Lemon Raspberry Layer Cake

Raspberries just scream "summer" to me. So when they were on sale recently, I bought some, determined to do something "fancy" with them. I made a danish from scratch (coming soon) and wanted to improve my skills at making a layer cake, so I thought this would be the perfect recipe.

It was. Not only is it chock full of raspberries, but the cake and the frosting both have lemon, another "summer" ingredient. This cake is SO delicious. It's not too heavy, but it's very impressive. It's the perfect late spring or summer dessert.

This cake received rave reviews from both family and friends, and I'm sure you'll have the same experience. The days are more reliably summer-like, so it's the perfect time to make a fantastic fruity cake.

Find more great ideas at Fabulous, Inspire Me, Tasty Tuesday, Hearth and Soul.


Lemon Raspberry Layer Cake

Cake:
1 cup canola or vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 1/3 cup buttermilk
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. lemon zest
2 cups sugar
2 cups + 2 Tbsp. flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 8-ounce pkg. cream cheese, softened (low fat is ok)
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp. lemon zest

Garnish:
additional raspberries
lemon slices

In a small bowl, carefully toss raspberries with 2 Tbsp. of flour to coat them. This helps to keep the raspberries from sinking to the bottom.

In a large mixing bowl, combine oil, eggs, buttermilk, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Cream for 2 minutes. In a separate large bowl, combine sugar, 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir into egg mixture and fold.


Spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray. Divide batter into baking pans. Bake at 325 for 35-45 minutes. Cake is done when a tester comes out with few crumbs attached. Cool in pans on a wire rack.

For frosting, in a large bowl, cream together butter and cream cheese for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping sides of bowl often. Add powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest and cream together. Chill.

To assemble cake:
Carefully remove cakes from pan. Spread frosting on top of one cooled cake layer. Place other cooled cake layer on top and spread frosting on top and around the sides to cover. Garnish with fresh raspberries and lemon slices. Chill for 20-30 minutes to let the frosting set up.

Recipe Source: Modern Honey