Lady Bird Johnson's Lemon Cake

I love to collect recipes from First Ladies. I even have a cookbook of recipes from the White House. I came across this recipe about 14 years ago in a newspaper article, and I've made it several times. It is delicious! I especially enjoy making this cake for Easter. There's something about lemon that sings Spring to me!

When I made this recipe I did make a few swaps so that my niece Catherine could enjoy it. Catherine has dairy, nut, and shellfish allergies. So when we have parties we make our dishes "Catherine approved."

I added extra lemon to the cooked cake, and I substituted the milk for rice milk and the butter for margarine (parve). Parve is a Hebrew term (pareve is the Yiddish term) that describes food without any meat or dairy ingredients.

After the cake cooled I drizzled fresh Meyer lemon juice and let it set over night. The extra lemon really makes the cake moist. The glaze isn't quite as smooth as it would be if I used butter, but it's still delicious.

Ingredients
3/4 cup butter or margarine (at room temperature)
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
8 egg yolks
2 1/2 cups cake flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
1 teaspoon lemon juice (I used meyer lemon)

***Lemon Icing***
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine (at room temperature)
1 lemon, grated rind only
1 lemon, juiced (meyer lemon)
2 teaspoons cream (or more, until spreading consistency)
yellow food coloring, if desired

Directions:
Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks until light and lemon-colored; blend into creamed mixture. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt; resift 3 times. Add sifted ingredients to creamed mixture in thirds, alternating with milk. Beat the batter thoroughly after each addition.

Add vanilla extract, lemon rind and lemon juice; beat 2 minutes. Bake in greased 10-inch Bundt pan in preheated oven at 325 degrees F for 1 hour or until cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. You can also can use three 9-inch round cake pans and bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Double the frosting recipe for a layer cake.

Lemon Icing: Combine ingredients and beat, adding cream until desired consistency.