The BEST homemade, double-layer Lemon Cake has a delicious Lemon Buttercream Frosting. A cake lovers’ dream!
Don’t miss all of my favorite cake recipes, including my popular Coconut Cake with Pineapple Filling and German Chocolate Cake.
Hooray for Friday, and hooray for CAKE! I use weekends as an excuse for baking something delicious. If we’re having friends or family over for a meal I like to make something special, like a beautiful cake. It’s just as easy as any other dessert, and super impressive.
When baking cakes I usually bake the cake a few days in advance. I let it cool completely, then wrap it well in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer ziplock bag. Freeze until the day it will be served. I like to make my frosting fresh, the day of serving, but you can also make it in advance and refrigerate it for a few days.
By preparing the two parts of the cake this way it makes it super easy and stress-free to put together a beautiful cake!
I’ve provided two recipes for this cake for you guys, and I gotta tell you–BOTH are awesome!
FIRST is a “from scratch”, delicious homemade lemon cake
SECOND is a, dare I say it, equally as amazing doctored cake-mix version. Ghasp! it’s not completely from scratch! I wont lie to you, I love a good doctored-up cake mix recipe when baking cakes. Pair it with an amazing homemade frosting recipe and no one would guess it’s not from scratch 🙂
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Lemon Cake
Ingredients
1. Lemon Cake (FROM SCRATCH):
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter , softened
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest from about 4 medium lemons
- 2 large eggs
- 4 large egg whites
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
2. Lemon Cake (CAKE MIX version):
- 1 box lemon cake mix I use the betty crocker brand
- 1 small package lemon instant pudding
- 1 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 3/4 cup water
- 3/4 cup oil (vegetable or canola)
- 4 large eggs
Light Lemon Frosting:
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks), room temperature
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 - 1/2 cups fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
Lemon Cake (FROM SCRATCH):
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and flour two 9'' round baking pans. Set aside.
- Sift all-purpose flour and cake flour into a mixing bowl. Add baking powder, baking soda and salt and stir to combine.
- In a separate mixing bowl add the butter, sugar and lemon zest and mix with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add the whole eggs and mix well.
- Add the egg whites one at a time, mixing after each. Stir in the vanilla.
- Alternately add in a little bit of the flour mixture and then the buttermilk stirring between each addition.
- Divide batter evenly between the two prepared round cake pans.
- Bake in preheated oven until toothpick inserted into center of the cakes comes out clean, about 24-29 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool several minutes in the pans, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Lemon Cake (CAKE MIX version):
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Grease and flour two 9'' round baking pans. Set aside.
- Add the cake mix and pudding mix to a large bowl and stir to combine.
- Add Greek yogurt, water, oil, and eggs and mix with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined, about 2 minutes.
- Pour evenly into prepared round pans.
- Bake in preheated oven for 24-29 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Don’t overbake or the cake will be dry!
For the frosting:
- Place the butter in a large mixing bowl and beat with electric mixers for 1 minute.
- Add 4 cups of powdered sugar, half of the lemon juice and the lemon zest.
- Beat well until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.
- Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, and the remaining lemon juice until you reach your desired frosting consistency.
- Frost cake once the cake is completely cool.
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
Amber says
This is thee most requested cake in my house, from my 10 year old and husband. I’ve only made the box cake version, and everyone thinks I’m some fancy baker. I go on the very low end of the sugar for the frosting, and it’s perfect. The secret is the lemon in the frosting.
Pat says
can the from scratch lemon cake be refrigerated and frost the next dayb
Lauren Allen says
Yes, that would be fine!
JAMES N Hollibaugh says
I put the cake in the freezer for an hour after removing the cake from the pan. Good temp for frosting the cake I have found.
rose says
Could 1 stick of butter be replaced with 1 cream cheese & still work to frost & decorate?
Lauren Allen says
I would recommend 1/2 stick of butter with the cream cheese.