Lemon Cake with Strawberry Buttercream

 
This Lemon Cake with Strawberry Buttercream is not only a delicious cake but it is also a surprise cake!  Creating a cake with a surprise on the inside is a fun way to delight your family!  The delicious flavors of strawberry buttercream and lemon cake are sure to make this your new favorite cake! If you are looking for more great Cake Recipes check these out!
Lemon Cake
This lemon cake is flavored with lemon zest and lemon extract. I tried to keep it at all lemon juice and zest but found that I needed to take 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to achieve the lemony flavor and that ended up changing the consistency of the cake. It was not bad just not as beautifully tall and aerated as I prefer. I also made this lemon cake a subtle lemon flavor.

If you want a bigger punch taste your batter before baking! You can add more lemon extract to fit your preference.
If you are in a pinch and dont have lemon extract you can use fresh lemon juice. Here is a simple equivalency
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 12 teaspoon lemon extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest 1 teaspoon lemon extract
There is lemon zest and lemon extract in this cake. For this recipe specifically you would use 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice instead of lemon extract which is about 1 medium lemon.
I also use cake flour. If you dont happen to have any you can make your own! Homemade Cake Flour Recipe 
How to Make Lemon Surprise Cake
Begin by preparing the lemon cakes. This is a big recipe as you are making 4 full layers.
Fill each pan about a 13 way full and no more than 12 way full.
Bake according to recipe instructions seen below.
Once cakes have baked and cooled level each cake to the same height.
Using your round cookie cutter remove the center portion on two cake layers. This will hold our strawberries once the cake is assembled. and feel free to make a trifle with the cutout sections! You can also use a small side plate as a guideline for removing the