Small Lemon Cake

 

I wanted to make a small cake for my father for Father's Day this past weekend. He loves lemon anything and so I thought a small lemon cake recipe would do very well. This recipe I am sharing today was adapted from one I found on  Homemade in the Kitchen.  

We are such a small family now and with half of us either having or being borderline diabetic, we just do not need a full sized cake in our lives.  I am on a crusade to small batch or find smaller recipes for all of our favorite bakes.

 

This looked to be an excellent cake. It was very simple and straightforward and did not require any complicated ingredients. Unless you consider a six-inch pan complicated.  I have two six-inch layer cake pans and they have more than paid for themselves. They were a wise investment.

This is a lovely cake, with a beautiful moist and tender crumb and a lovely lemon flavor. Both fresh lemon zest and lemon juice are used in the cake and in that lush lemon buttercream frosting.  I chose to split my cake and add a layer of the frosting in the center like a layer cake rather than ice the sides. This is the British way with most cakes.

I also added a luxurious layer of lemon curd, which I drizzled both between the layers and over the top of the finished cake for an added touch of lemon flavor  that I hope you will enjoy!  I know we sure did!  Dad was especially fond of it!  I think its fair to say I come by my love of lemon naturally!

 



WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SMALL LEMON CAKE

Just a few storecupboard ingredients. There is nothing outrageous here and everything is natural. Do make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature prior to beginning.

For the Cake:

• 1 cup + 3 TBS (149g) plain all purpose flour, unsifted
• 1 TBS (10g) cornstarch (corn flour)
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 TBS (86g) butter, softened
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
• 1 TBS fresh lemon zest
• 1 egg, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup (60ml) buttermilk, at room temperature (see notes for buttermilk subs)
• 1 TBS fresh lemon juice

For the buttercream frosting:

• 1 cup (130g) icing sugar, sifted
• 1/2 cup (115g) butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
• pinch salt
• 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp vanilla

You will also need: (optional)

• lemon curd, at room temperature to help fill and drizzle over top.

 

Use fresh lemons and scrub them very well prior to zesting. Those little black spots you can see on lemons are bug dirt. If you don't want to be eating it, scrub it off.  I zest my lemons with a micro plane zester. It does a really fine job!

When zesting the lemons do it close to the sugar so that it can capture all of the oils from the lemon that escape.  This adds to the flavor! (Something new I just learned recently!)

I use free range organic eggs, but that is a personal choice of mine. You can use whatever kind of eggs you wish to use.

Also use fresh lemon juice, not the stuff from the bottle. There is no comparison when it comes to flavor.  I don't like to use lemon extract either. I find it tastes too much like perfume.

I used a store bought prepared Lemon Curd this time. (Bonne Maman)  You can use a good quality prepared curd or make your own. I have a recipe here.  It makes an excellent curd.

 

HOW TO MAKE A SMALL LEMON CAKE

There are two ways to serve this delicious little cake. Split and filled with a layer of lemon butter cream and lemon curd, and then topped and drizzled with the same. Or simply left whole and iced all over with the lemon butter cream. You decide!

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a six-inch cake tin that is at least 2 1/2 inches deep and line the bottom with baking parchment.

Rub the sugar and lemon zest for the cake batter together in a bowl, until very fragrant. Add the butter and cream together with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, periodically. Beat in the egg thoroughly.

Sift the flour, soda and salt together. Add to the creamed mixture, alternating with the buttermilk, making three day and two wet additions. Stir in the lemon juice.

 

Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. The cake is one when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched.

Set on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan and leaving to cool upright on the rack completely before proceeding.

To make the frosting, beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until smooth and creamy. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Beat for a further 1 to 2 minutes. It should be light and fluffy.

 

To assemble the cake you can simply use the frosting to frost the cake all over (remove the paper from the bottom and put onto a serving plate first).

What I did was I removed the paper and then carefully sliced the cake in half through the middle. I put the bottom half on a plate and topped with half of the buttercream. I drizzled a bit of lemon curd on top and then place the top layer over that. I then spread the remaining half of the buttercream over the top of the cake and drizzled with additional lemon curd.

  



This was quite simply a really delicious cake. It was very simple to execute and was lovely and moist when done, with a beautiful lemon flavor, even on its own without the lemon butter cream frosting or the optional lemon curd drizzle.

My father really enjoyed this cake.  He is like me, as is my sister. We all love lemon anything!  This went down a real treat for us all!  If you are looking for a lemon cake recipe that is just the right size for the smaller family I  highly recommend this one!  Its lovely!!

 

Here are some other small batch cakes that you and your family might also enjoy!

SMALL BATCH ZUCCHINI COFFEE CAKE - a 7-inch by 11-inch cake that cuts into 8 perfectly sized pieces. Moist, deliciously spiced with vanilla,  nutmeg, and cinnamon, as well as the nuttiness of browned butter and topped with a nutty browned butter streusel prior to baking.  After baking it is finished off with a sweet sugar glaze. Can you spell delicious?

GINGERBREAD CAKE WITH LEMON CREAM - Deliciously built for two with just a tiny bit leftover. Just enough so that you can enjoy it once as a dessert with something lush spooned over top, and once as a teatime treat, served warm, split and buttered. I hope that I am not the only person who enjoys my ginger cake buttered!  Fabulously tasty!

Yield: 4 - 6 servings

Author: Marie Rayner

Small Lemon Cake

Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 45 Min

This cake may be small in size but it lacks nothing in flavor. Moist and deliciously lemony, with a lush lemon buttercream frosting and a lemon curd drizzle (optional).

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• 1 cup + 3 TBS (149g) plain all purpose flour, unsifted
• 1 TBS (10g) cornstarch (corn flour)
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 TBS (86g) butter, softened
• 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
• 1 TBS fresh lemon zest
• 1 egg, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup (60ml) buttermilk, at room temperature (see notes for buttermilk subs)
• 1 TBS fresh lemon juice

For the buttercream frosting:

• 1 cup (130g) icing sugar, sifted
• 1/2 cup (115g) butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
• pinch salt
• 1 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp vanilla

You will also need: (optional)

• lemon curd, at room temperature to help fill and drizzle over top.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter a six-inch cake tin that is at least 2 1/2 inches deep and line the bottom with baking parchment.
2. Rub the sugar and lemon zest for the cake batter together in a bowl, until very fragrant. Add the butter and cream together with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, periodically. Beat in the egg thoroughly.
3. Sift the flour, soda and salt together. Add to the creamed mixture, alternating with the buttermilk, making three day and two wet additions. Stir in the lemon juice.
4. Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. The cake is one when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched.
5. Set on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan and leaving to cool upright on the rack completely before proceeding.
6. To make the frosting, beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until smooth and creamy. Scrape down the bowl and beat in the lemon juice and vanilla. Beat for a further 1 to 2 minutes. It should be light and fluffy.
7. To assemble the cake you can simply use the frosting to frost the cake all over (remove the paper from the bottom and put onto a serving plate first).
8. What I did was I removed the paper and then carefully sliced the cake in half through the middle. I put the bottom half on a plate and topped with half of the buttercream. I drizzled a bit of lemon curd on top and then place the top layer over that. I then spread the remaining half of the buttercream over the top of the cake and drizzled with additional lemon curd.

Notes

To substitute for butter milk you have two options.

1. Whisk together equal parts of plain full fat yogurt and full fat milk.
2. Measure 1 tsp of lemon juice or white vinegar into a measuring cup and then add milk to the desired measure (1/4 cup/60ml) Leave to clabber for 5 minutes

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