Alright, get ready to make your kitchen smell like heaven with this Easy Lemon Blueberry Marble Cake. I'm about to simplify this recipe using casual language, making it super easy to follow, so even if you're more accustomed to Netflix marathons than baking marathons, you'll nail this one.
First off, picture this: a soft, fluffy lemon cake with bursts of juicy blueberries and swirls that look like art (but way more delicious). This cake is like summer in a bite, perfect for impressing your friends, and family, or just treating yourself. No need for baking degrees here; just some basic ingredients and a little love. Let's whip up this bakery-worthy masterpiece in your own kitchen. By the way, we're making our own blueberry lemon jam for this - trust me, it's easy and a total game-changer.
Lemon Blueberry Marble Cake
Ingredients:
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 tsp grated lemon zest
- 1½ tsp lemon extract
- 7 egg whites
- 3 cups cake flour
- 4 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1¼ cups milk
- 2½ tbsp homemade blueberry lemon jam (recipe follows)
Blueberry Lemon Jam:
- 3 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1½ tsp grated lemon zest
- 1 tsp grated fresh ginger (optional)
Lemon Buttercream:
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 2 eggs
- 3 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tbsp grated lemon zest
Steps:
- The oven’s gotta be hot: 350°F. Butter and line three 8-inch cake pans.
- Cream the butter, sugar, zest, and extract until fluffy. Add egg whites bit by bit, blending and scraping down the sides.
- Mix flour, baking powder, and salt separately. Then, alternating with milk, add to the butter mix. Beat to aerate (get those lumps out!).
- Take out 1 cup of batter, and mix it with jam. Divide the rest evenly in pans, and smooth tops. Drizzle and swirl in that jammy batter.
- Bake for 25 minutes. Cakes are done when they're golden and a skewer comes out clean. Cool them out of the pans on a wire rack.
Jam Time:
- Blend blueberries and strain. Cook with sugar, lemon juice, zest, and ginger until it thickens (about 20 minutes). Cool it.
Lemon Buttercream:
- Boil sugar and water until it reaches the softball stage. Slowly pour over beaten eggs, then beat until fluffy.
- Add butter gradually to eggs until smooth. Mix in lemon juice and zest. Voila!
Assembling the Cake:
Layer the cakes with the buttercream, and get ready to serve up slices of tangy, sweet perfection. Whether it’s for a special occasion or a "just because" treat, this cake is bound to be a hit.
See? Not too complicated. Dive in, enjoy the process, and get ready for a seriously good cake that looks like you put in way more effort than you actually did. Plus, homemade jam and buttercream? You’re gonna be the baking MVP.