This post is in partnership with Watkins, a 149-year-old manufacturer of gourmet, home care, personal care and health care products that are made naturally in the USA.
We come from a family of cake lovers and one of our all time favourites is this lemon cake, especially when iced with a smooth and fluffy vanilla buttercream. For the cake recipe we used Watkins Pure Lemon Extract which we have come to trust for its’ authentic flavour and the buttercream we use their Pure Vanilla Extract (a staple in our pantry). This recipe uses half a cake recipe (one 9″ round cake pan) for one wedge or feel free to make two cakes (or one full cake recipe)! The perfect size for 4 to 5 people. We hope you love it as much as we do!
Lemon Wedge Cake + Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Ingredients
1 cup white sugar
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1-3/4 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp lemon extract
yellow food colouring
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and flour two 9″ round cake pans and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
Cream together the butter and sugar in a a mixing bowl, add eggs (one at a time) and mix until smooth. Sift together the flour and baking powder and slowly add into the creamed mixture and mix well. Stir in the milk until batter is smooth. Add the lemon extract.
Separate the batter into 3 different measuring cups. One approximately 3/4, another 1 cup and the last 2-1/2 cups. Add yellow food colouring (approximately 4-6 drops) to the 1 cup mixture, and add 2-3 drops to the 2-1/2 cup mixture. Leave the 3/4 cup mix white. Pour the batter starting with the darker yellow (to create the look of the lemon peel), into the cake pan. Then pour 1/2 of the white (for the rind) and then followed by the lighter yellow (see image or video below for how it should look). Pour the remaining white batter into an icing bag with a small round tip. Carefully draw the outline of the lemon sections with the batter. Make dots to represent the seeds. Straighten with a wooden skewer any lines that possibly appear crooked. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until done. Let cool.
While the cake is baking, make the icing!
Swiss Meringue Icing
To make this icing, you’ll need something that resembles a bain marie. A pot on the bottom to bring the water to a boil and a bowl that will easily sit atop of the pot, and something you’re still able to grab.
Ingredients
5 egg whites
1 cup (and 2 tablespoons) of white sugar
a pinch of salt
2 tsp. to 1 tablespoon vanilla (to taste)
1 pound (4 sticks) room temperature unsalted butter (cut into 1 tablespoon size pieces).
How to
Start the water to boil in the pot. Once it comes to a boil, turn down to simmer. In the bowl, add the 5 egg whites, the sugar and the salt. With the bowl placed atop of the pot, start to beat the egg whites, dissolving all of the sugar as you go. This takes approximately 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Continue to beat until peaks start to form in the egg whites and when the bowl is cool to touch. This takes approximately 7 – 10 minutes.
Slowly start to add the butter, one tablespoon at a time, until it is well incorporated. Continue mixing until all the butter has been added. Add the vanilla at the end. Mix well. Separate the icing into 2 different bowls. Add yellow to one bowl and leave the other white. Then transfer the icing into icing bags – using a round tip.
To Make the Cake
Cut the cake in half and ice on one side of the cake. Place the other half on top like a sandwich, and then face the cake so it stands like a lemon wedge. Using the white icing outline the rind and seeds of the lemon (as it appears on the cake) by creating small dots. Then with the yellow icing fill in the rest covering the entire cake. To cut, follow the white lines, cutting each piece to look like a wedge. Enjoy!
