An easy to make moist lemon raspberry cake for any occasion. Sweet raspberries and bright lemon flavor this easy-to-make sheet cake. Fresh raspberries and lemon top the buttercream frosting, creating an effortlessly beautiful dessert.
one layer, piece of cake.
Sheet cakes and single layer cakes are a wonderful alternative to layered cakes because they are easy. You don't have to be a gifted baker to pull off a stunning cake. This single layer lemon raspberry cake is the best of both worlds.
how do I make lemon raspberry cake?
The batter is very easy to make, and when it comes out of the oven, there are no fussy layers to deal with. Just one single, slathering of frosting. And the decorating? Simple. Just use some fresh raspberry and lemon garnishments to decorate the top for a beautiful finish.
what ingredients do I need?
Basic cake ingredients that are likely already in your pantry, like flour, sugar, baking soda along with the typical wet ingredients like oil, eggs, and vanilla. Sour cream and lemon juice are added to the batter for additional flavor and to aid in rising with the baking soda, for a tender cake crumb. And of course, the star ingredient: raspberries. Fresh or frozen, even canned will work. (I told you it was easy!)
The frosting is just a combination of butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar creamed together with a splash of cream until light and fluffy.
If you are looking for an easy way to elevate the look and style of the cake, consider using fresh raspberries and lemon wedges to decorate. Arrange them in a random, whimsical pattern or try outlining the edges for a cleaner look.
Enjoy this simple yet pretty dessert, for any occasion at all.
Lemon Raspberry Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 1/2 cups raspberries pureed; fresh, frozen or canned,
- 2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 large egg whites
- 1 cup sour cream
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tbsp beet juice for color (optional)
For the Icing
- 1 stick salted butter softened
- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla
Optional Garnishments
- fresh whole raspberries
- thinly sliced lemon slices
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease and flour a 13x9 inch pan (or line with parchment paper.) See footnote for how to grease and flour a pan.
- Puree 1 1/2 cups raspberries, set aside. If desired, strain pureed raspberries through a mesh strainer to avoid seeds in the cake, although this is not a necessary step.
- In a large bowl, combine 2 3/4 cups flour, 1 2/3 cups sugar, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt.
- In the same bowl, add 4 large egg whites, 1 cup sour cream, 3/4 cup vegetable oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice, and 1 tsp vanilla; stir until fully combined.
- Fold in the 1 1/2 cups pureed raspberries until combined. For a more vibrant "raspberry" color, add a tablespoon of beet juice for a natural boost in color, or your favorite deep red food coloring.
- Pour batter evenly into greased and floured 13x9 inch pan.
- Bake in a 350 degree oven for 22-35 minutes, until center springs back from touch, or toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool completely before frosting.
For the Frosting
- Add one stick of butter, completely softened, to a bowl. Add 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream, and 1 tsp vanilla.
- Using an electric mixer (or a whisk by hand-but you'll need to use some elbow grease) beat the frosting ingredients until fluffy, about 2 minutes by mixer or 5 minutes by hand whisk.
- Wait until cake is completely cooled to frost. Store frosting at room temperature until ready to frost the cake. Wait until the cake is fully cooled to avoid frosting runoff.
- If desired, decorate the cake with fresh raspberries and sliced lemons.
Notes
- measure 1 1/2 cups raspberries before pureeing, it may look like less after pureeing
- beet juice is not a necessary ingredient, it's just for color; but any coloring ingredient is fine although not necessary
- oil is used over butter for a moister cake
- if desired, strain the seeds out of the pureed raspberries; also not necessary however
- to grease and flour pan, run a light layer of butter over bottom and sides of pan, dust with flour and tap excess out.
- only cook the cake long enough to get the center to spring back (or toothpick to come out clean), any longer can deplete the moisture from the cake
- wait until completely cooled to frost, with room temperature frosting
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