Lemon Magic Cake, as good as everyone says??

Magic Cake, it’s all over social media. Surely you’ve seen it! One batter gives you a cake with 3 distinct layers – spongy on top, custardy in the middle, and cakey on the bottom. First it was a plain vanilla cake, then there was chocolate, and lately I’ve seen many more variations.

Quite a while ago I make the chocolate variation. Let’s just say the family didn’t request to have it made again!

But recently I came across a lemon version from Jo Cooks and thought it was worth trying.

I read through the comments on her post and took some of them on board. Jo also gives some good tips in her post. And you know what I like most about Jo’s recipes? She gives the ingredient measurements in metric and imperial 🙂 But I still had to convert the oven temperature and the size of the baking dish.

So, to save you the trouble of working out conversions, I have added a new page to my blog – Cooking Conversion Chart – which you can find on the menu across the top of the page. I found this chart on Simply Delicious.

Here is the slightly adjusted recipe that I used:

• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 125g butter, melted
• 3/4 cup plain (all purpose) flour
• 1 1/2 cup milk, lukewarm
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• zest from one lemon
• icing (powdered) sugar for dusting the cake

Preheat the oven to 165C degrees, and line a 20x20cm baking dish with baking paper.You could grease the dish, but the paper makes it easier to get out.

Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until light. Add butter and vanilla extract and continue beating for another minute or two after which you can add the flour and mix it in until fully incorporated.

Add lemon juice and lemon zest then slowly start adding the milk and beat until everything is well mixed together. Add the stiffly beaten egg whites, a third at a time and gently fold them in using a spatula or a whisk, repeat until all egg whites are folded in, but there should still be white bits of egg whites floating in the batter.

Pour batter into baking dish and bake for 40 to 70 minutes or until the top is lightly golden and the cake is firm to the touch. The baking time could vary greatly depending on the oven, so take a peek at around 40 minutes and see how it looks.

Dust with icing sugar before serving.

As suggested, I checked my cake after 40 minutes, but it was still a little jiggly. Jo says that jiggly is not what you want with this cake 😉 So I cooked it for another 15 minutes. I also moved it to a lower shelf in my oven as it was already golden on top. It should probably have been on the lower shelf from the start.

It’s a bit more golden than Jo’s.

Of course, I couldn’t wait for it to cool completely, but I did give it a bit of cooling time before serving some up

As you can see, there are certainly not 3 distinct layers to my cake. Maybe it needed less cooking time? But it still looks very appetising.

And how does it taste? Well, I thought it was a little too eggy. I am very pleased that I increased the original recipe’s lemon amount, though. Even with 1/2 cup of lemon juice it’s only just lemony for me.

I did eat both of these pieces of cake to make sure of my findings. This cake research is a tough job 😉

Will I make any Magic Cake versions again? I think not. The two I have cooked have not made me say “wow!” If I was somehow tempted to make any more magic cake versions, I would try a slightly lower temperature, use the lower shelf of the oven from the start of cooking, and use 1 less egg to see if that made a difference to the ‘eggy’ taste.

In fact, this lemon version is similar to my grandmother’s Lemon Delicious Pudding which was my favourite growing up, and I still make it regularly now. And we like that better. Next time I make it, I’ll share the recipe with you and you can decide.

Has Magic Cake worked for you?

Linking up with:

*Table and Hearth                  * I Should be Mopping the Floor – Inspiration Monday

*The Pin Junkie                        *Create With Joy – Inspire Me Monday

*Great Idea Thursdays             * Kitchen Fun With my 3 Sons – Crafty Friday

*Betty Cozy Corner                    *It’s Overflowing – Share Your Creativity

*The Interior Frugalista               *Shoestring Elegance – What to do Weekends

*Designs by Gollum                     *Three Kids and a Fish – Making Memories Mondays

*Share Your Cup Thursday          *Rustic and Refined – Table It Link Party

*Natasha in Oz                             *Sew Crafty Angel – Wake up Wednesday

*A Tray of Bliss

Julie’s Lifestyle – Cooking and Crafting with J and J