Moist, slightly dense (in a good way) cake that uses lemon peel infused milk, lemon zest, and a lemon soak to get a lemon-forward flavor without the risk of falling to pieces or curdling from lemon and milk fighting in the batter. Pairs perfectly with strawberry buttercream and a berry jam or lemon curd (or both!) filling.

Just Mercy. Please, go watch it. I may have teared up or even cried more than a couple times while watching it. And while it inspired a lot of thoughts and feelings and convictions about the movie and society, I don’t think it’s my place right now to espouse them. For now, as a white person, I think it’s my job to sit with those emotions and learn from them, learn from this story, before I start acting like my feelings make me some expert.

I also think it’s my job to suggest the movie to every white person I can.

Trust me, it’s good. Go watch it.

Old-fashioned lemon cake

I’ve been searching for a good lemon cake for years. I’ve had a couple successes, but lemon tends to dry out a cake, since you’re replacing something creamy like milk with lemon juice. That’s when I got the idea to use lemon peel infused milk! Milk infusions are kinda my thing this year, so it was perfect. You keep the moisture of milk while still bringing a nice lemon flavor.

Since I went with a more old-fashioned style cake, I also added a lemon soak, but it is optional. I knew I wanted to fill this cake with strawberry buttercream, lemon curd, and strawberry jam, which risks a sliding cake. This cake is moist, with a slightly denser crumb that is ideal for cutting in half to make room for more layers of fillings. If you’re looking for a fluffy lemon cake with a higher ratio of cake to filling, stay tuned. I’m still testing recipes!

How to make old-fashioned lemon cake

I used the reverse crumb method here, because it’s less likely to end up with the curdled-looking batter the creaming method (where you cream butter and sugar first) can take on with lemon in it. It was probably unnecessary, but I liked the old-fashioned texture it gave to the final cake. First, use a potato peeler to get large chunks of lemon zest—careful to avoid the white pith—from 1-2 lemons (or 3-4, cause lemon is life).

Place lemon zest peel and milk in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently, until it just begins to bubble and simmer. Remove from heat and let steep until room temperature, about 20-30 minutes. You can get everything else ready while you wait.

Next, combine the dry ingredients (including finely grated lemon zest) in the bowl of your stand mixer and whisk well to help the lemon zest release its flavor.

Add the butter in chunks and beat on low to combine then on medium to get a wet sand texture.

Combine the wet ingredients in another bowl. Strain the lemon peel from the milk and slowly stream it into the other wet ingredients, >>>

With the mixer on low, slowly stream the wet ingredients into the butter flour crumble. Once it’s all in there, scrape down the bowl then mix on medium >>>>>>>

Bake .>>>>>>>

When the cakes are cool, level if necessary and cut in half if desired (that’s what I did). Make the lemon soak by combining the lemon juice (you can use the zested lemons) and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir constantly just until the sugar is dissolved. Immediately brush over each layer of cake. If you didn’t level or halve them, you may need to let it soak in a little then brush some more, as it’s more difficult for it to penetrate the uncut top of a cake.

Fill and frost as desired. Enjoy!

Tips for this recipe

Don’t peel or zest the pith

Pith is that white part between the zest and the fruit. It’s actually fairly good for you, but this is cake. Save it for something else. Pith is bitter and that bitterness can be magnified during the milk infusion. I’ve never had an issue with it while getting larger pieces, but it’s a common mistake to over grate when getting traditional zest (think grated parmesan size). Of all things, Guy Fieri taught me to just make one swipe then rotate the lemon. If your lemons are a little softer or your grater isn’t super sharp, you might need a couple passes over the same spot, but err on the side of caution so you don’t grate the pith.

Use fresh lemons

Older lemons tend to get softer, making the peeled and grated zest parts more difficult. Plus, the lemon flavor isn’t as bright. If possible, use newer lemons and save the softer ones for lemonade or a whiskey sour.

Don’t burn the milk

Technically, you’re scalding the milk by letting it bubble (or if it reaches 180 degrees). That helps the lemon flavor come through and also helps the cake be fluffier. However, it can go from scalded to burnt quickly, so watch it carefully.

Make your own cake flour

Store bought cake flour does work slightly better, but there’s minimal difference if you make your own. It’s fairly easy! I do a cheater version where for each 1/2 cup I place a tablespoon of cornstarch in the 1/2 cup measurer (or 2 tablespoons for each 1 cup) then fill it the rest of the way up by scooping all purpose flour in with a spoon then leveling. Just be sure to sift it TWICE.

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Old-fashioned Lemon Cake

prep time: 30 minutes (includes time to let milk cool to room temperature)

cook time: 30-35 minutes

total time: 1 hour, 5 minutes

Servings: 12-16 (one three-layer 6” or two-layer 8-9” cake)

Ingredients:

1 ⅓ cups whole milk

peeled zest of 1 large lemon (see note)

2 ¼ cup cake flour (or 2cups flour plus ¼ cup cornstarch sifted together 2-3 times)

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1-2 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1 cup sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

4 eggs, room temperature

½ tablespoon vanilla extract

½ cup lemon juice (optional—for the lemon soak)

⅓ cup sugar (optional—for the lemon soak)

Instructions:

In a small saucepan, heat the milk and peeled lemon zest over medium heat until bubbling. Remove from heat and let steep until it comes to room temperature, about 30 minutes. In the meantime, you can get started on the rest of the steps while it cools (you can take your time, the rest of the steps won’t take 30 minutes).

Preheat oven to 350 and grease three 6” or two 8” (or 9”) cake pans with butter or baking spray. Line with parchment paper and set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl), whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and grated lemon zest until you can smell some fragrance from the lemon, about 1 minute.

Cut butter into several chunks. With the paddle attachment on low, add the butter one chunk at a time, letting it mix in a bit between additions. Once all the butter is added, scrape down the bowl then beat on medium for 2-3 minutes, until it is the texture of wet sand.

By this point, the milk should be mostly cooled. Pour it back into the measuring cup and add a little more milk as needed to equal 1 ⅓ cup again. Combine this with the eggs and vanilla extract. Whisk until fully blended (ensuring the eggs are whisked well).

With the mixer on low, slowly stream the wet ingredients into the flour/butter mixture. Once it’s all added, scrape down the bowl then beat on medium-high for 2-3 minutes, until it looks fluffy.

Divide batter evenly between cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Check it early, as climate and altitude greatly alter cook times. (Really high altitudes may need to increase the temperature to 375 but decrease the cook time by about 10 minutes.) Let cakes cool 5-10 minutes in the pan then remove to a wire rack until completely cooled, about 1 hour.

When the cakes are cooled, cut off any domed tops and cut in half, if desired (to get more filling in). Then, make the soak by heating the lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat just until the sugar is dissolved. Immediately brush over the cut side of the cake layers, using about 1-2 tablespoons per layer, depending what size pans you used.

Enjoy! Frosted cakes will last 3-5 days at room temperature. Cover cut cakes with a tight seal to prevent them drying out. If using later, wrap well with plastic wrap and keep in the fridge 1-2 days or freeze up to a month.