Lemon Layer Cake

If you’re looking for a lemon layer cake that includes many different colors for the layers, this recipe is for you. Also, I think you’ll love how easy it is to make because it starts with a boxed cake mix. It tastes like you made it from scratch even though you definitely did not.

Lemon Layer Cake Using Box Cake Mix

There are so many occasions that you can make this layer cake for. We used a version of it for Easter this past year and plan on making it again for Mother’s Day. It is also our go-to for a birthday party, bridal shower or even a baby shower.

In the latter scenario, you can use all the colors we do in case the parents-to-be haven’t revealed the baby’s gender or don’t want to. Besides, the pink, yellow and blue go so well together.

Speaking of colors: you can absolutely customize the color of the different layers of this cake. For instance, if we were going to make it for our daughter Annie who has loved the color purple since she was old enough to say, “Purple,” I would find a way to make a rainbow of different shades of purple for her cake.

Regardless of which occasion you make this lemon layer cake for, no one is going to believe it is homemade. They’re really going to think you ordered it from your local bakery and then are trying to pass it off as your own.

Keep the boxes of the white cake mix that you bought at the store to prove them wrong. Plus, once they taste a bite, they’re not going to care who made the cake or how it was made. They’re just going to ask for seconds.

Ingredients

I took a picture of all of the ingredients in one batch, as you can see here. But there’s actually two sets of ingredients you should set aside for making this recipe. First there are the cake ingredients. Then, there are the ingredients for the frosting. This is not a cream cheese frosting but rather one made with buttercream. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll need for each.

Cake

• 2 (15.25 ounce) boxes white cake mix
• 8 egg whites
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 1 cup butter
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Yellow, blue and pink food coloring

Buttercream Frosting

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 2 pounds powdered sugar
• 6 tablespoons milk
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Yellow food coloring

Suggested Equipment

You’re going to need a few pieces of equipment to make this cake, most importantly three round 8-inch cake pans in which you’ll bake the cake layers. A revolving cake stand or turntable will make decorating much easier, too. I recommend using parchment paper, too, so your cake comes out of the pan neatly.

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F. While the oven is heating, melt 1 cup of butter. You can do this in the microwave, in a heat-safe vessel, such as a Pyrex measuring cup, in 30 second bursts.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, melted butter, eight egg whites, milk and lemon juice. Note: freeze the leftover raw egg yolks for future use so they don’t go to waste.

Spray three 8 inch cake pans with non-stick spray. Alternately, you can use round cake pan parchment paper so your cake doesn’t stick to the pan. Divide the cake batter between the three bowls. Add pink food coloring to one bowl, yellow to another and blue to the third. Mix well. Pour each color batter into a different cake pan.

Bake the cakes for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool slightly and then remove from the pans onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Once the cakes are completely cooled, about 45 minutes, you can make your frosting. In a large bowl combine your softened butter, powdered sugar, six tablespoons milk, yellow food coloring and two tablespoons of lemon juice.

Place one cake on your revolving cake plate to make the first layer and top with a good amount of the frosting. Top with the other cake and repeat. Continue until all three layers of the cake are set and individually frosted. Frost the cake completely. This is where the spinning cake plate comes in handy.

Filling a piping bag or plastic zipper top bag with the corner snipped off with remaining frosting. Pipe around the edge. Decorate the top of the cake with sprinkles. Slice and serve!

Notes

Don’t want to make homemade buttercream frosting? Try this time-saving hack: buy store-bought white canned frosting and add yellow food coloring to achieve the same color as shown here. Obviously, you can choose any color you’d like when dyeing the frosting.

I prefer to use freshly squeezed lemon juice in my recipes. However, I understand that buying bottled lemon juice can save money. Sometimes I only have bottled juice on hand, so I use it in recipes like this one. If that’s what you have in the fridge when you decide to make this cake, go ahead and use it.

Speaking of lemon, feel free to use other naturally occurring citrus flavors, such as orange or lime. Or you can add a few drops of store-bought flavorings like banana, almond or strawberry. Or you can use no flavoring at all and let the natural sweetness of cake batter come through.

You can always adjust a recipe for cake and make cupcakes instead. In keeping with the pastel colors of this layer cake, why not splurge on candy or pastel colored cupcake or muffin tin liners.