This beauty is layer upon layer of fabulous seasonal flavours dancing across your tongue, finishing with a surprising zing of home made sherbert to cleanse the palate. If you're a fan of lemon curd like me, you’ll want to dive in face first with no thought of who’s watching or how messy this is going to get. As fun as that would be, I suggest you share the pleasure with a group of deserving people. They will love you for it.

Let's get cooking! X Kate

What makes it special:

Layered cake with a fresh combination of flavours and textures.
Features a "fun zing" from homemade sherbert.
Offers a burst of fruity flavour with fresh blueberries.

key ingredients:

Blueberries: The star ingredient, providing a sweet and slightly tart flavour.
Lemon Curd: Adds a tangy and creamy element.
Sherbert: Creates a unique, palate-cleansing sensation.
Meringues: Contributes a little crunch

perfect for

Birthday cake for a crowd
Sharing with a group of friends or family.
Special occasions or celebrations.
Those who enjoy a balance of sweet, tart, and tangy flavours.

RECIPE DETAILS

I VEGI

Serves 8-12 Prep Time 25 mins Cook Time 50 mins

Ingredients

1 x Foundation Cake Recipe (scroll down past the layer ingredients and method)

2 punnets blueberries

1 packet of store-bought mini-meringues

1 lime, zested

Lemon Curd (or use store-bought)

4 egg yolks

½ cup caster sugar

1 lemon, zested

100 ml lemon juice

50 g unsalted butter

Sherbert

3 tsp citric acid

4 Tbsp icing sugar

1 tsp bicarb soda

Method

Burst Blueberries

Place blueberries and 1 Tbsp of water in a saucepan over medium heat.
Heat until blueberries swell, darken in colour and begin to release their juices.
Allow to cool before serving.

Lemon Curd

In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar until combined but not frothy.
Pour whisked yolks into a heavy based saucepan, add butter, juice and zest.
Heat over medium high, stirring continuously until simmering.
Take off heat as soon as you see bubbles appear, still stirring.
Allow to cool and transfer into a sterilised jar to store in fridge.
Lemon curd will keep refrigerated for 2 weeks.

Sherbert

Whisk together all ingredients in a bowl, store in an airtight container until needed.

To Assemble

Start with one layer cake as the base, top evenly with one third of the yoghurt cream then scatter with one third of the burst blueberries.
Layer on the second cake and spoon a further one third of the yoghurt cream and spread evenly, topping with more blueberries.
Top with the final layer of cake.
Dust with sherbert.
Place meringues and scatter with blueberries and lime zest.
Serve with remaining lemon curd, blueberries and yoghurt cream on the side for guests to use as desired.

ingredients Foundation Layer Cake

5 large eggs

400g caster sugar

500ml thickened cream

2 tsp vanilla extract

3¼ cups plain flour

4 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

Vegetable oil or olive oil (for greasing)

Yoghurt Cream

250ml Greek yoghurt

400ml thickened cream

3 Tbsp icing sugar (sifted)

method

Cake

Pre-heat oven to 175°C (conventional) or 155°C (fan-forced).

Prepare two 20cm round cake tins by brushing sides and base with oil using a pastry brush. Line sides and base with baking paper.
Place eggs, sugar, cream and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat at a low speed until sugar has dissolved.
Meanwhile, sieve flour, baking powder and salt into a separate bowl.
Add sifted flour to cream mixture, and beat on low speed until almost combined, being careful not to overbeat.
Scrape down sides of bowl and continue beating for a further 20 - 30 seconds or finish mixing by hand.
Pour cake mixture evenly between the two cake tins. (For an even result, it is a good idea to measure the weight going into each tin).
Gently push batter into sides of tin to remove any air bubbles and flatten the surface.
Place in oven and bake for 50 minutes -1 hour until cakes are golden, spring back when touched and the edges of the cakes pull away from the sides of the pan.
Remove cakes from oven and allow to sit for 10 - 15 minutes.
Turn out cakes and gently wrap in clingwrap whilst still warm to trap steam to ensure a moist cake.
Place in fridge overnight if planning to use the next day, or store in the freezer until required (defrost cake in fridge overnight prior to using).

Yoghurt cream

Start a day ahead

Whip together all ingredients for 5 minutes or until soft peaks form.
Store in fridge overnight to firm up before using in cakes.

Slicing cake layers

Slice each cake horizontally into two even layers, set aside for assembly.

Note: Only 3 layers of cake are used in this recipe, but feel free to add another layer. You’ll just need to up the filling amounts also.

Make Ahead

Cakes can be made two weeks in advance and stored, wrapped, in the freezer. Defrost in fridge overnight before using.

Yoghurt cream can be made two days in advance.

COOK’S NOTES

+ It is easier to slice a cold cake than a freshly baked cake. Once cold, cakes are more stable, so refrigerating the cake overnight not only frees up your time but makes the job of cutting them easier too.

+ Use a long serrated knife to cut the cakes into layers.

+To ensure the cake layers are sliced evenly, measure height of cake and mark with toothpicks where you plan to cut into the cakes. Toothpicks are an easy way to set a guide for your knife.

Burst Blueberry, Sherbert and Lemon Curd Layer Cake