Recipe | Lemon & Elderflower Cake

The royal wedding was just under a week ago and honestly I'm still not over it. It was a moment in history which I'm so glad I could be a part of, even if it was from my sofa slightly drunk on prosecco. I hosted a little Royal Wedding party for my mum, gran & James and I decided to make a Lemon & Elderflower 'wedding' cake for us to all indulge in to replicate Harry & Meghan's choice on the day for their own cake. I mean every wedding needs cake right?


Now just to update you some of the ingredients quantities below are per layer. I'll let you decide how many layers you want to bake, I chose 3.

Recipe Information:

Preparation Time: 15 mins per layer + icing time

Cooking Time: 15-18minutes per layer

Oven Temperature: 180 degrees C/350 degrees F (Fan)

Baking Tin: 8" Round

Serves: 10ish - depending on how big you cut your slices

Ingredients:

Per Layer

• 4oz Butter (Unsalted)
• 4oz Caster Sugar
• 2 Eggs (Medium) (Beaten)
• 4oz Self Raising Flour
• Grated zest from 1 lemon

For the syrup (this did 3 layers for me)

• Juice from 2 lemons
• 3 tbsp elderflower liqueur /cordial

For the Elderflower Buttercream

• 10oz Icing Sugar
• 5oz Butter (Unsalted)
• 2 tbsp elderflower liqueur 

For the Lemon Buttercream

• 10oz Icing Sugar
• 5oz Butter (Unsalted)
• 2 tbsp Lemon Juice

For the Candied Lemons (If you want them)

• 2 Lemons (Sliced Thinly)
• Water
• 6oz Sugar

Method

The ingredients list above for the cake itself is done per layer. So I decided to do a 3 layer cake but I know some people like 2 - 4 layers so I thought it was easier to do it per layer. 

I prefer to mix each layer individually but you could just mix the batter all together and separate into the different layers at the end.  I only do this differently as I always tend to get one big layer and two smaller with my poor-proportioning skills. 

For the Cake:

1. Preheat your oven. 
2. Cream together your caster sugar and butter in a bowl until fully combined and soft
3. Whisk your eggs and slowly add to the butter & sugar mixture.
4. Sieve and fold your flour into the mixture.
5. Fold in your grated lemon zest.
6. Transfer to your greased/lined baking tin and bake in the oven for 15-18 minutes and golden brown.
   To test if your cake is ready gently press in the centre of the cake with your finger. If the sponge springs back then it's done. If it stays down then it needs a little longer. 
7. Once baked place on a cooling rack

Add the syrup

1. Mix the lemon juice and elderflower in a jug
2. Pierce small holes all over the cooling cake with a toothpick
3. Brush the lemon & elderflower mixture over the cake

To Layer (and make the buttercream)

1. Once the cakes have cooled, place the first one on a cake base. 
2. Mix the Icing sugar, butter, elderflower liqueur together in a bowl until the desired consistency. I find a fairly soft mixture works best for spreading, if its not quite there you can always add a little more elderflower.
3. Once the buttercream is ready, spread the mixture evenly on your first cake layer on the cake base. 
4. Chill in the fridge for around 10 minutes to harden, and ensure structural stability as you stack other layers. 
5. Repeat for each layer until your top cake layer has been placed on the top. 

The Icing

1. Mix the icing sugar, lemon juice and butter together in a bowl as for the elderflower buttercream. 
2. Starting along the sides and making your way to the top, evenly spread the icing on your cake
3. Smooth out the icing until even and then chill in the fridge for 10 minutes
4. Decorate as you wish

Candied Lemon Slices

1. Place enough boiling water in a frying pan to cover your lemon slices completely. 
2. "Fry" your lemon slices in the water for 5 minutes until tender, then remove and drain.
3. Empty the pan (To be efficient you can empty it into a jug and reuse the water for the next part)
4. Pour 200ml of water into your frying pan.
5. Add your sugar and stir until fully dissolved
6. Once dissolved place your lemon slices back into the pan and simmer on a medium heat for about 45 minutes. Make sure to turn them occasionally and move them around the pan
7. Remove your slices from the pan and place on a wire rack to cool. I find it's helpful to place grease-proof paper under the wire rack for sticky drips which will fall. 
8. Decorate your cake!

And there you have it one Lemon & Elderflower cake fit for royalty. If you make this cake be sure to tag me in it and let me know if you love it too!

Make sure to follow me on Bloglovin', Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest to stay up to date with all the latest posts.

You Might Also Like: 


Chia Berry Breakfast Smoothie Bowl

Jammie Dodger Brownies

Elderflower Fizz Cocktail