A Little Slice of Heaven

I have been craving lemon cake for a couple of weeks now.  A friend of mine mentioned that someone made her lemon blueberry cupcakes for her birthday.  Um. Yum.  So, I have had lemon on the brain for a while.  Pinterest is nothing if you don't do something with the things you pin, right?  I pinned this recipe for Lemonade Cake and decided to try it this week.  Let me tell you, I will be making it again!  

Ingredients

• Cake:
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
• 3 tablespoons thawed lemonade concentrate
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 large egg whites
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 cups fat-free buttermilk
• Cooking spray
• Frosting:
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
• 2 teaspoons thawed lemonade concentrate
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 8 ounces 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, place first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; 

beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes).  **It feels kind of like putty at this point.

Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk.

Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.

Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. 

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare frosting, place 2 tablespoons butter and the next 4 ingredients (2 tablespoons butter through cream cheese) in a large bowl

beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended (do not overbeat). Chill 1 hour.

Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.

The only thing I didn't like about this recipe is that it used the concentrate lemonade.  I think I will look for another way to get the same flavor/texture next time.  I know there is already sugar in this, but I really don't like adding the extra High Fructose Corn Syrup.  Enjoy!