Key Lime Cake

Oh my goodness, this cake was amazing!!! It is full of key lime flavor and the frosting is to die for. It is a cream cheese frosting, but with key lime flavor. I could have just eaten the frosting with a spoon, that is how good it is. This cake is very sweet, but the whipped cream on top helps cut the sweetness of the frosting. If you love key lime, like I do, then you will love this cake.

Key Lime Cake

Ingredients:

Cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup canola oil
• 2/3 cup key lime juice
• 3/4 cup sour cream
Frosting

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2- 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened
• 32 ounces powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup key lime juice
• food coloring, optional
Whipped Cream

• 16 ounces heavy whipping cream, cold
• 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Grease and flour 2 8-inch cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Add in the eggs, oil and lime juice. Beat until smooth. Add in the sour cream and beat until smooth.
3. Evenly pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn the cakes out of the pan and cool completely on wire racks.

Frosting

1. With an electric mixer or stand mixer, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and mix until completely incorporated. Add in the vanilla extract and key lime juice and mix until combined. Add food coloring if desired, I used a combination of green and yellow to try and create a "key lime" color.

Whipped Cream

1. In a large bowl beat together the whipped cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract until it forms stiff peaks.

Assembly

1. If the cakes are not flat on top, remove the dome, then cut the cakes in half creating 4 cake layers.
2. Place the bottom of one cake on a serving board or cake plate and spread some frosting on top. Place a top cake layer on top and again spread some frosting on top. Place the remaining bottom layer on top and spread some frosting on top of it. Place the remaining top cake layer on and frost the entire cake with a thin layer of frosting. Refrigerate the cake for about 20 minutes.
3. Remove the cake from the refrigerator and frost the entire cake. Decorate the top with the whipped cream.

Enjoy!!!

Notes:
I had some whipped cream leftover after decorating. Depending on how much decorating you plan to do, you could cut the whipped cream recipe in half.
*Adapted from Your Homebased Mom.