This Strawberry Lemon Layer Cake is vivid, zesty, and completely spring-appropriate! Alternating lemon and strawberry sponge muffins are layered with buttercream and overwhelmed Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds.
Mom’s Day is at the horizon, and my pals at Sconza Sweets requested if I’d whip up a confection worthy of the instance. The vacation coincides with the arriving of Sconza’s Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds at Costco shops all over the months of April and Would possibly. I used to be thrilled to mention sure! The whole thing Sconza makes is superlative, however the ones creamy lemon goodies with crunchy almond facilities are my all-time favourite.
I crammed this cake with vivid flavors and colours inside and outside. Piped buttercream roses bloom on most sensible with Lemoncello Chocolate Almond facilities. (You’ll be able to by no means pass fallacious with flora for mother!)
Make the batter.
Start this cake with my favourite White Almond Bitter Cream Cake batter. It’s halved after which flavored with lemon and strawberry Jello dissolved in scorching water. This now not best offers the muffins daring taste, but additionally colourful colour! It’s additionally great that flavored gelatins may also be discovered at grocery shops in all places, and also you gained’t have to reserve or observe down forte flavorings. (I’ve came upon that no person within sight carries my favourite strawberry extract!) Bake the batters in 6-inch cake pans, which can yield a small but tall and stately cake. Then again, it’s good to use two 9-inch cake pans for a double layer cake.
Construct the cake.
To collect the layers, start with a strawberry cake. Then, most sensible it with an excellent layer of American buttercream (a.okay.a. confectioners’ sugar buttercream). Subsequent, scatter on some overwhelmed Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds. Use a meals processor to overwhelm the goodies high-quality – it is going to make quick paintings of the duty.
Exchange the cake flavors, repeating the frosting and filling with the Sconza goodies. After all, finish with a lemon cake layer on most sensible.
Frost the cake.
This cake advantages from a crumb coat. Little cake crumbs and sweet items at the outdoor of the cake want a base layer of frosting to carry them in position. So, quilt the highest and aspects in a skinny layer of buttercream after which refrigerate till company. Then quilt it in a 2nd, thicker layer of buttercream and clean it lightly the usage of a bench scraper or cake smoother.
Whip up every other batch of American buttercream, this time stiff consistency, for the decors. This batch must be thicker to ensure that the piped main points to carry their form. Simply upload a bit of extra confectioners’ sugar to the bottom recipe. The swags are very merely piped the usage of a #3 decorator piping tip. As for the flora, you’ll see my rose piping video instructional at this hyperlink.
Pipe the roses.
Sconza goodies are a meals stylist’s dream, as a result of each and every one seems easiest proper out of the bag. I simply knew they’d make a stupendous heart for piped flora. And, they’re inherently bud-shaped! Right here’s learn how to pipe them, from begin to end.
- First, on a parchment-covered flower nail, pipe a dollop of red frosting. Position the rounded finish of a Lemoncello Chocolate Almond into the frosting (pointed finish to the sky).
- Then, the usage of a petal decorator tip, pipe layers of red petals that overlap the sweet.
- Pipe on extra layers of petals till you succeed in the specified fullness. (I stored those small, however it’s good to pass higher!)
- Slide the flower off of the nail and switch them to a baking sheet. Repeat the method till you’ve gotten a baking sheet filled with flora. Then switch them to the fridge to company.
After the roses company, peel them clear of their parchment squares and organize them on most sensible of the cake to at least one facet. Then, pipe a couple of leaves between the roses to fill in any gaps. (You’ll be able to in finding all the decorator tip numbers and sizes I exploit within the recipe card.)
Upload some bling!
Ever a gilder of lilies (or on this case, roses!) I couldn’t withstand including a bit of shimmer. Brush fit to be eaten gold paint at the swags. Then, upload 3 gold sugar pearls in a line, the place the swags meet.
The white almond bitter cream cake layers tackle colour so neatly, and the flavors in point of fact shine via. Each the lemon and strawberry flavors are extra creamy than tart. Altogether this cake is soft and wet, but has a wonder lemon sweet crunch right through.
Be sure you take hold of a bag of Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds at your native Costco whilst they final! They’re nice all on their very own, and so they’re a very good addition to this cake.
Strawberry Lemon Layer Cake
Strawberry and lemon bitter cream cake layers
- 1 small field strawberry gelatin 3 ounces.
- 1 small field lemon gelatin 3 ounces.
- 1 cup boiling water divided
- 1 field white cake combine 16.25 ounces.
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon high-quality grain salt
- 1 cup bitter cream
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil I love sunflower oil
- 3 huge eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
American buttercream and filling
- 2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
- 8 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Milk or cream as wanted
- 2/3 cup Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds
Stiff American buttercream and decors
Cake layers
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Position the strawberry gelatin and lemon gelatin in two separate bowls. Pour 1/2 cup boiling water into each and every of the bowls and stir neatly to dissolve. Let cool till heat, about 10 mins. Don’t permit the gelatin to start out environment. If it begins to gel, re-heat it within the microwave till liquid.
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Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat 4 6-inch spherical cake pans with flour-based baking spray (or grease and flour pans).
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Within the bowl of an electrical mixer, whisk in combination the cake combine, flour, sugar, and salt. In every other bowl, mix the bitter cream, oil, eggs, and extract. Upload the rainy elements to the dry and blend on low pace till blended. The batter might be thick. Divide the batter lightly into two huge bowls. To 1 bowl, upload the strawberry gelatin; beat with an electrical mixer to include. To the opposite bowl, upload the lemon gelatin. Combine neatly till blended.
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Divide each and every batter between two 6 inch cake pans. Bake for 20-22 mins, or till the muffins are neatly risen. They will have to spring again of their facilities when pressed. Let cool within the pans 5 mins, then flip the muffins out onto twine racks to chill utterly. When the muffins are cool, use a serrated knife or twine cake leveler to degree the muffins.
American buttercream and filling
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In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine in combination the butter and confectioners’ sugar. Start on low pace till crumbly, after which build up to prime and beat for three mins.
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Upload vanilla and beat once more for every other minute. Should you in finding the buttercream is just too stiff, chances are you’ll upload milk or heavy cream 1-2 tablespoon at a time till the combination is spreading consistency. Beat till mild and fluffy. The consistency will have to be billowy and simple to unfold. Duvet the bowl with a humid towel so it doesn’t dry out.
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In a meals processor or mini chopper, grind the Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds till high-quality. Put aside.
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Start construction the cake with a strawberry cake layer put on a cake board or serving plate. Fill with a beneficiant 1/2 cup buttercream. The use of a spoon, spoon over 1/3 of the chopped Sconza goodies. Most sensible with a lemon cake layer. Repeat the frosting and candy-sprinkling. Most sensible with a strawberry cake layer. Repeat the frosting and candy-sprinkling over again. Most sensible with the lemon cake layer. Duvet the cake with a skinny layer of buttercream (crumb coat) and refrigerate till company, about 5 mins. Frost all the cake with a beneficiant masking of buttercream and clean lightly the usage of a bench scraper or cake smoother. Refrigerate till the buttercream corporations, 20 mins.
Stiff American buttercream and décors
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In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine in combination the butter and confectioners’ sugar. Start on low pace till crumbly, after which build up to prime and beat for three mins.
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Upload vanilla and beat once more for every other minute. Should you in finding the buttercream is just too stiff, chances are you’ll upload milk or heavy cream 1 tablespoon at a time till the combination is stiff piping consistency (it will have to grasp on a spatula grew to become upside-down). Beat till neatly blended. Duvet the bowl with a humid towel so the buttercream doesn’t crust.
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Take away 1/3 cup of the white frosting to a small bowl and canopy with a humid towel; put aside.
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Take away 1/2 cup of the white frosting to a piping bag fitted with the Wilton #3 spherical tip.
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Divide the rest frosting into 3 bowls and tint one bowl the usage of 1/4 teaspoon of neon red gel meals colour and 1 small drop of the purple meals colour (this mixture fits the strawberry cake layers). Meals colour manufacturers vary in depth, so upload extra if wanted however take into account that colours will accentuate because the buttercream crusts. Combine till a constant colour is completed and switch to a piping bag fitted with Wilton #104 petal decorator tip.
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Tint every other bowl with 1/4 to at least one/2 teaspoon neon yellow meals colour. Combine neatly and switch to a piping bag fitted with Wilton #104 decorator tip.
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Tint the final bowl with the fairway gel meals colour and switch to a piping bag fitted with Wilton #352 decorator piping tip.
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Measure the circumference of the cake and divide by way of 8. With a toothpick, flippantly mark the position of the place the swags will meet within the buttercream. Pipe 8 swags across the most sensible fringe of the cake the usage of the bag of white buttercream fitted with the apparent Wilton #3 decorator piping tip. Refrigerate to set, about 5 mins.
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For the roses, and the usage of the red bag if icing fitted with the #104 petal tip, position a dot of red icing on a flower nail, then position a parchment sq. onto the flower nail. Within the heart of the parchment, pipe a mound of red buttercream. Position a Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almond within the heart of the mound in order that the pointed finish stands upright. Subsequent, with the narrow finish of the petal tip pointing up, pipe 4 petals across the sweet in order that it overlaps relatively. Pipe extra frosting petals across the sweet heart till a complete rose form is completed. Slide the parchment with the rose on it, off of the frosting nail sparsely and position it on a baking sheet (9×13 works high-quality). Repeat this procedure of creating roses the usage of the yellow buttercream additionally. Range sizes so that you’ve got some huge flora and a few small. Switch all the flora to the baking sheet and refrigerate till company, about quarter-hour.
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The use of the reserved white buttercream within the bowl, dollop a half of moon form on most sensible of 1 facet of the cake with a spoon. Take away the set buttercream flora from the fridge. Gently peel them from their parchment squares and organize them on most sensible of the half-moon form on most sensible of the cake. Position additional Sconza Lemoncello Chocolate Almonds across the flora to fill in gaps. Use the bag of inexperienced icing fitted with the #352 leaf tip to pipe leaves into any empty areas, or to brighten the flora. Refrigerate till set, about 10 mins.
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Brush the fit to be eaten gold paint onto the swags the usage of the high-quality –tipped artwork brush. In moderation upload 3 gold sugar pearls in a vertical line the place the swags meet. Do that by way of gently pushing them into the buttercream.
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Retailer the cake within the fridge. Convey to room temperature ahead of serving.