Ingredients
- 250 g butter, plus a little for the tin250 g golden caster sugar250 g self-raising flour1 tsp baking powder4 large eggs2 lemons, zested1-2 tsp milkLemon icing and decoration250 g butter, very soft500 g icing sugar3 lemons, zested and juiced1 jar lemon curd (see recipe below primroses to decorate)Lemon curd100 g unsalted butter, softened200 g golden caster sugar4 large lemons, zested and juiced3 eggs, beaten together
Instructions
Lemon Curd
1. Beat the butter and sugar together until they're light and fluffy, then beat in the lemon zest followed by the eggs and then finally the lemon juice. You'll now have what looks like a curdled mess, but don't worry.
2. Tip everything into a pan, put it on a very low heat, and stir until the mixture thickens. You'll need to keep stirring and may want to adjust the heat to keep it low, this is like making custard – you don't want the eggs to scramble. Cool completely. If you think some of the egg has overcooked, then push the curd through a sieve while it's still hot. Spoon into a clean jar and keep in the fridge. Let cool for at least 1 hour before using. The lemon curd keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge.
The Cake
1. Heat the oven to 180 °C/fan or 160 °C/gas 4. Butter and line the bases of 3 x 20 cm sandwich tins. Beat the butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs and lemon zest together until you have a smooth batter. Add enough milk so the mix just drops off a spoon.
2. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 20- 25 minutes, swapping the tins around halfway through so that they brown evenly. When they're ready, a skewer poked in them should come out clean. Cool on wire racks, cooked-side up.
3. Make the icing by beating the soft butter with the icing sugar, lemon zest and juice until light and fluffy. Use 2/3 to fill the cake and top each layer with some lemon curd. Frost the top with the rest of the buttercream and finish with sugar flowers.
Recipe : Botanika
Picture : Anne Lommel
