Chocolate Lemon Curd Cake with Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream

It is really hard for me to let my oldest decorate cakes. She does not want to bake the cake, but just decorate it. However, if I am going to do all the work of baking, stacking and making the buttercream, I want to decorate it as well. But I decided to let her decorate the cake since it was for her birthday. 

This cake came to be because of an idea she had. She loves lemon curd and wanted a chocolate cake with lemon curd filling. She left the frosting up to me, so of course I had to go with my favorite Swiss meringue. Since the cake filling was lemon it made sense to do a lemon buttercream.

The chocolate cake was so delicious. It was light and fluffy, nice and moist, everything a chocolate cake should be. The homemade lemon curd added a bit of sweet tangy brightness to the chocolate cake, making it a perfect combination. The buttercream was deliciously fluffy with the right amount of sweetness and a hint of lemon flavor. The lemon flavor was a bit subtle for my liking, I was hoping for a more pronounced lemon flavor. Next time I make it I might increase the lemon extract to see if it will give it a more pronounced lemon flavor without affecting the consistency of the buttercream.

Chocolate Lemon Curd Cake with Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Ingredients:

Chocolate Cake

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder

Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream

• 8 egg whites, room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
• zest of 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons pure lemon extract
• 2 teaspoons lemon extract
• yellow gel food coloring, optional

Filling

• lemon curd

Directions:

Chocolate Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350º F. Spray three 8-inch round cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda. 
3. Whisk in the granulated sugar and brown sugar, whisking until well combined.
4. Add in the oil, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla. Mix just until combined.
5. Add the espresso powder to the boiling water and mix until combined. Pour the mixture into the mixing bowl and mix just until everything is combined. Batter will be thin.
6. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared baking pans. 
7. Bake for 28-30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
8. Place the cake pans on a cooling rack and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Run a knife between the cake and pan and remove the cakes. Place the cakes on the cooling racks and allow to cool completely.

Lemon Swiss Meringue Buttercream

1. In a clean heatproof stand mixer bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar.
2. In a medium pot, just big enough to fit the stand mixer bowl snugly without it touching the bottom, bring an inch or two of water to a simmer. Place the stand mixer bowl in the pot, making sure it does not touch the simmering water. Whisk constantly until the mixture is hot and the sugar is dissolved and no longer grainy, or reaches 160º F on a candy thermometer.
3. Place the bowl on the mixer, with the whisk attachment and whisk on medium-high speed until the mixture has formed stiff peaks and the bowl is no longer warm to the touch, about 5-10 minutes.
4. Remove the whisk attachment and add the paddle attachment. Add the butter in 1 tablespoon at a time mixing well after each addition. Continue to mix until the mixture is smooth. 
5. With the mixer running on low speed, add in the lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla and lemon extract and yellow food coloring if desired. Continue to mix on low speed until everything is incorporated and frosting is smooth.

Assembly

1. Level the tops of each cake and place one on a cake stand or serving plate.
2. Add some buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe a border of buttercream around the edge of the cake. Fill the middle with about 1/4-1/3 cup of lemon curd. Repeat with another layer of cake. Place the last cake layer on top.
3. Frost the cake with a thin layer of buttercream to seal in the crumbs. Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes. 
4. Frost the cake and decorate as desired.

Enjoy!!!

*Adapted from Live Well and Bake Often and Chelsweets.