Lemon Raspberry Layer Cake

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I shared this Lemon Raspberry Layer cake on Instagram and had request for recipe. Ok, twist my arm, I’ll share it 😉

I made this cake for my birthday – one because we were in social isolation and I had time to do it and TWO because I could not find a local bakery with a cake with the flavors that I wanted.

I combined a few of my favorite recipes to come up with this cake.

First, I created a layer cake using Sally’s Baking Addiction’s Vanilla Naked Cake. This cake I actually made a while ago and kept in the freezer in a quarter sheet pan. It was wrapped in Saran wrap. The day before I started frosting and assembling the cake, I took the frozen sheet cake and placed it in the refrigerator. Make sure the saran wrap is sitting on the cake as moisture will collect and you want it to collect on the saran wrap and not the cake.

Next, I made this mascarpone whipped cream frosting by Life and Love Sugar. I modified it and added the zest of one lemon! I honestly don’t LOVE buttercream frosting and I hate the taste of fondant, so this was perfect. I love that it was not too sweet.

Assembly

Using a 6″ cake ring, stamp out the ring into your sheet cake two times, one for each layer. If you are doing a third layer, stamp out two half rings.

Then, place your cake ring on a stand. Next, line the cake ring with acetate. 

Starting with the sheet cake you stamped out, place it in the center of the ring. Next, using an Ateco 808 tip, pipe the frosting just along the edges to create a dam. Then fill the insides of the cake seedless raspberry jam or preserves.

Next, spread a layer of the lemon mascarpone frosting on top of the jam.

Take two half rings you cut out and place them on top of the frosting – this will not look pretty. That’s okay, you will hide it with your frosting!

On top of your second layer, repeat layering steps – pipe the frosting along the edges to create a dam, then the raspberry jam, then the frosting.

Place the third layer of cake on top. Remove the acetate and cake ring. Frost all around the cake with the frosting. Allow to sit in the fridge overnight OR place the cake in the fridge for 2 hours so it will harden.

Top the cake with fresh raspberries just before serving. Since I had some extra raspberry macarons (recipe here), I decorated the cake with them too!

I thought the cake was REALLY GOOD. The frosting was amazing. If you are making a 6″ cake like I did, I would half the frosting recipe since it makes a lot of frosting.

While the cake may not be perfect like a professional cake was, I can say it tasted better than a lot of cakes I’ve purchased over the years!