Nurturing My Nest Blog

Routines and Rhythms of Homemaking
Intentional Homebuilding & Custom Built Education
 Based in Tennessee. Available for travel.

Leah’s Decadent Four Layer Lemon Cake

Sometimes you just have to lean into the barrage of requests for a shared recipe. This lemon cake is certainly decadent, but it is so simple that I wanted to share it with you! Recently, my husband shared a picture of me icing this cake on his FB page. I was rushing to finish it for a bridal shower. So many asked for the recipe. Once he posted the recipe, there are currently over 1000 likes, 250 comments and close to 200 shares. It reached over 30,000 people. We were overwhelmed with the enthusiasm. Since we saw such enthusiasm, we decided that it needed to be shared here in an effort to share the love.

Baking a cake for a special occasion or just initiating a party because you baked a cake are both extremely popular ideas. This share was intended to inspire the shy bakers to just do it. For those who might often take the long way to the finish line, this recipe offers short cuts that do not lessen the yumminess. Whenever you can offer something homemade, it demonstrates a little extra love. Recently, our friend, Paul Becker, shared on Embrace Your Everyday podcast titled Thriving in Singleness, that he loved attending gatherings in the home with homemade. This stood out to me because I know he is well-traveled and a gifted cook. I love that he loves homemade!!

There are longer ways and shorter ways to create this cake, but here are the particulars as the cake was made last weekend. With an entire table of food to prepare, I indulged in a few shortcuts. The cake and the lemon curd were made the day before the party. The day prior to the party, I cut two round cakes in half horizontally. Once I stacked them back in place as they ere before I cut them, they were placed in the freezer. Frosting frozen cake makes compiling the cake so much easier. Once the cake is frosted, the frozen cake thaws behind the frosting creating a super moist, super fresh tasting result. Build the cake on a plate about three hours before the event giving it time to thaw. The enthusiastic response will assure you that the flavors are decadent.


To create this yummy cake, follow the directions below.

(2) Pillsbury white cakes baked. Bake each cake in one 9″ round pan. Let cool. Cut in half horizontally with a bread knife. Place each layer on top of the correct half with cling wrap between each layer. Keep in the freezer overnight.

(3) 14oz whipped cream cheese frosting

2 cups of fresh raspberries 

Fresh Lemon Curd

5 bright yellow lemons

1.5 cups of sugar

1/4 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature

3 large eggs

pinch of salt (1tsp)

Wash and then zest of four lemons. (Save one for cake decorating on day two.) Mix with sugar. Cut each lemon in half and juice. Add to the lemon zest and sugar. Mix well. Add eggs, lemon juice, butter and salt. Mix well. Pour this mixture into a 2qt saucepan. Cook over low heat and stir constantly until it thickens. (About 10 minutes.) Lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F. Remove from heat and cool. Keep in the refrigerator overnight.

Both the cake and the lemon curd should be made the day ahead of the event. Freezing the cake layers allows the cake to be combined with ease. Once the cake is iced, it will begin to thaw behind the icing. This effect creates the most moist and tasty result. 

3 hours prior to the party…Take cake layers out of the freezer. Separate them gently. Select a favorite cake plate or cake pedestal. Zest the last lemon and then cut into half rounds. Combine in this way: First layer of cake. Lemon curd. Second layer of cake. Lemon curd. Third layer of cake. Lemon curd. Fourth layer of cake. Frost top of cake with whipped cream cheese. Frost sides. Slowly pour remaining lemon curd in the middle of the top of the cake. Let it drip down the sides. Cut lemon halves to go around the bottom of the cake and place a few in the middle of the top of the cake. Scatter a few raspberries around the bottom of the cake and on the middle of the top.

Finally, sprinkle fresh lemon zest around the top of the cake.

If you find that the lemon curd didn’t thicken as you had hoped, frost each layer with the whipped cream cheese frosting and then layer lemon curd. If you are in a crazy hurry you can buy two jars of lemon curd instead of making your own from scratch. The cake and icing can also be made from scratch.

To add to the fun, we always use Tim’s grandmother’s cake cutting knife and server for these tall creations. Enjoy!!!

Join my husband and me for a conversation about this lemon cake on Embrace Your Everyday podcast.

comments +

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe

* indicates required