Tried & True Lemon Buttermilk Cake
Looking for a super tasty lemon cake recipe? Seriously, anyone can make this lemon buttermilk cake recipe.
Today I’ll show you exactly how to make this lemon buttermilk cake at home; it’s so easy even your kids can help too!
Fresh lemon is a versatile ingredient that can be paired with raspberry jam, blueberry filling, thyme, rosemary, olive oil icing, cream cheese frosting,
This lemon cake recipe is made with buttermilk, fresh lemon juice, and zest.
I’ll walk you through how to use the creaming method. It’s where the butter, sugar, and vegetable oil get mixed on medium-high with a paddle attachment until the butter mixture is light in color. This is where the air gets incorporated into the batter, giving you those light and fluffy cake layers that everyone loves.
I love this recipe because you can swap out the lemon juice and zest for any other citrus, and it’ll come out perfect. You can use lime, orange, grapefruit, or even blood orange. Any bright citrus fruit would be delicious!
Tips for success:
- Read through all the ingredients and instructions so you can get a better idea of how much time and what you need to make this cake.
- A single batch of this cake recipe makes three to four 6-inch round cake layers or two to three 8-inch round cake layers. Make sure to fill each cake pan ⅔ of the way for best results.
- You need 2/3 cup buttermilk; if you don’t have any buttermilk on hand, you can easily use ⅔ cup whole milk mixed with 2 teaspoons lemon juice or white vinegar to make your own.
- To make cake flour at home, mix 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour and ¼ cup cornstarch. Sift or whisk together to get rid of any lumps.
- Be careful not to overmix this cake batter, or else the cake will come out dense. Mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.
- You can bake the cake layers ahead of time. Wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze for up to one month.
- Serve at room temperature and use a hot knife to get clean cake slices!
What Tools You’ll Need to Make This Cake:
- 5-quart, Stand Mixer with mixing bowl & paddle attachment
- 3, 6-inch cake pans or 2, 8-inch cake pans
- Offset spatula
- 8-inch or 10-inch white cake board
- Whisk or sifter
- Rubber Spatula
- Non-Stick Cooking Spray and Parchment Paper
- Ice Cream Scooper with Trigger Release (for dividing cake batter evenly)
- Mixing bowls
- Measuring cups and measuring spoons
- Cake Stand, optional
- Microplane, or zester
- Juicer (electric or hand)
Here’s how to make this Lemon Buttermilk cake recipe!
Let’s Get Baking!
Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 °F. Spray three 6-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray and line each pan’s bottom with parchment paper.
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk and stir together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and oil on medium-high for 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time to the stand mixer bowl and beat on medium until well incorporated.
- Turn the mixer on low, add the flour mixture, followed by the buttermilk.
- Pour in lemon juice, vanilla, and zest. Mix on medium for another 30 seconds, then scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Evenly distribute the cake batter among the three cake pans and bake for about 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
- Remove cakes from the oven and cool in pans for 10 minutes before inverting onto cooling racks to cool completely — wrap cakes in plastic wrap and place in the freezer to chill for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour or double wrap to store overnight.
You May Also Enjoy:
- Lemon Buttermilk Cake with Blueberry Jam Filling
- How to Decorate Your First Cake (free course)
- Cake Decorating for Beginners (masterclass)
I’m so excited to see your Lemon Buttermilk Cake creations. Please feel free to email me here at xokatierosario@gmail.com with any questions you may have; I’ll be happy to help!
Happy Baking!
Hey, if you liked this tutorial, you really should check out Cake Decorating for Beginners, my signature masterclass. I coach you on everything I teach on these cake tutorials on a deeper level so that you can uplevel your baking and decorating skills. We 10x it to get the results you want most impressive cakes that your friends and family will love. Like any new skill, it’s essential to learn from the ground up to build a foundation so that you can take on any cake challenge. It is an investment your future self will thank you for. So check it out at XOKatieRosario.com/cake-masterclass. I will see you there!
Watch The How-to Video Below:
Tried & True Lemon Buttermilk Cake
Ingredients
Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- 3 cups cake flour (or 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour + ¼ cup cornstarch)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (or 2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 5 large whole eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2/3 cups buttermilk
- 1/3 cups lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 Tablespoons lemon zest
Instructions
Lemon Buttermilk Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 °F. Spray three 6-inch round cake pans with non-stick spray and line each pan's bottom with parchment paper.
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk and stir together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and oil on medium-high for 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time to the stand mixer bowl and beat on medium until well incorporated.
- Turn the mixer on low, add the flour mixture, followed by the buttermilk.
- Pour in lemon juice, vanilla, and zest. Mix on medium for another 30 seconds, then scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Evenly distribute the cake batter among the three cake pans and bake for about 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
- Remove cakes from the oven and cool in pans for 10 minutes before inverting onto cooling racks to cool completely — wrap cakes in plastic wrap and place in the freezer to chill for at least 30 minutes to 1 hour or double wrap to store overnight.
Notes
- Read through all the ingredients and instructions so you can get a better idea of how much time and what you need to make this cake.
- A single batch of this cake recipe makes three to four 6-inch round cake layers or two to three 8-inch round cake layers. Make sure to fill each cake pan ⅔ of the way for best results.
- You need 2/3 cup buttermilk; if you don't have any buttermilk on hand, you can easily use ⅔ cup whole milk mixed with 2 teaspoons lemon juice or white vinegar to make your own.
- Be careful not to overmix this cake batter, or else the cake will come out dense. Mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.
- You can bake the cake layers ahead of time. Wrap the cake layers in plastic wrap and freeze for up to one month.
- Serve at room temperature and use a hot knife to get clean cake slices!
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