Lemon Chiffon Cake

I love making cakes from scratch, but the majority of the time I find myself buying a cake mix and taking the easy way out. I made this lemon chiffon cake last weekend along with my white chocolate cheesecake; I wanted to offer another dessert, something non-chocolate. Lemon is one of the favorite flavors in our house and the fact that I had a couple of lemons in the fridge waiting to be used made this decision easy.

I have not made many chiffon cakes in my lifetime, but I liked how nice and light this cake turned out. I thought it was similar to an angel food cake, but with a little more body to it. The lemon flavor was a perfect flavor for this type of cake, plus the tangy flavor of the lemon frosting made the lemon lovers in our house happy campers.

The one thing that I did not like about the cake was the crumbs when trying to frost it. While spreading the frosting I kept picking up crumbs and they were sticking in the frosting. Even though I tried to do a light layer of frosting to hold in the crumbs and then place more frosting over the thin layer the crumbs still showed through. So it may have not been the most elegant cake, but it made up for it in taste.

Lemon Chiffon Cake
Ingredients
7 eggs, separated
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup oil
4 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Lemon Frosting:
1/3 cup butter, softened
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
4 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
Dash salt
Directions:
1. Place egg whites in a large bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks, water, lemon juice, water, oil, lemon peel, and vanilla; add to dry ingredients and beat until well blended. Add cream of tartar to egg whites; beat on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter.
3. Gently spoon into an ungreased 10 inch tube. Cut through batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake on the lowest oven rack at 325 degree F for 50 to 55 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched. Immediately invert pan; cool completely, about 1 hour.
4. Run a knife around side and center tube of pan. Remove cake to a serving plate. Spread over top of cake, allowing frosting to drape down the sides.