Vanilla Cake


Makes one cake

INGREDIENTS

3 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
5 eggs
1½ teaspoons vanilla
1¼ cups buttermilk
Lemon curd, for filling
Basic Buttercream, for frosting

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Prepare 2 sheet pans with non-stick spray and parchment paper. Set aside. In a large bowl, sift all dry ingredients together. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, and mix until incorporated.

Alternate dry ingredients with buttermilk, starting and finishing with flour mixture.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted in center comes out clean.

Lemon Curd

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh lemon zest
1 cup fresh lemon juice
113 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1¾ sticks (¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces

DIRECTIONS

Whisk together zest, lemon juice, sugar, eggs, and a pinch of salt in a 2-quart heavy saucepan. Add butter all at once and cook over moderately low heat, whisking constantly, until curd is thick enough to hold marks of whisk and first bubbles appear on surface, about 10 minutes. Immediately pour curd through a fine sieve into a bowl, then chill, covered.

© Recipe Property of Shawona Jones