Lemonade Layer Cake

Here's a terrfic cake recipe I made this weekend for my mother-in-law's birthday. I think is originally from Cooking Light, but I got it from my friend Marianne. If you happen to have any meyer lemons left from your dear friend in California, you should make it. It's really yummy.

Not sure why you need lemonade concentrate, couldn't you just mix fresh lemon juice with sugar? Oh Food Dr....can you do that? In what proportions?



Lemonade Layer Cake
Cake:
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
6 T butter, softened
1 T grated lemon rind (or more!)
3 T thawed lemonade concentrate
2 t vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1 1/4 cups fat-free buttermilk
Cooking Spray

Frosting:
2 T butter, softened
2 t grated lemon rind (or more more more)
2 t thawed lemonade concentrate
1/2 t vanilla extract
8 oz 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
To prepare cake, place first 5 ingredients ina large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.



Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) cake pans coated with cooking spray (yea, right. I used butter); sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. Bake at 350 derees for 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely.



To prepare frosting, place 2 T butter and the next 4 ingredients (2 T butter through cream cheese) in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended (do not overbeat). Chill 1 hour.



Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. To with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.



Enjoy!