Layered Key Lime Cake Recipe
layered key lime cake
As much as we love pie, no one ever said, "Let them eat pie." With that in mind, we've morphed one of our favorite pies into a killer cake, as is the case with this Key Lime Cake Recipe, a moist and delicious cake that has all the flavors of a Key Lime Pie. This Key Lime Cake hits the perfect balance between sweet and tart, with luscious layers (4 in all!) encased in key lime cream cheese frosting and coated in a graham cracker crumble. This one really takes the cake.
layered key lime cake
serves 10-12
ingredients
Key Lime Cake- 2½ cups flour
- 1 tsp lime zest
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¾ cup butter, room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup frozen limeade concentrate
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 3 tbsp fresh key lime juice
- 1¼ cups graham cracker crumbs
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- Pinch kosher salt
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- 1 (8oz) package cream cheese
- ¾ cup butter, room temperature
- 2 tbsp key lime juice
- 2 tbsp limeade concentrate
- 1 tsp lime zest
- 6½ cups icing sugar
directions
- For the key lime cake, preheat oven to 350ºF. Coat two 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick cooking spray. In a small bowl, combine flour, lime zest, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium speed, until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Mix in vanilla and limeade concentrate. In a small bowl, combine buttermilk and key lime juice. Alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk mixture to mixer, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix just until combined. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans and bake 28-30 minutes, until slightly golden and cooked through.
- Cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing and cool completely before frosting. Once layers have cooled, slice each cake in half for a total of 4 layers.
- For the graham cracker crumble, preheat oven to 350ºF. In a medium bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, salt and melted butter. Spread mixture evenly on a baking sheet covered with parchment. Bake for 8 minutes, stir and bake 4 minutes more. Cool completely before assembling cake.
- For the frosting, in an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until well combined. On low speed, add key lime juice, limeade concentrate, lime zest and icing sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for 30 seconds on medium speed until smooth and creamy.
- To assemble the cake, place 1 layer on a serving plate and spread with ½ cup frosting and sprinkle ¼ cup graham crumbs over the frosting. Top with a second layer and repeat with ½ cup frosting and ¼ cup graham crumbs. Place third layer on top and repeat. Top with final cake layer and spread remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake. Use the remaining graham cracker crumble to cover the sides of the cake.
“But how will I eat cake if my head is over there, and my hands are over here?”
