Never, ever turn me loose in a bookstore. Ever. Because I walk out of there with things like The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free. It was at Half Price Books…and my roommate showed it to me. How could I not buy it?
Now, her birthday was coming up and I had every intention of making a gluten-free peanut butter chocolate cheesecake for her. But as I was reading off some of the recipes in this book, she fell in love with the lemon chiffon cake. So, when she said, “That’s what I want for my birthday!” I ditched the cheesecake idea and made her what she wanted.
Thank you Cake Mix Doctor for this recipe. While it seemed a bit daunting…in the end it all came together beautifully.
Recipe: Gluten-Free Lemon Lover’s Chiffon Cake
Servings: 10-12
Time: Prep 30 minutes; Bake 18-22 minutes
Ingredients for cake:
- Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pans
- 2 teaspoons rice flour, for dusting the pans
- 1 extra large or 2 small lemons
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 package (15 ounces) yellow gluten-free cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Yellow Cake Mix)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup orange juice (fresh or from a carton)
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
For the filling and lemon whipped cream frosting:
- 1 jar (10 ounces) gluten-free lemon curd (I used Dickenson’s)
- 1 cup heavy (whipping) cream, chilled
- 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar
Directions:
Make the cake: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist two 9-inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray, then dust with the rice flour. Shake out the excess rice flour and set the pans aside.
Rinse and pat dry the lemon or lemons with paper towels, then grate the yellow zest onto a small plate. Measure 2 teaspoons for the cake batter and place it in a large mixing bowl. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice through a fine sieve, discarding the seeds. Measure 1/4 cup of lemon juice, pour it into the mixing bowl with the zest, and set the bowl aside.
Separate the eggs, placing the whites in another large mixing bowl and the yolks in the mixing bowl with the lemon zest and juice. Beat the whites with an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form, 3 to 4 minutes. Set the beaten egg whites aside.
Place the cake mix, sugar, orange juice, and oil in the bowl with the egg yolks and lemon and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are just incorporated, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the batter until smooth, 1 to 1-1/2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. Using a rubber spatula and giving the bowl quarter turns, gently fold the egg whites into the batter until no traces of whites remain and the batter has lightened. Divide the batter evenly between the 2 prepared cake pans, smoothing the tops with the rubber spatula. Place the pans in the oven side by side. Place a large mixing bowl and electric mixer beaters in the refrigerator to chill.
Bake the cake layers until they are golden brown and the tops spring back when lightly pressed with a finger, 18-22 minutes. Transfer the cake pans to wire racks and let the cake layers cool for 5 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of each cake layer and give the pans a good shake to loosen the cakes. Invert each layer onto a wire rack, then invert it again onto another rack so that the layers are right side up. Let the layers cool completely, about 20 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, make the filling and frosting. Measure 2/3 cup of lemon curd for the filling and set it aside in a small microwave-safe glass bowl. Pour the cream into the chilled mixing bowl. Using the refrigerated mixer beaters, beat the cream with an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form, 3 minutes. Fold in the confectioners’ sugar and 1/4 cup lemon curd. Beat again at low speed until the lemon curd is incorporated, 30 seconds. Refrigerate the frosting until ready to use.
To assemble the cake, place the glass bowl with the lemon curd for the filling into the microwave on high power for 10 seconds to warm it. Transfer one cake layer, right side up, to a serving plate. Spread the top with the warmed lemon curd. Place the second layer, right side up, on top of the first and frost the top and side of the cake with the lemon whipped cream frosting. Refrigerate the cake until time to serve.
~*~*~
I couldn’t have been happier with the way this recipe turned out. It baked up beautifully. The layers easily came out of the prepared pans. They were light and fluffy. The filling was really good. The frosting wasn’t too heavy (much preferred as I am not a frosting or icing person!). And the birthday girl was totally thrilled with the end result. She said it was her favorite birthday cake…EVER! Just the right amount of citrus without overpowering the dessert. Cake perfection.
It seems daunting, but honestly, this recipe was easy to prepare and really, really delicious. Go ahead…try it.
The Celiathlete 