By popular request I give you my take on the royal wedding cake! I actually love lemon and elderflower so this was really a pleasure to recipe test and eat! Not sure if they look more like peony or rose blossoms but either way I like em!
This lemon elderflower cake is perfect for any occasion! If you saw the smash cakes I made for the twin’s first birthday you know I will put pink flowers on a boy’s birthday cake! ?
About the Flavor
The lemon curd is so bright and flavorful, it’s really a grand trick for something to have a decent amount of butter in it but still taste light and refreshing. For those of you not familiar, elderflowers have a fragrant and floral taste with hints of citrus making them the perfect partner for lemons.
There was a huge elderflower cocktail craze in the late nineties-early aughts but I really hadn’t heard much about them until the ROYAL WEDDING again popularized the flavor.
I should point out that elderflower is much more popular in other countries like Canada than in the US. If you make this recipe there will be lots of left over elderflower syrup so feel free to add a splash to your next gin and tonic, vodka soda or seltzer water!
OK I just had to show you a closeup of the piece. I love that bright, sunny lemon curd and yes, you can totally use store-bought if time is an issue, but I’m obsessed with home-made fruit curds!!! By the by these would be amazing cupcakes. I would hollow the inside and fill with lemon curd then top with the swiss meringue buttercream. If you’re looking at this recipe and thinking, hmm looks good but I wish it were an amazing vanilla cake instead, I hear you! You can click here for my favorite vanilla cake recipe and then just use the lemon curd and elderflower buttercream to assemble it. That recipe also makes three six inch cakes so it’s an easy swap.
A Few Pointers
- If you’re not using 6-inch pans, double the recipe for 8-inch pans or triple the recipe for 9-inch pans.
- If you see little clumps of butter after you mix the wet ingredients don’t panic, it all works out by the time you mix in the dry ingredients. You can even use melted butter and warm the milk and sour cream up a bit if you like.
- You can substitute whole milk yogurt for the sour cream if desired, I do it all the time and can’t really tell the difference.
- To get FLAT layers that are moist inside and out try using cake strips! You can buy a set on the shop page or make your own from foil and paper towels at home. I made a whole blog post on it so check it out if you’re interested!
- If you don’t have much experience making buttercream flowers you can add some real flowers on top or check out my how to make buttercream flowers post with how to video.
Styling Tip
I really loved the look of these buttercream peony blossoms on the cake but if you’re not into piping flowers then add a real peony on top, some actual elderflowers, pictured below, or some arrangement your favorites!
If you find cake decorating to be a bit intimidating then check out my How to Decorate a Cake post, it has lots of helpful tips and a full how to video.
Steps for Making this Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour three 6-inch cake pans. Add on damp baking strips. Zest and juice a lemon. In a standing mixer, sift in the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Give it a whisk and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add egg whites, milk, elderflower syrup, lemon juice, lemon zest and sour cream. Whisk together.
- Add a paddle attachment to the stand mixer. Add in room temperature butter in cubes or pieces.
- Switch to a whisk attachment. On medium speed, beat for ½ of the wet mixture into the crumby dry mixture. Scrape the bowl down and add the remaining wet mixture. Beat until combined. Pour the batter into the pans. I use a kitchen scale for more precision. Bake for 35 -40 minutes and/or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in their pans for about 5 minutes, them dump them out onto a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
- Cut cold butter into 1 inch cubes. Strain the egg yolks through a sieve. Beat with a french whisk. While mixing, add in the sugar. It’ll turn into a light lemon color. Add lemon juice in. Transfer the bowl to a medium low heat while whisking constantly. Once it hits 170F, it will change consistency. This can be tested by dipping the back of a wooden spoon and running your finger through. Add in the cubed butter. Pour into a bowl, cover with plastic and transfer to the fridge to set for a few hours. Transfer to a piping bag for assembly. Snip off the tip.
- Add egg whites, sugar and salt in a bowl. Give the mixture a brief whisk. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Make sure the water does not touch the bowl. Whisk the egg whites occasionally while it warms up. When the mixture has warmed, whisk it constantly. You will heat the mixture until it reaches an internal temperature of 160ºF or until it’s not grainy between your fingers.
- Transfer the bowl to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Whip until you get room temperature glossy peaks. While the mixture is running on low, add tablespoon sized dollops of room temperature butter making sure to let the butter incorporate before you add the next piece.
- Add in the elderflower syrup. Transfer it to a piping bag. Snip off the tip when ready to use.
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the room temperature butter until smooth. Sift in the confectioner’s sugar. You can add the sugar in two batches. Beat until you get to a desired consistency. Add a few drops of rose water. Make sure the buttercream is thick. Dye a few batches yellow, soft pink and pink. Use some matcha powder to create a natural leaf color. Transfer to piping bags fitted with a 120 and 127 tip to make the petals. Cut a square of parchment paper. Use a tiny bit of buttercream to glue down the paper onto a piping nail.
- For the roses, pipe a small cone of very thick buttercream in the middle of the square. Add bits of yellow in the middle for added dimension.
- Pipe a thick ring of swiss buttercream along the perimeter of cake layer. Pipe in the lemon curd in the middle. Add the next layer and repeat the process. Transfer to the fridge to chill for a few minutes.
- Add swiss buttercream on the outside of the cake. Even out the Swiss buttercream with a bench scraper and offset spatula. Chill the cake again. If you’re baking in a warmer climate, keep the cake in the fridge until you’re ready to add the roses on. Pipe a crescent ring of Swiss buttercream on the top of the cake. Use scissors to transfer roses to the ring. Pipe in leaves to create some more dimension.
If you love this recipe try these out!
Lemon Lavender Poppy Seed Pound Cake
If you’ve tried this cake then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Elderflower Cake
Video
Ingredients
INGREDIENTS:
For the Cake:
- 2 1/4 cups cake flour 335g
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar 235g
- 1 tsp baking powder heaping
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2/3 cup whole milk 160ml, room temperature
- 1/4 cup sour cream 60ml, room temperature
- 6 large egg whites room temperature
- 3 tbsp elderflower syrup
- Lemon zest
- 1/3 cup lemon juice 80ml
- ¾ cup unsalted butter 176g, room temperature
For the Lemon Curd:
- 6 egg yolks
- ⅓ cup lemon juice 80ml, freshly strained
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 115g, chilled
- 1 cup granulated sugar 228g
For the Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- 5 egg whites room temperature
- 2 cups unsalted butter 452g, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar 300g
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 3 tbsp elderflower syrup
For the American Buttercream:
- 1 cup unsalted butter 225g, room temperature
- 1.5 lb Confectioners sugar 460g, sifted
- 1 tsp rose water
- pink, yellow, orange food coloring
- matcha powder
Instructions
INSTRUCTIONS:
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour three 6-inch cake pans. Add on damp baking strips. Zest and juice a lemon.
- In a standing mixer, sift in the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Give it a whisk and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add egg whites, milk, elderflower syrup, lemon juice, lemon zest and sour cream. Whisk together.
- Add a paddle attachment to the stand mixer. Add in room temperature butter in cubes or pieces.
- Switch to a whisk attachment. On medium speed, beat for ½ of the wet mixture into the crumby dry mixture. Scrape the bowl down and add the remaining wet mixture. Beat until combined.
- Pour the batter into the pans. I use a kitchen scale for more precision.
- Bake for 33 - 36 minutes and/or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
- Let the cake layers cool in their pans for about 5 minutes, them dump them out onto a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
For the Lemon Curd:
- Cut cold butter into 1 inch cubes.
- Strain the egg yolks through a sieve. Beat with a french whisk.
- While mixing, add in the sugar. It’ll turn into a light lemon color.
- Add lemon juice in.
- Transfer the bowl to a medium low heat while whisking constantly.
- Once it hits 170F, it will change consistency. This can be tested by dipping the back of a wooden spoon and running your finger through.
- Add in the cubed butter.
- Pour into a bowl, cover with plastic and transfer to the fridge to set for a few hours.
- Transfer to a piping bag for assembly. Snip off the tip.
For the Swiss Meringue Buttercream:
- Add egg whites, sugar and salt in a bowl.
- Give the mixture a brief whisk.
- Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Make sure the water does not touch the bowl.
- Whisk the egg whites occasionally while it warms up. When the mixture has warmed, whisk it constantly. You will heat the mixture until it reaches an internal temperature of 160ºF or until it's not grainy between your fingers.
- Transfer the bowl to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Whip until you get room temperature glossy peaks.
- While the mixture is running on low, add tablespoon sized dollops of room temperature butter making sure to let the butter incorporate before you add the next piece. Add in the elderflower syrup.
- Transfer it to a piping bag. Snip off the tip when ready to use.
For the American Buttercream:
- In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the room temperature butter until smooth.
- Sift in the confectioner’s sugar. You can add the sugar in two batches.
- Beat until you get to a desired consistency. Add a few drops of rose water. Make sure the buttercream is thick.
- Dye a few batches yellow, soft pink and pink. Use some matcha powder to create a natural leaf color.
- Transfer buttercream to piping bag fitted with a 120 tip to make the petals.
- Cut a square of parchment paper. Use a tiny bit of buttercream to glue down the paper onto a piping nail.
- For the roses, place a small cone of very thick buttercream in the middle of the square.
- Add bits of yellow in the middle for added dimension. Pipe the petals using a 120 tip.
For the Assembly:
- Pipe a thick ring of swiss buttercream along the perimeter of cake layer. Pipe in the lemon curd in the middle. Add the next layer and repeat the process.
- Transfer to the fridge to chill for a few minutes.
- Add swiss buttercream tp the outside of the cake.
- Smooth the Swiss buttercream with a bench scraper and offset spatula. Chill the cake again. If you're baking in a warmer climate, keep the cake in the fridge until you're ready to add the roses on.
- Pipe a crescent ring of Swiss buttercream on the top of the cake.
- Use scissors to transfer roses to the ring.
- Pipe in leaves with a 68 tip to create some more dimension.
Notes
- If you’re not using 6-inch pans, double the recipe for 8-inch pans or triple the recipe for 9-inch pans.
- If you see little clumps of butter after you mix the wet ingredients don’t panic, it all works out by the time you mix in the dry ingredients. You can even use melted butter and warm the milk and sour cream up a bit if you like.
- You can substitute whole milk yogurt for the sour cream if desired, I do it all the time and can’t really tell the difference.
- To get FLAT layers that are moist inside and out try using cake strips! You can buy a set online or make your own from foil and paper towels at home. I made a whole blog post on it so check it out if you’re interested!
- If you don't have much experience making buttercream flowers you can add some real flowers on top or check out my how to make buttercream flowers post with how to video.
Sherri says
Hi There,
What brand of tips do you use?
John K. says
Sherri,
I use metal ateco piping tips! Hope you enjoy this cake!
John
Aruna says
Hi John,
I want to make this cake for my son’s birthday. Question : Do I use elderflower syrup or elderflower essence?
I bungled and ordered both so now have an abundance of elderflower 🙂
Thank you !
John K. says
Aruna,
I used elderflower syrup in my recipe but if you want to use the essence, I would love to know how it tastes!
John
Aruna says
Made it – quailed at the buttercream flowers but used edible flowers instead. Stuck to you recipe complete with elderflower syrup. It was really good. Thank you ( no where are good looking as your cakes but I am happy !)
BeiWei C says
I’m just curious, i noticed in your cake recipes you always do 2 different buttercreams. Is there a reason for that? Is a certain type of buttercream better for piping the flowers or frosting the cake?
John K. says
BeiWeiC,
You can pipe flowers with American or Italian meringue buttercream! I like multiple buttercreams on a cake for the contrast in texture and flavor! Hope that helps!
John
Melanie says
There isn’t a step for whipping the Swiss meringue into glossy peaks… is that correct? I feel like I may be crazy…?
John K. says
Melanie,
You’re totally right! I just fixed it! Thanks!
John
Lucy says
Ugh. I printed the recipe before you made the change and only discovered when I was making the SBC that the step re whipping the meringue was missing. I had gone too far and went back to the YouTube video to double check it. I wasted ingredients and ended up with a rather ordinary frosting as I had to add confectioners sugar to the mixture to salvage it.
Zahara says
Hi there just tried the lemon elder flower cake..used the home made version of the baking strips (lol)…..I baked on 150deg C but a small portion in middle didn’t cook too nicely..but the taste and texture is amazing!! Thankyou:)
John K. says
Zahara,
I usually bake my layers until the the cake is springy and fluffy in the middle! Every oven is different!
John
Mita says
Hello! What is the brand of food coloring you use for the buttercream?
John K. says
Mita,
I use Americolor gel food coloring in most of my recipes! Hope you enjoy the cake!
John
Jacinta says
Hi just wondering about the Elderflower syrup, where do you get it from? Is it a liqueur? I’m in western Australia and can only find elderflower liqueur or cordial, is there a substitute; if I can’t find syrup?
Thank you for your time and your beautiful recipes.
John K. says
Jacinta,
I got mine from amazon! The brand is D’arbo! If you can’t find this in Australia, you could try using St. Germain liqueur! Hope you enjoy!
John
Jacinta says
Thank you so much for the reply, I finally got the video to work and the question was answered there too.
Lucy says
I got Elderflower cordial from Woolworths in Brisbane.
Luce says
Hello, what size pans do you use? 8 inch pans produce such a clunky sized cake. Your cakes look uplifting and so attractive.
And could you share the size of your wooden cake stand? I know in a previous comment you said Etsy, but they have different sizes.
thank you!
John K. says
Luce,
I used three 6-inch cake pans in this recipe! I’m not sure about the cake stand though! Thank you very much for the compliments! Hope you enjoy the cake!
John
Lisanne says
OMG the towel in the mixer!! I screamed a little haha! But the video was great and the recipe seems amazing! I will definitely try it!
John K. says
Lisanne,
Always a fun surprise! Hope you love the cake!
John
Maria says
Hi! I made lemon curd and It tastes like metal. I used a stainless steel pot. Is this normal?
John K. says
Maria,
I’ve never had that issue! Were your eggs old and did you use this recipe!?
John
Neil says
Maria, oddly enough also had the same problem with the lemon curd when I used this recipe – I thought it was my spoon I was tasting but it wasn’t, I can’t explain it.
My eggs weren’t fresh off the shelf but they were well within the ‘use by’ date. It did taste like that before I put it in the fridge so maybe that was what did it.
By the way, John, thanks for this recipe, I made this for my fiancee’s birthday recently and it went down an absolute treat! I doubled it because it was for an 8 inch pan. My sponge was a bit dense, though. do I perhaps need to reduce the proportion of my ‘wet’ ingredients’?
John K. says
Hey Neil,
This lemon curd is one of my go-to’s, that’s so odd! Did you still enjoy the cake?
For the problem with the density; did you use a HEAPING tsp of baking powder?
Best,
John
Danelia says
Hi there,
I’ve made this recipe a bunch of times and it’s turned out so delish. However, one time I got lazy and I used salted butter instead and it gave it that awful metal taste. So now I make sure it’s unsalted butter all the time.