Eggless Lemon Layer Cake
A delightful eggless lemon flavoured layer cake recipe with lemon curd.
It was my birthday few weeks back! And I made this refreshing Lemon Cake as it is summer here in Europe in the month of July. For the first time, feels like my birthday has changed dates, as in India I have always celebrated it in the “rainy” month of July and here, we have scorching heat right now in Krakow.
So here I have this delicious cake recipe for you but when I made this cake I did not take the stepwise pictures as I had to finish decorating it one day before to keep some time for myself on my birthday.
But you still can refer to the stepwise pictures of the Eggless Biscoff Drip Cake as the layering steps match for both cakes. So you can check the stepwise pictures there. Read this post first and then check out the Biscoff Cake for steps.
How is a lemon different from a lime?
Eggless Lemon Layer Cake Recipe
Ingredients
You will need the below things to make this cake.
For the base: The recipe for making the sponge base uses a combination of yogurt and oil so that the cake remains moist and soft even after refrigeration.
For the lemon curd: You will need freshly squeezed lemon juice of around 2 lemons, sugar, water and corn starch to thicken the juice and make it of a spreadable consistency.
For the icing: You can use any icing of your choice. Here I have used non-dairy whipped cream.
How is a lemon different from lime?
There are so many variants of the same fruit that nature has given us. One such family relations are between a lemon and a lime. Haha.
A lemon is larger in size and yellow in colour than a lime and is also sweeter in taste.
A lime is smaller in size and green in colour and is more sour than a lemon in taste.
Here is a picture that I took at a local grocery store to show you the difference.
We do not get lemons in India. At least I have not seen them in Indian grocery stores.
I’m not sure but the high end grocery stores stocking exotic imported vegetables and fruit may stock it. So what if you do not have lemons but still want to make this cake?
You can comfortably use the green limes or key lime as they are called for this cake. Just that the cake will have a sour flavour due to the sour lime curd. You would still be able to adjust it by adding more sugar.
To give you an idea, the taste of this cake was somewhat close to a Classic Fresh Cream Pineapple Cake that we make/buy in India.
Making the Lemon Curd
This is the filling that is going to go between two cake layers.
I have used freshly squeezed lemon juice and lemon zest both. You can try using store bought lemonade too.
Making this lemon curd is very simple.
- In a pan, add the lemon juice, water and sugar. Cook until it comes to a light rolling boil. Add the turmeric powder and lemon zest and mix.
- Now add 1 tablespoon of corn starch in ⅛ cup of water and add this mixture to the pan. Combine well so all lumps dissolve.
- In a minute, the mixture will start to thicken. Switch off the heat.
Let this lemon curd cool completely before using for filling the cake. You can prepare this a day in advance.
Eggless Lemon Layer Cake Recipe
Eggless Lemon Layer Cake
Ingredients
For the Sponge Base
- 190 grams All-purpose Flour
- ¼ tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- pinch Table Salt
- 100 grams Powdered Sugar
- 130 grams Yogurt
- 40 ml Odourless Oil (sunflower oil)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 120 ml Water
For the Lemon Curd
- 75 ml Lemon Juice (freshly squeezed)
- 50 ml water
- 1 tbsp Lemon Zest
- Pinch Turmeric
- ¼ cup Sugar
For Decorating
- 2 cups Whipped Cream
Instructions
For the base
- Measure and sift the dry ingredients: flour, leavening, sugar and salt.
- In another bowl, mix the yogurt and oil. Add the Vanilla extract.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Add water. Combine everything gently.
- Bake in a 6 inch cake tin for 30 minutes at 170°C. Let cool completely.
For the sugar syrup
- Prepare sugar syrup for soaking the cake by completely dissolving granulated sugar in equal amount of water i.e. for ½ cup sugar, use ½ cup water.
For the lemon curd filling
- In a pan, add the lemon juice, water and sugar. Cook until it comes to a light rolling boil. Add the turmeric powder and lemon zest. Mix.
- Now mix 1 tablespoon of corn starch in ⅛ cup of water and add this mixture to the pan. Combine well. There should be no lumps from the corn starch. In a minute, the mixture will start to thicken.
- Switch off the heat. The mixture will thicken as it cools.
- Let this lemon curd cool completely before using for filling the cake. You can prepare this a day in advance.
For assembling the cake
- Torte/cut the vanilla sponge cake into layers such that you have 2 or 3 layers of the sponge base. I decided to make two thick layers.
- Tip: You can even make three layers. Let the cake chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours and then torte it. You will get nice and clean layers.
- On a cake board, place the first layer. With a silicon brush, apply sugar syrup on it generously. If you use less syrup, the cake may feel dry.
- Next, take half cup of whipped cream and spread it evenly on the base. Spread some lemon curd. Place next cake layer.
- Similarly for each layer, soak it with sugar syrup. Spread some whipped cream and lemon curd.
- Once all layers are stacked, spread the whipped cream on the outer part of the cake and decorate with flowers or lemon slices or just sprinkles.
- Chill in the refrigerator for at least two hours before slicing for the flavours to come together.
Storage and Shelf Life
This cake has to be refrigerated and is best to consume within two or maximum three days if stored in an air-tight container.
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