Celebrate citrus season with this lemon curd cake recipe iced in white chocolate cream cheese frosting and white chocolate curls.
This fluffy lemon cake is layered with lemon curd and frosted in a dreamy white chocolate buttercream. Add white chocolate curls, sparkling cranberries, or fresh raspberries to decorate or serve it straight up!
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This lemon curd cake recipe celebrates citrus season with tangy lemon curd filling and fluffy, light lemon sponge cake. Buttermilk and lemon zest add flavor and keep it moist.
The frosting has a cream cheese base with added melted white chocolate to make it even creamier.
Lemon and white chocolate are an unexpected perfect match in this lemon curd cake recipe. While white chocolate can sometimes be quite cloying, the cream cheese tames the sweetness.
Love lemon cakes without the layers? Try my new Lemon Swiss Roll Cake!
Ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Fresh lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- Eggs
- Cake flour
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Kosher salt
- Buttermilk
- Vanilla extract
- Confectioners' sugar
- Cream cheese
- White chocoalte
See recipe card for quantities.
Tools and Equipment
- Saucepan
- Heat-safe spatula
- Whisk
- Stand or hand mixer
- 8-inch round cake pans
- Offset spatula
- Rotating cake stand
- General kitchen utensils (measuring cups, spoons, etc.)
Substitutions
- Cake Flour - For every cup of cake flour, measure out 1 cup of all-purpose flour minus 2 tablespoons. Add back 2 tablespoons of either corn starch or arrowroot powder to get 1 cup of cake flour.
- Cranberries - Decorate the lemon curd cake with fresh raspberries or lemon zest on top.
- Buttermilk - Measure out equal parts regular milk and stir in 1 tablespoon lemon juice or white vinegar. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes to "sour" the milk. You may also use equal parts yogurt or thinned sour cream.
Storage
Serve the lemon curd cake at room temperature. If making in advance, keep the cake in the refrigerator until about 20 minutes before slicing.
Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Lemon curd may be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Recipe FAQs
What are the best cake pans for baking?
Choose a good quality aluminum cake pan with at least 2-inch tall sides.
Do I have to use cake flour?
You don't have to use cake flour, but cake flour has a lower percentage of protein compared to all-purpose flour that makes the cake softer. See Substitutions for making your own cake flour alternative.
What can I use instead of buttermilk?
Use equal parts regular milk mixed with a tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar. You may also use thinned out sour cream.
Baker's Notes
- If cooking the lemon curd directly in a saucepan, be extra mindful of the heat and always keep stirring. If the outer sides of the saucepan are hot to the touch, then you should probably turn the heat down. If not, the curd may scramble.
- Cook the lemon curd long enough for it to thicken properly. It will continue to thicken even further as it cools, but it should resemble a pourable pudding when done.
- Strain the cooked lemon curd through a mesh sieve (before adding it to the butter). This not only catches the lemon zest but also any cooked bits of eggs (it happens sometimes).
- This filling and frosting can be quite soft. If you are having trouble stacking the cake, refrigerate as you go. Crumb coat the sides as you stack to make sure no lemon curd slips out between the layers.
- The frosting consistency relies on the temperature of the ingredients. The butter, cream cheese, and melted white chocolate should all be the same temperature. If too soft, add a bit more confectioners’ sugar or chill in the refrigerator very briefly (you don’t want the chocolate to turn solid again).
Layer Cake 101
New to cake decorating? Start here:
How to Make Beautiful Layer Cakes
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Recipe
Lemon Curd Cake
Light, fluffy lemon buttermilk cake filled with lemon curd and iced in white chocolate cream cheese froting.
Servings: 12
Ingredients
For the Lemon Curd
- 5 tablespoon (70g) unsalted butter diced
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 lemons zested
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 large egg
For the Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- 1 ½ cups (195g) cake flour
- 1 ½ cups (195g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ tea salt
- 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
- 1 lemon zested
- 1 cup (225g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 4 large eggs
- 1 ⅓ cup (315ml) buttermilk
- 1 tea vanilla extract
For the White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup (225g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 to 3 cups (240 to 360g) confectioners' sugar
- 9 ounces (255g) cream cheese at room temperature
- 6 ounces (170g) white chocolate melted and cooled
- 2 teas vanilla bean paste or extract
Instructions
To Make the Lemon Curd
- Place the butter in a heat safe bowl. Set a mesh sieve on top of the bowl and set aside.
- Whisk together the sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, egg yolks, and egg in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, while stirring slowly yet constantly with a heat-safe rubber spatula to keep the eggs from curdling. Reduce the heat if the sides of the pan begin to get too hot to the touch. Cook until the lemon curd thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon or registers 160°F on a candy thermometer.
- Once thickened, remove the curd from the heat and strain through the mesh sieve into the butter. Stir the lemon curd until the butter melts and combines. Press a piece of plastic wrap directly to the surface of the curd and refrigerate until cool and thick.
To Make the Lemon Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease, flour, and line the bottoms of two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar and lemon zest. Rub the ingredients together between your fingertips until fragrant and lemony. Add the butter. Using the paddle attachment, mix on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 4 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, allowing each to incorporate into the mixture before adding the next. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add half of the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until incorporated. Stream in the buttermilk and mix until combined. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until combined and the batter is smooth (it will be quite thick).
- Evenly divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake the cakes for 32 to 36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. The cake layers are tall, but try not to over bake. They will be golden brown on top when done.
- Allow the cakes to cool on a wire rack for about 20 minutes before removing them from their pans. Continue to let them cool completely before assembling.
To Make the White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Place the butter in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or in a mixing bowl with a hand mixer), and mix on medium-low speed until creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add 2 cups (240 g) confectioners’ sugar on low speed and mix until incorporated. Bump up the speed and mix on medium speed until combined.
- Add the remaining ingredients. Mix on medium speed until light and creamy, another 2 to 4 minutes. The frosting will lighten in color and become more aerated and fluffy when done. Mix in the remaining sugar until it is a spreadable consistency, or as needed.
To Assemble
- To create the white chocolate curls, heat a bar of chocolate in the microwave at half power in intervals of 30 seconds until slightly softened. Use a vegetable peeler to scrape against the long side of the bar. The chocolate should be just soft enough to curl with a little pressure from the peeler, but not melt in your hand. Allow the curls to fall onto a piece of parchment paper. Set aside.
- Once the cakes have completely cooled, use a long serrated knife to carefully slice each cake in half horizontally. You will have four cake layers.
- Place one cake layer on a cake board or serving dish. Fill a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip with some of the frosting, set aside.
- Spread about ¼ cup of frosting on the cake with an offset spatula. It will be a very thin layer of frosting that acts as a barrier between the cake and lemon curd. Pipe a ring of frosting around the outer edge of the cake to create a frosting dam. Fill the center with ⅓ of the lemon curd. Use the back of a spoon to spread it out until smooth.
- Top with the next layer of cake and repeat. Place the last layer of cake on top, cut-side down. Crumb coat the cake in a thin layer of frosting then place in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Once chilled, frost the top of the cake with the cream cheese frosting. Continue to frost the sides of the cake. The layer of frosting on the sides does not need to be thick or perfect since they will be mostly covered in chocolate curls.
- Carefully press the chocolate curls onto the sides of the freshly frosted cake. Some of the curls will break, but that is okay. Decorate the top with the sugared cranberries.
Notes
- Serve the cake at room temperature. If not served right away, store the cake in the refrigerator. Allow it to come to room temperature before eating.
- Cover leftovers with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- This filling and frosting can be quite soft. If you are having trouble stacking the cake, refrigerate as you go. Crumb coat the sides as you stack to make sure no lemon curd slips out between the layers.
- The frosting consistency relies on the temperature of the ingredients. The butter, cream cheese, and melted white chocolate should all be the same temperature. If too soft, add a bit more confectioners’ sugar or chill in the refrigerator very briefly (you don’t want the chocolate to turn solid again).
Click for Sugared Cranberries
michie
I really loved this cake! I love anything lemon and this cake is super tasty.
stylesweet
Hi! Thank you for the comment. I am glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Joanie
The lemon curd filling is so flavorful and the texture of the cake is great. Love this recipe!
Rebecca L.
I really love how tangy the filling is! Honestly I will take lemon over chocolate any day.