Travelling Cakes

Making a beautiful cake is only half the battle.  

The real challenge is getting it to your in-laws in one piece!

The solution: Slab cakes.  

Over and above their durability in transit, there’s a lot to love about slab cakes: They feed a crowd, are easy to slice and you can serve it right out of the pan!

Given all these perks, I’m surprised I haven’t gone slab cake mad ages ago!   So I consider this month’s citrus and vanilla cake a promising start to the rest of my life! 

This single-layer, made-for-a-crowd cake is baked in a 33 x 23 x 5 cm  pan, and each bite is a delightful reminder that summer is almost here. 

I recommend cake flour instead of all-purpose, and taking care not to overbake the cake, especially since it’ll fully cool in the pan. 

The cooled cake is drizzled with a nostalgic nod and a few tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk before it’s slathered with cream cheese frosting.    

Highly shareable, this is a cake that captures everyone's good vibes! 

Simply delicious. 

For the cake:

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour 
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 10 Tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 Tbsp citrus zest
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup low-fat buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt, at room temperature
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice

For the frosting:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 500 ml full fat cream cheese, cool room temperature
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp lemon zest
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice

1. Whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Combine sugar and zest in a food processor and pulse for 1 minute. 
3. Beat butter and lemon-sugar in a large mixer bowl at medium speed until light and fluffy; 
4. Beat in vanilla. 
5. Add eggs one at a time and beat until combined. Combine buttermilk, Greek yogurt and citrus juice in a small bowl. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk mixture (begin and end with flour mixture).
6. Spoon batter into prepared baking pan and smooth.
7. Tap pan sharply to reduce air bubbles. Bake for 24 to 26 minutes, until the top and edges are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Cool cake completely in pan on a wire rack.
9. Finally, for the frosting, beat butter, cream cheese, and salt in a large mixer bowl on medium speed until smooth. Beat in lemon zest and vanilla. Mix in powdered sugar on low speed 1 cup at a time until fully incorporated. Add lemon juice and mix until smooth.
10. Spoon condense milk (optional) and then smear frosting over cooled cake.
11. Impress and enjoy!