tbsp elderflower cordial

For the Swiss meringue buttercream:

  • 100g egg whites (around 3 large eggs)
  • 200g caster sugar
  • 300g butter, cubed
  • 5 tbsp elderflower cordial

For the filling:

Optional – For the decoration:

  • Dried/fresh lemon slices
  • A few elderflower heads

Method:

To make the cake:

  • In a large jug, combine the yogurt, eggs, oil & elderflower cordial
  • In a large bowl, combine the flour & baking powder
  • Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients & add in the wet yogurt mixture
  • Fold everything together until smooth & no pockets of dry flour remain
  • Divide the mixture evenly between 3 greased & lined 18cm sandwich tins
  • Bake in the oven at 180C for 25 minutes, until the cakes are springing back to the touch when pressed lightly with a finger in the centre
  • Leave the cakes to cool in their tins for 10 mins before removing & placing on a wire cooling rack until cooled

To make the Swiss meringue buttercream:

  • Bring a medium saucepan filled halfway with water to a gentle simmer
  • In a bowl large enough to rest on top of the saucepan (without touching the water), add in the egg & sugar & whisk together
  • Gently heat the egg & sugar together over the saucepan until all of the sugar has dissolved & you can no longer feel any grains of sugar with your fingertips
  • Either use a hand mixer or pour the egg mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer & whisk for at least 10 minutes until it has thickened to form a glossy meringue texture & had cooled to at least room temperature
  • Keeping the whisk running, add in the butter, one cube at time, ensuring that each addition is well whisked into the meringue before adding the next
  • Add the elderflower cordial to the meringue & whisk again
  • Continue to whisk for a further 5 minutes until nice & smooth

To assemble the cake:

  • When the cakes are completely cool, divide the lemon curd between two of the cakes & spread evenly
  • Use half of the Swiss meringue buttercream to cover the sides & top of the cake before using a spatula to smooth & finish

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