The Royal Cake – Lemon Elderflower Cake

by Two Chums on May 25, 2018

A week ago today, Royal watchers everywhere were preparing for the big wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle and planning their own celebrations to mark the occasion. Our Royal wedding festivities included a cake like the one the happy couple and their guests were going to enjoy…a Lemon Elderflower Cake. As promised when we did our recap of Prince Harry and Meghan’s big day, here is the recipe we used to make the cake we believe was similar to the one they served. If you are a lemon fan, this might be your new favorite cake! It is delicious and appropriate no matter what event you are celebrating.

Royal Lemon Elderflower Cake
serves about 12
1 cup of butter, softened to room temperature
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs
3 cups sifted flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (about the zest of 2 lemons)
2 tablespoons Elderflower liqueur (St. Germain is a good one)

Lemon Curd
Italian Buttercream Icing *

Lemon Elderflower Syrup
1/4 cup Elderflower liqueur
1/2 cup lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter 3 8×2 inch cake pans and line with waxed or parchment paper. Spray with baking spray.

In a mixer, beat butter on medium speed until softened, then continue beating until the color lightens. Begin adding sugar a little at a time until the mixture is fluffy. This should take 3-4 minutes. Beat eggs in a bowl and then gradually add eggs to butter mixture until well incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl to be sure everything is well mixed then continue beating.

Sift together, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately, beginning and ending with flour mixture. When well mixed beat in the vanilla, lemon zest and elderflower liqueur.

Divide evenly into 3 pans and bake until the center comes clean on a testing skewer or toothpick, about 25-30 minutes. Remove pans from oven when done and cool for 10 minutes. Using a fork or skewer, make holes all over the cake layers. Drizzle evenly with Lemon Elderflower syrup. Allow the cake to finish cooling completely. Remove from pans and peel off parchment paper.

Place first layer on cake plate. Pipe a ring of icing on the edge of the layer to create a dam. Spoon some lemon curd onto center of the cake and spread evenly to icing dam. Place second layer on top and repeat. Add third layer. Use remaining icing to spread a thin layer of icing on top and sides of cake. This is called the crumb coat. refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow icing to become firm and hold any “crumbs” that might come from the sides of cake. Add remaining icing to top and sides. Refrigerate again for about 1 hour. Remove from refrigerator about 1 hour before serving.

To make the icing “roses” on this three layer cake, you will need to double the icing recipe. For the three tiered cake with icing “roses” as shown in the photo, double the cake and the lemon curd recipes and triple the icing recipe. This three tiered cake will serve 30-36 people.

To make the icing roses on this cake, fill pastry bag fitted with a closed star pastry tip .
Starting at the bottom of the cake, place the tip at the center of the place for the rose you want to make. Begin piping icing moving in a clockwise circular motion until the rose is desired size. Next rose begin at center again but this time move in a counter clockwise direction. Make a ring of roses around the cake, alternating directions, or at least changing direction every few roses. Continue making rings of roses until you reach the top of the cake. To make roses on the cake top, begin at the edge and move towards the center.