Showing posts with label Lady Bird Johnson lemon cake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lady Bird Johnson lemon cake. Show all posts

Saturday, April 6, 2013

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.