Lemon and Raspberry Cake!
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A three-layer lemon and raspberry cake with a lemon and raspberry sponge, lemon buttercream frosting and more!
Lemon and raspberry
Can we start this blog post off by appreciating how light and delicious a flavour this cake sounds. Lemon and Raspberry together is sweet, tangy and fruity – and it’s hard to beat. I love a lemon cake, I love a raspberry bake.. combine them? Heaven.
White chocolate and raspberry together is also an epic combination. But I know that not all of you like to bake using chocolate, and lemon and raspberry together is just as good. Honestly, I can never get over how light and fruity it is!
My Lemon & Raspberry Cheesecake was my main inspiration for this bake – as I just adore it. It almost feels healthier as it’s got two types of fruit in – but don’t kid yourself.. it’s still a cake full of all the sugary goodness.
Lemon and raspberry cake
I decided originally for this one to do a two layer cake as some of you have requested some more two layers, but genuinely completely forgot until I had baked my first three layer version. I fell in love with the three layer version and it stuck… It’s a sponge that you can easily adapt into more layers if you wanted, or create only two layers – it’s definitely adaptable and that’s the good bit. You can find the notes below on a two layer version!
My lemon & raspberry cupcakes are so moist and light, that this cake version is such a showstopping cake version of the cupcakes you will adore it, but you can obviously have a go at the cupcakes if you wish instead.
Sponge
This sponge is light, it’s easy to mix together and I utterly adore it. It’s a standard cake mixture of butter and sugar beaten together until light and fluffy, and then you mix in the eggs and flour. I mix in the lemon zest, and then fold through the raspberries and split that between the cake tins.
- Butter – I use either a room temperature block butter or baking spread for a cake sponge
- Sugar – I use caster sugar in this cake, but golden caster sugar would work well as well
- Flour – self raising flour as always. However, if you don’t have it, you can make your own with 2 level tsps per 150g of plain flour, mixed in before using and removing any other raising agent in the recipe.
- Eggs – 7-8 medium eggs, but weigh in the shells and try and get as close to 400g as possible and match the butter, sugar and flour to this weight
- Lemon – I use the zest of lemons, but as mentioned above you can use lemon extract
- Raspberries – I use fresh raspberries because they’re the best
Buttercream
For the buttercream I was originally just got to do a lemon and raspberry frosting to make it easier, but I decided to make a lemon one because adding in the raspberries just wasn’t my vibe that day. However, you can easily add some in and slather the buttercream on!
If you mix it too much, you will just get a pink frosting – but that’s not necessarily a bad thing! I find if I make the frosting mostly by the mixer, and then swirl the raspberries in by hand it works the best. However, just lemon is easy!
I piped my buttercream on as you can see, but it really doesn’t matter – you can slather, you can pipe, you can dollop, you can whatever you actually fancy. I find the freeze dried raspberries give a beautiful colour on the top anyway and would easily cover any mistakes!
The filling & decoration
I did decided to add a little raspberry jam into the middle, but the good thing about this bake is that you can easily use lemon curd in the middle instead if you wished. I would have used a little of both, but I didn’t have any lemon curd in at the time of baking; both work really well.
For the decoration I just went down the usual route of fresh raspberries, and freeze dried raspberries. I know, I know… I am obsessed with them. I can’t help it – they just look so beautiful on a bake, and when you ‘bulk’ buy them like I do, they’re much cheaper in the long run!
I used these large piping bags as I find them strong, easy to control when piping, and I used this beautiful 2d closed star piping tip for the decoration as I adore it’s look.
Tips & Tricks
- I use these cake tins for this bake
- I use this piping tip for the decoration
- I use these piping bags for buttercream
- I use these freeze dried raspberries in my baking
- This cake will last for 3+ days at room temperature
- This cake will freeze for 3+ months
Lemon and Raspberry Cake!
Ingredients
Cake
- 400 g unsalted butter
- 400 g caster sugar
- 400 g self raising flour
- 8 medium eggs
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 300 g raspberries
Buttercream
- 350 g unsalted butter (room temp)
- 700 g icing sugar
- Juice of 2 lemons
Extras
- Raspberry jam
- Fresh raspberries
- Freeze dried raspberries
- Lemon zest
- Sprinkles
Instructions
Cakes
- Preheat your oven to 180C/160C Fan and line three 8"/20cm tins with parchment paper, and leave to the side.
- Beat together your butter and sugar for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy!
- Add in your self raising flour, eggs and lemon zest and beat again for a couple of minutes until smooth
- Try not to over beat - mix until it comes together and is smooth.
- Add in your raspberries and fold through - Split the cake mix between the three tins.
- Once in the tins, bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until baked through. I check my cake is baked by using a skewer, and listening carefully to see if it bubbles! Because of the fruit, this can often take a bit longer!
- Once baked, leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Buttercream
- To make the buttercream, make sure your butter is at room temperature.
- Beat the butter on its own for 3-4 minutes, I use the paddle attachment.
- Once the butter is nice and supple, add the icing Sugar in 1/2 at a time, and beat fully before adding any more in.
- Add in the lemon, and beat again for 3-4 minutes until it's all come together.
Decoration
- Get your first cake onto your chosen plate and spread/pipe over a third of the buttercream.
- Add on a few tablespoons of jam and spread.
- Add on your second cake and spread/pipe the second third of the buttercream on top.
- Finally add on your third sponge and pipe the rest of the buttercream on!
- Decorate with fresh raspberries, freeze dried raspberries, lemon zest and so on! Enjoy!
Notes
- This cake will last for 3 days at room temperature, in a cake box.
- I use fresh raspberries, but you can use frozen if need be - can make the cake take longer to bake though due to moisture.
- If you want to bake a two layer version use...
- 250g butter/sugar/flour and 5 medium eggs with the zest of 1 lemon with 150g raspberries.
- Use 200g butter/400g icing sugar for the buttercream with the juice of 1 lemon!
- Bake into two 8" tins for 30 minutes!
- I recommend using this beautiful piping tip!
- I also recommend buying these freeze dried raspberries as they're the best!
ENJOY!
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J x
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Making this for an 80th birthday, would it work covering in fondant icing?
I’m not a baker normally, but this cake worked a treat and went down so well for my friend’s birthday! Thank you!
Hi Jane can I use gluten free flour in your cakes
Hi Jane,
Could I use blackberries instead of raspberries in this? Made this twice now and it’s delicious.
Hia. Could I use blackberries instead of raspberries? Thank you.
For sure!!
I’m going to make this lovely cake but I want to make it into a two layer using 2x 10 inch tins please could you advise. Shall I keep all the ingredients the same and just divide the mixture between the two 10” tins and perhaps bake for a little bit longer? Thank you
Hi could I swap the lemon zest and juice for orange? Would that still work?
Yes for sure! Keep an eye on the quantity you add though as oranges are often much bigger! xx
What an incredible recipe. I made this for the first time yesterday and it is the best cake I have ever made.
The recipe is really good and the cake went down a treat with the birthday girl.
Hi Jane. Love love all your recipes and book 🥰 please can I ask, I’d love to make this cake but semi-naked Can you help with how much I’d have to increase the buttercream ingredients please? Do you think this work work? looked through the reviews but can’t see if it’s previously been asked. Forgive me if so xx
Hi Jane,
I was really excited at the thought of making this delicious lemon and raspberry cake for a friend’s birthday.
Unfortunately I have had big issues with the butter icing melting. I put it in the fridge before spreading on, because it was a bit runny having added the lemon juice. By the time I had spread the middle layer and put jam on, it was beginning to melt down the sides. Then having piped icing on the top, it was melting even more, so I put the cake in the fridge ASAP. Now the top sponge has completely cracked through the middle as the middle layer has continued to pour out. I am gutted 😭 Why has this happened? Was it simply just too warm?
I am sure it will taste delicious… it just doesn’t look it anymore!
What brand of butter did you use? x
Was the cake still hot when you put the buttercream on?
A fantastic cake! I first made this cake for my boyfriends birthday, we loved it so much we made a tiered version of this cake for our wedding cake. We got lots of complements on the day. Thank you
Hi,
Would it work by substituting the raspberries with strawberries?
Thanks
This was absolutely Devine!
Made it for the kids coronation yesterday and everyone loved it and it had the wow factor.
Thank you
Hello , my auntie likes lemon cake with white chocolate and raspberries
Do I make a lemon cake with raspberries in and then do a white chocolate butter cream or do I make a lemon and white chocolate cake and then do a raspberry butter cream ?
I’m stuck on what to do for the best as it’s my first time making this cake
Hi Jane, I only have one big 8″ tin – what would the baking time be for one big cake please?
I can’t wait to make this for my mother in laws birthday in a couple of weeks!
What size cake box do you recommend purchasing please?