The ultimate lime cake to welcome fall!

Pic by Nonik Yench @pexels

Morers all over the north hemisphere, are you ready to get in the fall mood with brunches and gatherings at home? If you are, I'm about to share with you the most tart-tastic, lime - lovely, moist-and-magical cake recipe! 

*disclaimer. None of the pics are mine. Though my cake tastes AWESOME, it lacked in appearance department 😅

photo by Andrea Piacquadio @pexels

Ingredients:

For the cake 

* 2 1/4 cups (285g) all-purpose flour

* 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar

* 2 teaspoons baking powder 

* 1/2 teaspoon salt 

* 1/2 cup (115g) unsalted butter, softened

* 2 large eggs

* 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice 

* 1 teaspoon grated lime zest 

* i cup of milk

For the icing

* 4 teaspoons of lime (or lemon) jam

* 125 g butter (room temperature)

* 250 g icing sugar

* some drops of green food color (optional)

* Baked lime slices 

* Some mint leaves 

Instructions

The cake 

1. Preheat your oven to 175°C. Grease two 9-inch (23cm) round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Don't get too excited; it's just a dry mixture... yet.

3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and then add the milk and keep beating for another minute. 

4. Beat in lime juice and zest. Don't worry if it seems like a weird combination; trust me, it's like adding a dash of magic to your cake.

5. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, and beat just until combined. Don't overmix; you don't want to end up with a cake that's as dense as a brick.

6.  Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and smooth the tops.  Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pans for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

The frosting

1. Beat the butter, icing sugar in a mixer for about 15 minutes, until light and fluffy.

2. Lower the mixer’s speed and add the green food coloring (optional) beat for another 10 minutes

**Assembly:**

1. Once the cakes are completely cool, plac the on on bottom, add a thick layer of lemon jam, and half the frosting.

2. Place your second cake over them and add the rest of the frosting.

3. Decorate with the baked lime slices and the leaves!