This royal wedding inspired Lemon Elderflower Cake is going to rock your world! Zingy lemon cake, paired with light and fluffy elderflower buttercream and filled with rich lemon curd - combination worthy of any celebration!
Who else watched the ENTIRE royal wedding? I remember getting up and then spending the entire morning (and then some more) wrapped up in my pajamas, on the couch, in front of my laptop. Lol. Oh, the perks of living in Europe - I at least got to watch it LIVE. I must admit, I wasn't a big fan of Meghan Markle. Mostly because of her character from Suits, Rachel. I couldn't stand her, as much as I tried - and believe me I did. But I gave her a second chance. After all, if Prince Harry likes her - why the heck shouldn't I? 😉
While all the normal people were wondering about Meghan's wedding dress (which I really liked btw), who will attend the wedding, how many people are going to be there, whether her father will be among those people, how will they pay an homage to belated Princess Diana and bunch of other stuff - the baker in me really wanted to know which cake they will have and how it'll be decorated.
And, yes, I know - the information was available on time - but I was so wrapped up in creating this blog that I didn't pay any attention to the news, until the BIG DAY has arrived. (Look at me, getting excited about someone else's wedding like it's my own haha)
When I first heard what flavour they'd chosen, I was amazed. I mean, Lemon & Elderflower. Come on, it sounds so dreamy and classy. I LOVE Elderflower. The refreshing drink made out of elderflower cordial/syrup and cold water is my go-to drink each May! And don't get me started on lemon. Possibly my all-time favourite flavour! Okay, I really shouldn't get ahead of myself - BUT - I really do love lemon.
What I really loved about the cake and the wedding (erm, except EVERYTHING) was the fact that they'd chosen seasonal flavours and there was no fondant anywhere - woohoo! As you already probably guessed - I'm not a fan of fondant. Although it's considered an edible decoration, to me it just doesn't taste good and looks really unnatural. The only time I'll opt for sugarpaste is for small decoration or toppers, which - I admit - can look quite nice and cute.
Claire Ptak from Violet Cakes, the creator and baker of the royal wedding cake, went for rustic, buttercream decorated cake. At first, I didn't know what to think. I was glad she used buttercream but the design left me confused for awhile. After months of trying to perfect the smoothness and sharp edges on a cake (which I still haven't done), here comes Claire with a different trend. I took me some time but, eventually, I gave in and loved it. So, inspired by Claire's rustic style, I decided to leave my cake naked but keep those edges intact.
The original cake was made with Swiss Meringue Buttercream, but I made mine with my favourite - Ermine/Flour Buttercream. It was so light and elderflower-y, you'll love it! If you don't know what I'm talking about, here is some explanation - although I'm planning on writing an entire post dedicated just to this awesome frosting, so stay tuned! 🙂
For this cake, I played around with my lemon cake recipe. I wanted to add elderflower in the cake batter so I don't need to soak the sponges with syrup later, like Claire did. Since elderflower cordial is already quite sweet, I reduced the amount of sugar in the recipe and replaced it with cordial. It worked like a charm! It wasn't too sweet and that elderflower cut through really nicely.
When filling the cake, be sure to cover each cake layer with buttercream, make a dam, and then fill it with lemon curd. I'm a massive fan of lemon curd, but its richness can be overpowering, so the next time I make this cake, I'll put a tad thicker layer of buttercream underneath, just to taste that elderflower more.
DECORATING THE CAKE
As far as the flower decorating is concerned, I generally don't like to decorate cakes with things that are not going to be eaten. Although a large number of flowers are considered edible and non-toxic, people still don't use them for eating purposes. The non-toxic/edible label is just there for some kind of a safety guarantee. Nevertheless, I felt that the flowers are a must on this cake, to make it more wedding-y. Haha. Unfortunately, I didn't have any peonies on hand but my favourite local florist gave me a gorgeous, fresh, white hydrangea as a replacement - and I loved it! Hope you do, too 🙂 Just remember to tape the flower stem with something before putting it on the cake. I recommend decorating the cake with flowers just before serving so they stay fresh.
You're going to love this cake because it's refreshing and zingy but at the same time rich and classy - perfect combo!
I hope you'll try this recipe, and if you do, leave me a comment below with your thoughts on it or tag me on Instagram @anasbakingchronicles so I can see your creations! 🙂
📖 Recipe
Lemon Elderflower Cake
Description
ingredients
Cake
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 240 g all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 140 g unsalted butter (room temperature)
- lemon zest from 2 lemons
- 200 g granulated sugar
- 60 g elderflower cordial
- 140 g sour cream (room temperature)
- 70 g lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Elderflower Buttercream
- 35 g all-purpose flour
- 120 g granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 300 g whole milk
- 250 g unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 3-4 tablespoon elderflower cordial
Lemon Curd
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 large egg
- 125 g freshly squeezed lemon juice (approx. 3 lemons)
- 160 g granulated sugar
- lemon zest from 3 lemons
- 60 g unsalted butter (cooled)
Instructions
Lemon Elderflower Cake
- Preheat your fan oven to 160°C (325°F). Grease and line with parchment paper three 6" round cake tins.
- In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk until combined and set aside.
- In a measuring jug combine sour cream, lemon juice, elderflower cordial and vanilla extract. These are your wet ingredients.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter, lemon zest and sugar on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy. (approx. 3 min) Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl.
- Turn the mixer to medium-low speed and add eggs one at a time - making sure it's fully incorporated after each addition. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl.
- Alternatively add your dry and wet ingredients, starting and finishing with dry ones. (3 additions of dry and 2 of wet ingredients)
- Divide the batter evenly among the 3 tins and bake for 20-25 minutes or until skewer inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean.
- Once they're done, let the cakes cool for 10-15 minutes on a wire rack before removing them from the pans to cool completely.
Elderflower Ermine Buttercream
- In a small saucepan combine flour, sugar, salt and milk. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with a whisk until it thickens.
- Once it's done, put a cling film over it touching the surface to prevent "skin" forming and let it cool to room temperature. This is your pudding base. You can do this in a fridge, but before using it let it come to room temperature.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for 5 minutes until it's pale and fluffy. Then add spoonful by spoonful of previously made pudding. Mix until it's all nicely incorporated and with no lumps. Add the elderflower cordial and beat for another 30 seconds.
Lemon Curd
- In a glass heatproof bowl, using a whisk, combine egg yolks, an egg, sugar, lemon juice and zest. Place the bowl over a bain-marie (a pan of simmering water).
- Cook on medium to high heat, whisking constantly so you don't scramble eggs, until it thickens. It takes around 10-15 minutes. It's ready when it can coat the back of a wooden spoon. It will thicken more once cooled.
- Once it's done, add the cooled cubed butter and whisk until everything is incorporated and smooth. Strain the curd through a sieve to get rid of any lumps that may have happened and place in a glass jar.
- Refrigerate for a couple of hours, until it thickens enough so you can spread it on top of a cake.
Assembly
- Using a cake leveler or a long serrated knife level the tops of your cakes if needed.
- In the middle of your cake board or a serving plate put some buttercream to stop the cake from moving around.
- Spread a nice layer of buttercream on top of the first layer and pipe a border around the outside to hold the lemon curd in. Repeat with the next layer.
- Place final layer on top, upside down, and do a thin crumb coat on the cake. For a naked look, leave it like that.
- If you want to decorate a whole cake with buttercream, place the crumb coated cake in the fridge for 20-30 minutes before final decorating. The recipe yields enough to coat the whole cake with buttercream.
Notes
- If you don't have a standing mixer you can use a hand mixer.
- Not all ovens are the same. I suggest to check the cakes at 18 min mark and then adjust the baking time accordingly. Get to know your oven! 😉
- You can keep lemon curd in a fridge for a week!
IMPORTANT
All the recipes are developed and tested using only metric measurements and a kitchen scale. The U.S. cup and spoon measurements are provided for your convenience, but I highly recommend getting a digital kitchen scale and measuring in metrics. It's easy and always guarantee the same results in baking!
The nutritional information and US conversions are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee the accuracy of this data. If this is important to you, please verify with your favourite nutrition calculator and/or unit conversion tool.
Antonio croes says
hello I like your recipe only I have a question how can I change the recipe for my bakeware I have the size 20 cm by 10 cm?
Ana says
Hi, Antonio. Is this a square pan 20x10 or a round cake pan which is 20 cm in diameter and 10 cm in height? I've never baked it in a square pan so I don't know the conversion. If you're talking about 20 cm round pan, then I suggest doubling the recipe. In the recipe section where it says SERVING, just move the slider to 24 and you'll get the amount for a 3 layer 20 cm cake. 🙂 Hope this helps.
Here's also a link that helped me a couple of times: https://thetoughcookie.com/2015/03/07/use-different-size-cake-pan-round-cake-pans-simplified/
Antonio croes says
Thanks yes its a 20cm round pan i tried to double the recipe and it works fine. I only have a little batter left, but I made a couple of cupcakes with it
Deepthi Suresh says
Hi, I wanted to make this cake for my anniversary. I am only able to find elderflower syrup nearby. Can I substitute it for the cordial? Or would I need to alter the measurements?
Thank you
Ana Zelić says
Hi,
yes, you can use the syrup, I believe when it comes to elderflower they're pretty similar things. 🙂
Happy anniversary, hope you enjoy the cake and your day! <3
Ana
Jasmin says
Hello hello. The recipe looks fantastic!
I was wondering what the approximate measurements of the finished cake are. Meaning: how high is it? I was going to marzipan the cake and I need to calculate the amount of marzipan required.
Thanks a million!
Ana says
Hi, Jasmin!
My three layer cakes are usually 10-12 cm tall, but I can't say it with complete certainty. I bake the layers in sandwich tins which are 1.5" high so the layers end up maybe over an inch tall after leveling them. The rest is on you and how much buttercream you put in between. But I think 10-12 cm tall is a good estimate. 🙂
Bea says
Hi, for the lemon curd when do you add the sugar. I can't seem to find it. Thank you.
Ana says
Hi, Bea! Thanks for noticing, you add the sugar along with the rest of the ingredients that are meant to cook over a bain marie. I'll correct the instructions 🙂
Lynne says
Fabulous .. made this cake for my daughter’s wedding 17/8/19. Three tiers were perfect and decorated with blush flowers. I would love to add a photo but not sure ? how.
Love everything about it.
Ana says
Hi, Lynne! I'm so happy you loved the cake, thank you for the feedback! 🙂 I'm not sure if a photo can be added in the comments, but you can send it to me at [email protected] or on Instagram @anasbakingchronicles . I'd love to see it, blush flowers sound beautiful!
Helen Laibach says
Hi Ana, if I only want to do a two-tier cake, how should I adjust the ingredients? Your help is appreciated!
Ana Zelić says
Hi, Helen! You mean two layer instead of three? For 2-layer 6 inch cake you need to use 2/3 of this recipe. Just move the serving slider to show 8 servings and it will automatically calculate the correct measurements. 🙂 Alternatively, you can make 2 layer 8 inch cake using the measurements provided, although you may end up with a litle leftover buttercream. Is this helpful? If I missed something, do tell!
Helen Laibach says
So helpful, and your quick reply is so appreciated. Hope you’re staying safe during these crazy times!
Nis says
Hello,
Love the cake and the recipe.
I am planning to do this but with 3 x 10” pans.
How do I adjust the ingredients?
Thank you!
Ana Zelić says
Hi,
This is going to be massive cake, kudos to you for making it! I'd recommend to triple the ingredients. You can move the slider to show 36 servings and it should automatically adjust it for you. But that might be too much batter to make at once, so basically the listed ingredients are good for one 10" layer. 🙂
Hope this helps!
Ana
Nis says
Hi Ana!
Thanks for your quick response 🙂
The cake I wanna make should serve around -22+ People and I want to use pans bigger than 6”. I guess I can use 8” instead. But I’m still confused on ingredients. I did tap 24 above, but the directions still applied for the 6” pans.
Need your help, I’m in love with your recipe!
Thanks!
Ana Zelić says
So for me, a 3 layer 8 inch cake feeds approx. 20-24 people. It depends on how big you slice your cake. A 3 layer 10 inch cake would serve approx. 35 people. I just realized I have a new option of converting recipes, just click on the 3x in the right corner above ingredients. 🙂
The plugin only converts the ingredients automatically, unfortunately the instructions stay the same, but they are in fact valid whether you're making a 6", 8" or a 10" cake. The only thing that may slightly change is the baking time, but since the cakes are still the same height, the difference could only be a couple of minutes.
As for the buttercream, it might be easier to make 2 smaller batches than one big one. Again, it depends on how much your mixer can handle. When I make cakes that I want to fully cover and decorate, I make frosting with 350g butter (of course with other ingredients being multiplied to fit this) and this is great for my mixer. So two batches of these measurements would work great for this cake. If you want some extra decorating you might want to make some more, I'm not really sure because I've never made a cake that big.
Let me know how it went, I love this cake and it's on my to update list!
Ana
Nis says
Thank you so much Ana!
Will keep you posted!
Xx
Melody Slachter says
Hello! I made this cake for my hubby's birthday as a kind of trial for my daughter's upcoming wedding. The cake is delicious! The flavors are perfect. I am disappointed, though, that my cake turned out very dense - almost like a pound cake. What did I do wrong? I want to perfect this recipe and would love any help you can give me. 🙂 Thank you!
Ana Zelić says
Hi, Melody!
I think you might left a comment on my IG about it, sorry I couldn't reply earlier on here.
Firstly, happy bday to your hubby and I'm so glad you liked the flavours!
I like my cakes a little bit on the denser side, but they shouldn't be as dense as a pound cake. Hm. I have to start with the basics - did you check the expiration date on your baking powder? Even if it's still good, if it's open for too long, it can lose its leavening effect.
That said, you can use cake flour instead of all-purpose flour. I just use AP for convenience - it's available for everyone. Cake flour should provide a softer, tender crumb. One of the reasons why cakes might seem dense is the butter and the lack of aerating the butter and sugar.
I like to use butter in my cakes because I love the flavour, but for more open crumb and fluffiness, you can use half butter and half vegetable flavourless oil. In addition, you can use all oil over butter if that's what you prefer and don't mind the slight aftertaste that oil *sometimes* has. But I think this cake has enough strong, lemon flavour to avoid that.
Hope this helps!
Melody Slachter says
Thank you, Ana! Yes, I did message you on IG and your tips helped. I threw out my baking powder and used new and that did the trick! I am making this cake again for my daughter's bridal shower so that she can have a taste before the wedding in September. I absolutely love the flavor of this cake! I can't wait to try some of your other recipes. 🙂
Melody says
I made this cake for my daughters bridal shower so that she could taste it and see if she would like it for her wedding cake. It turned out beautifully and was the most delicious cake I have ever made! All of our guests kept raving over it - my mom even said, “I had no idea you could bake like this!” 😊 My daughter definitely wants it for her wedding cake and now I feel confident that I can make it. Thank you so much for your amazing recipe and tips! I can’t wait to try another of your recipes for my mom’s birthday next week!
Allie says
Genuinely one of the best cakes I’ve ever made. I made it with a strawberry buttercream and it was divine. The cake is moist, light and very simple to make. Thank you!
Also your feature of doubling, tripling, etc the recipe is so useful. I honestly don’t know why every recipe website doesn’t do that.
Sneha says
Hello Ana
If I used a lime n elderflower cordial then would I still need to add in the lemon juice in the cake?
Thank you
Sneha
Ana Zelić says
Hi Sneha,
I don't know how strong the lime is in your cordial. But since there's quite a bit of lemon juice in the cake, omitting it would affect the consistency of the batter. If you don't want to use lemon juice, then add some whole milk instead (same quantity). Having said that, since I don't know the flavour of your cordial, I don't know how the overall cake flavour will be affected.
Let me know how it went, hoping for the best! x
Paige Irwin says
Hi!
I'm thinking of making this cake for my sister's birthday, I want to decorate the cake using the icing with decorative piping, and I was just wondering if the frosting is strong and stable enough to do so, or if I should replace it with swiss meringue buttercream. One more thing! If I use this recipe's icing, should I double it to have enough for the decor?
Thank you!
Ana Zelić says
Hi Paige,
This buttercream pipes really well, I've done various designs with it - it's my go-to, so you should be safe there. 🙂 As for the measurements, I would move the serving slider until it shows approx. 350g of butter needed for the buttercream. I think that's 17 and that should be enough to fill and frost the cake + decorative piping.
If you've never made ermine buttercream before, I have a step-by-step guide with images that might be helpful! 🙂
Ana x
Nathalie says
Hi, I would like to make this cake in advance of a birthday party - how many days will the sponge stay fresh for and could I apply the outer buttercream the night before and store it in the fridge? Thank you
Ana Zelić says
Hi, Nathalie!
Yes, you can definitely assemble the cake the night before and keep it in the fridge. That's what I do 99% of the time! 🙂 Make sure to remove the cake from the fridge 1-2 hours before serving so the buttercream softens!
You can make the cake layers ahead too, 1-2 days in advance is okay, just double wrap them in cling film and keep them in the fridge. Alternatively, you can make them 3+ days ahead and freeze them. Let them gradually thaw in the fridge overnight when ready to use. Cold cake layers are better for assembling the cake.
Hope this helps! x
Bart says
Hi Ana
I am going to make your Lemon elderflower cake for my son's wedding next week. I made a trial cake and it was delicious.
I was wondering though are the measurements for the sour cream, elderflower cordial and lemon juice supposed to be in grams or millilitres?
Thanks for your help
Ana Zelić says
Hi Bart!
I'm so happy you like the cake! 🙂
Yes, I weighed everything because it's easier for me that way. Lemon juice is pretty thin, like water, so the grams and milliliters are probably the same. While the cordial is a bit thicker. Sour cream is sold in grams over here!
Hope this helps! Good luck and congratulations to your son! 🙂
Bryan says
This recipe was elegant and delicious. I made 12 cupcakes from this recipe and injected the curd into the middle. It was incredibly moist and the lemon flavor was subtle - not overpowering. We LOVED it!