Lady Bird Johnson's Lemon Cake
A lemon cake with a history and versatility
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Butter (salted)
- 1 ¼ cup sugar
- 8 large egg yolks
- 2 ½ cups cake flour
- 3 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
Lemon Glaze
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup butter (salted)
- zest of 1 lemon
- juice of 1 lemon
Ganache
- 8 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ⅛ tsp coarse salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degreesGrease either a 10” bundt pan or 2 loaf pans, then dust with flour.
- Cream butter and sugar with a stand mixer
- In a separate bowl, whisk the 8 egg yolks together to break up the yolks. Mix into butter/sugar mixture.
- Whisk together cake flour, baking powder and salt.
- Alternately add milk and flour mixture to batter, beating after each addition, scraping the sides as needed.
- Add vanilla extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat for 2 minutes.
- our the batter into the prepared bundt pan or 2 loaf pans and bake for 1 hour. (Loaf pans need 35 - 40 minutes). Insert a toothpick to test- must come out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Lemon Glaze
- Combine the powdered sugar, butter, lemon zest and lemon juice. Use a hand mixer to mix until well combined.
- Once the cake is cooled, drizzle the glaze over the cake.
- Garnish the cake with more lemon zest if desired.
Granache:
- Coarsely chop chocolate. With a serrated knife.
- Bring cream to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Pour over chocolate, and add salt. Let stand for 10 minutes.
- Stir with a whisk until smooth.
Video
Notes
This cake is best stored at room temperature. Keep it in an airtight container for 2-3 days. If you want to keep it longer you can refrigerate the cake after 3 days or freeze it.
This cake freezes really well. Wrap well, using freezer baggies. Allow the cake to come to room temperature before opening the package.