Olive Garden Copycat Lemon Cream Cake
Olive Garden's most popular (and most delicious) cake recipe is yours. Make this moist lemon cake at home, and see for yourself how easy it is!
This Olive Garden Copycat Lemon Cream Cake recipe is the perfect dessert recipe to complete a home-cooked meal. The tall sponge cake is impressive in presentation. The cake itself is light and airy with a touch of lemon flavor. The lemon flavor is fresh, without overwhelming your palate. Layers of cake are kept together by layers of fluffy lemon cream filling.
This easy lemon cake recipe is great to serve at a party or gathering. Whenever you have a craving for a restaurant quality dessert, this is the perfect recipe to try. You'll be thinking about this delicious cake long after you and your guests have finished off the very last piece.
Serves12
Chilling Time30 min
Cooking Time1 hr
Cooking Vessel Size10-inch Straight-Sized Tube Pan
Ingredients
- 6 eggs, separated
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoon lemon zest, divided*
- 1 3/4 cup cake flour**
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups powdered sguar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 cup powdered sugar for garnish
- Lemon slices for garnish
Instructions
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Have a 10-inch straight sided tube pan ready but ungreased.
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Separate eggs, setting aside the yolks, and whip the whites in an electric mixer until foamy. Slowly add the sugar and cream of tarter and continue to whip on high until the beater leaves distinct tracks and glossy, stiff peaks form, about 3 minutes. Set aside.
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Combine water, vegetable oil, and 1 tablespoon of the lemon zest with the reserved egg yolks.
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In a large bowl, place the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and stir with a whisk or fork to combine well.
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Using an electric mixer, begin by mixing the wet ingredients until combined, then slowly add the dry ingredients with the machine running. Stop and scrape down the sides completely and continue until everything is well mixed.
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Fold together the batter with the egg white mixture until there are no large swirls of the yellow egg mixture it does not have to be completely mixed.
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Spoon batter into the cake pan and bake for 1 hour, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Immediately turn the cake in the pan upside down and either rest it on the pans tabs or set it on top of a bottle neck until completely cool, about an hour.***
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While cake is cooling, prepare the filling: Use an electric mixer to whip the cream to firm peaks. In another bowl, whip the cream cheese until it is smooth. Add the lemon juice and zest, then slowly add the powdered sugar until completely mixed. Fold together the cream cheese mixture with the whipped cream and chill 30 minutes before assembling the cake.
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When cake has cooled, use a table knife to run around the edges and the tube to loosen the cake.
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Then tip it out onto a large plate.
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Use a serrated knife to cut the cake horizontally into 3 layers.
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Spread the filling between the layers and chill the cake.
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Before serving, top the cake with sifted powdered sugar and lemon slices.
Notes
*It is important to notice that when a recipe says “divided” it means you will use this amount in total but in more than one step. For the lemon, always remove the zest first, then squeeze and measure the juice.
**Cake Flour is a specially milled white wheat flour and is available in the baking aisle of the supermarket. Regular, all purpose flour cannot be successfully substituted for a light cake such as this one.
***This cake requires a special pan if it is to be assembled as directed – the 10-inch straight sided tube pan is usually called “an angel food cake pan” because that was its original use. The straight sides make it easiest to re assemble after it is filled. You could make this in a bundt pan, but will look different and the top layer will be more likely to move when you cut it into slices.
Watch this video to learn how to separate an egg:
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asoley 3922608
Dec 19, 2016
I feel like this is one of those recipes you make when you want to impress everyone you know. I'm scared to try something so fancy but it can't be that hard, right?
jamieegee
Jan 15, 2016
Lemon desserts are my favorite because they're not usually overwhelmingly sweet or rich. This cake was no exception! Fresh and light, while still satisfying my sweet tooth? What more could I ask for?
Julia L
Apr 17, 2015
This cake was light and refreshing. The lemon wasn't overpowering but I could definitely taste it. The whipped topping was a little too wet for me - I tend to like something more dense. Otherwise, this cake was great!
Dr Oz
Apr 17, 2015
This cake tastes like home baked and that's what I love about it. It's not too sweet and has just the right amount of lemon in it. It's a great cake to bring to a family party.
Zimm102090
Apr 17, 2015
I really liked this recipe! It wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be, which was great! It had a really lovely lemon flavor and I loved the whipped topping. The cake had a bit denser of a crumb than I'd like, but it was still good.
Emily Michelle
Apr 17, 2015
This was really good! The lemon flavor was pretty strong (in a good way) and the frosting was tasty. I would definitely eat this again!
caitlinmm
Apr 17, 2015
I loved this cake! The flavor was perfect, and it had the perfect balance of frosting and cake. It wasn't close to the Olive Garden dessert, however, which is more of a crumb cake with some sort of lemon Mascarpone filling, I think. Still, it's a recipe worth making!
CreativityGoddess
Apr 16, 2015
This cake was so refreshing! The lemon flavor wasn't overpowering and the fresh whipped topping made for a great finishing touch. I'd definitely make this cake again, especially for special occasions.
lucreciaskellenger 3583655
May 15, 2014
Very good recipe, my husband won't eat because he don't like cream cheese, but kids and I loved it.
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