Week 28: Lemonade Layer Cake

After having temperatures over 100 degrees; we were blessed to have cooler temps this week and a lot of rain.  I enjoyed all the rain and even found myself leaving the umbrella in the car when I ran errands and sang Singing in the Rain all week long. : )
I am blessed to have a group of friends from our local yarn shop.  They are all very dear to me and we get together weekly to crochet or knit together.  Many of them came to our home on Thursday night for our weekly Sit and Knit... a perfect occasion for my 28th cake.
I found Lemonade Layer Cake on Pinterest.  It sounded like a wonderful cake to make mid-July but when I began to read the reviews I wasn't sure if I should include it on my blog.  Many of the comments said that the cake was dense, that they ended up throwing the cake away or they didn't know what they had done wrong.  Then, someone commented on changes she made in the recipe to ensure a moist cake, so I followed her recipe and the cake turned out deliciously wonderful!  All of my knitting friends loved it and David and Samuel have been finishing it off.

Lemonade Layer Cake

Cake Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups sugar
6 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
3 Tablespoons thawed lemonade concentrate
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350°.

1. To prepare cake, place first 7 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 3 minutes). Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.
2. Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. Bake at 350° for 25 -30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack. 

Frosting:

1/2 Cup butter or margarine, softened

1 (8oz) package cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon lemon extract

2 teaspoons thawed lemonade concentrate

1 pound confectioners sugar

To prepare frosting combine butter, cream cheese, and vanilla in mixing bowl and blend until smooth.

Add sugar gradually until well incorporated.  Spread over cooled cake.

Enjoy!

Happy Baking!

Julie