Lemon-Lovers Cake #Recipe - What's for dessert?

My husband and son celebrate their birthdays during mid-October. Both of them love lemon cake, so I made this luscious cake and it was a great hit!

Lemon-Lovers Cake

For the Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

3 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk*

2 tablespoon lemon rind, finely minced**

3 tablespoon lemon juice

1.     Pre-heat oven 350°. Prepare 2 eight-inch round banking pans by spraying with cooking spray. Line bottoms with circles of waxed paper (optional).

2.     In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Stir to combine well.

3.     Add remaining ingredients and stir until all ingredients are incorporated.

4.     Divide the batter between the 2 pans and bake 30-35 minutes, or until wooden toothpick comes out clean.

5.     Let cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out cakes onto wire rack to cool completely.

For the Filling:

1 10-ounce jar lemon curd***

1.     Spread entire jar of curd on top of one cake.

2.     Top with second cake.

For the Icing:

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 tablespoon lemon rind, finely minced**

2 – 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1.     In a medium-sized bowl, add lemon juice and rind to the melted butter. Stir to combine.

2.     Add 2 cups powdered sugar and stir to combine. Add more sugar until desired consistency is reached.

Notes:

I like a thinner icing so I can smear it over the top and let the icing drip down the sides of the cake (see picture). If you like a thicker icing, simply add a little more powdered sugar.

* If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, you can create sour milk by adding 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (or vinegar) to a 1 a measuring cup and top off with milk to reach the 1 cup needed. Let sit for several minutes to curdle.

**I use a microplane/zester to remove the yellow part only of the lemon.

***Most grocery stores sell lemon curd in the jelly/jam section. Look on the top shelf, near the specialty jellies. Or you can make you own lemon curd. Either option works well in this recipe.

What's YOUR favorite cake to bake for that special person's birthday?