It’s springtime (well, kind of…) here in Minneapolis. The sun is bright, the sky is blue, and it’s a balmy 45 degrees 🙂 The funny thing about Minnesotans is that when it’s 45 degrees in the fall, we turn up the heat, get out the sweaters and start hibernating for the winter. When it’s 45 degrees in the spring, we open the windows, put down the convertible top, and start thinking about planting our gardens. I love spring. I’m ready to put away my recipes for heavy soups and comfort foods, and bring out the fresh veggies, citrus fruits and bright, fresh flavors. This year for Easter, I made an incredibly decadent, fresh, lemony layer cake, constructed of two layers of Meyer lemon cake and one layer of creamy cheesecake, covered in Meyer Lemon cream cheese frosting. Where did I find this recipe? Pinterest of course!
This dessert is made with Meyer Lemons. What exactly are Meyer Lemons? They are a soft skinned cross between a regular lemon and a mandarin orange. The hint of orange gives these delicate lemons a mild flavor, perfect for flavoring this dessert. They look pretty too. I almost missed them at my grocery store because they had taken on a beautiful light orange hue instead of bright yellow.
The recipe is long, and pretty involved, but worth every minute spent! Out of courtesy to the original recipe developer, I’m going to link to the original recipe on Recipe Girl’s blog here: Meyer Lemon Cheesecake Layer Cake. Thank you Recipe Girl for the AMAZING recipe! Tiffany took photos as I baked this amazing cake. It was definitely a favorite and I will be making it again in the future!
Using the cheesecake and cake layer theme, there are so many variations to this particular cake.
Try:
- Raspberry puree as the filling in between the layers as opposed to frosting
- Lemon cheesecake and chocolate cake layers
- Plain cheesecake and red velvet cake layers
- Plain cheesecake, yellow cake layers with lemon curd filling
- Chocolate chip cheesecake with chocolate cake layers and dark chocolate ganache, raspberry garnish
The Simple Elements 
So pretty!
Thank you!!
Thank you SO SO much for linking to my recipe and not posting the actual recipe here. It is much appreciated. And it looks like yours turned out beautiful! Glad you enjoyed 🙂
Thank you so much! It was a really fun cake to make and my family LOVED it. Thank you for the recipe inspiration, I love browsing your blog and your recipes are fabulous!