Lemon Cake

You will need room temperature butter, eggs, and buttermilk - achieve this however you want - eggs in the bra does work, even if uncomfortable.

Altogether this will take about 2-3 hours to make, not including warming eggs and butter.

Cake Ingredients: All-purpose flour

Baking Powder

Baking Soda

Kosher Salt (Sea salt is my favorite but you're welcome to use whatever you like)

Unsalted Butter (room temperature a.k.a softened)

White Sugar

Powdered Sugar

Eggs (room temperature)

Buttermilk (room temperature)

Vanilla Extract

And so so so many lemons (enough for 1.06 cups and 1/2 tablespoon of juice)

Jam Ingredients:

Strawberries

White Sugar

Lemon Juice

Necessary Equipment:

Bowls (about 3 to 4 should do it)

Mixing spoons, forks or spatulas

Knives

Measuring Cups

Tablespoons and Teaspoons

Blender and/or pastry cutter and/or food processor

Saucepan

Surface to cut on

Oven

Cake Tins (or other baking receptacles of your choosing)

Equipment that will make everything easier: Electric mixer (hand or stand)

Zester

Juicer

Sifter

Let's start with the cake: There are three components to the cake:

1. Cake

2. Glaze

3. Syrup

The Glaze, Jam and Syrup are optional because the cake is delicious without them, but I do recommend pairing them together for the full experience.

Cake: 1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Prep two cake pans by greasing them. I recommend adding parchment paper to the bottom to help the cake not stick.

2. In a bowl (separate from your mixer if using one) sift together 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt.

3. In a bowl (of your stand mixer if using one) beat 1/2 pound, or two sticks, of unsalted butter and 2 cups of white sugar together until light and fluffy. With a mixer, either hand or stand, this should take only about 5 minutes. If you are doing this by hand it will take longer. I recommend starting with a utensil that allows you to smash the ingredients together before switching to a spoon or whisk once the mixture becomes softer.

4. Add 4 eggs, one at a time, to the butter and sugar mixture. Be sure to fully incorporate each egg before adding the next. Then add 1/3 cup lemon zest.

5. In a third bowl add 1/4 cup lemon juice, 3/4 cup buttermilk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - stir to combine.

6. Next you're going to combine the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture to the eggs, alternately. Start with the flour mixture and add a little bit into the eggs and sugar. Stir to combine fully, then add a little of the buttermilk mixture in, and fully stir that. Continue this back and forth until all ingredients are fully combined. (Ideally in measures that have you end with the flour mixture)

7. Once all ingredients are combined, pour half of the mixture into each prepared cake pan. Put them in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

While the Cakes are baking you can prepared the syrup! (If you want)

For Syrup:

1. Combine 1/2 cup of white sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juice in a saucepan.

2. Cook over low heat until the sugar is fully dissolved into the lemon juice. (If you've ever made simple syrup - it's just like that. Very easy)

Now, back to the cakes!

8. Once the cakes are fully cooked, take them out of the oven and put them out to cool just enough to safely pop them out of the cake tins and place them on a wire rack to continue cooling.

9. Once they are on the cooling rack, pour the lemon syrup over the top, so it soaks in while they cool fully.

While you're waiting for them to fully cool - make the glaze and the jam!

For the Glaze:

1. Combine 2 cups of powdered sugar, and 3 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice.

2. Whisk until smooth, or desired pourable texture. (If it's too thick, add more lemon juice - just a teaspoon at a time. If it's too thin add more powdered sugar - a teaspoon at a time.)

For the Jam:

1. Cut 16 oz. of strawberries and put them in a blender (or food processor or mash them with a pastry cutter) until pureed.

2. Once pureed, combine the strawberries with 3/4 cup white sugar, and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in a saucepan.

3. Cook until simmering then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 20-25 minutes. The mixture should be thickened into a jam by the time it's done. (Be sure to stir it occasionally so that it doesn't burn on the bottom)

Put it all together and what do you got?

Lemon Cake! Just assemble to your liking!

I like to put as much of the jam as I can on the top of the cake that will serve as the bottom layer, as possible. Then I place the second cake on top, add the rest of the jam, and then pour the lemon glaze all over.

I like to pour the glaze from the edges in so that the sides get fully covered with the glaze. Then I swirl the glaze and jam around the top so it gives it a marble appearance.

You're welcome to do whatever makes you happy with your cake though! Smash it up and make cake pops, make bread loaves, make cupcakes instead!

Whatever you choose to do, remember to take a big bite and enjoy it!

Additional Tips:

• If you want buttermilk but don't want to buy a whole thing of it, you can make your own butter with heavy cream, and the excess liquid it produces is buttermilk!

• You can achieve the perfect parchment circle by folding a square piece of parchment paper into a triangle (like when making paper snowflakes) and then lining the tip of the triangle up with the center of the cake tin and cutting the excess off the end.

• If you're baking the cakes in a high altitude environment (like me, in New Mexico) you can add a ramekin full of boiling water to the oven to increase the humidity.

• If you want a flatter cake, when you put the batter in the cake tin create a well in the middle and build the sides up a little bit. This allows the batter to cook towards the middle and level out.

  
  

  

  Just remember to watch your butter while you make it and don't do what I did......

  
  

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Recipe found in "The Essential New York Times Cookbook" by Amanda Hesser, published 2021