Lavender Cake with Lemon Curd & Raspberry

Have you every tasted the smell of something? It truly leads you to know that your sense of smell is as important to the foodie experience as the taste is. I'm am constantly on a search for the perfect aromatherapy food.

Nothing was as important for my wedding cake as creating the perfect balance between aroma and taste. Rob, an herbalist, and I, a soap maker, work with herbs in our hobbies so they're a big part of our lives. We use them for healing, beauty and peacefulness.

I chose lavender as the aromatic smell and flavor and decided to couple it with two tart tastes in tangy raspberry and tart lemon curd.

Ingredients:

For cake
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1/2 cup canola oil
* 3 egg whites
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 cup milk
* 1/4 cup & 2 Tbsn lavender flowers
* 3/4 cup lemon curd
* 3/4 cup raspberry preserves

For icing
This is for plain white frosting with a hint of lavender. For this cake I made homemade whipped cream with lavender in it.
* 1 cup milk
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup shortening
* 1/2 cup margarine
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

For cake

Heat milk and lavender flowers on stove until hot. Strain and reserve liquid discarding flowers. Let milk cool.



Mix all ingredients, including cooled lavender milk, in a large bowl and, using hand mixer, beat until smooth.



Grease two 9" cake pans and distribute cake batter evenly between them.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool thoroughly.



For icing

In a small saucepan, combine the milk and flour. Cook over medium heat until hot. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. When the milk mixture is cool, add the margarine, shortening, sugar and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer for 10 to 12 minutes, scraping the bottom of the bowl occasionally.

Putting the cake together:

Now cut the first layer of cake evenly so that you have 2 thinner cakes. Spread the lemon curd evenly over the top of the first layer.



Set the next thin layer on top and spread the raspberry preserves over that layer.



If you need to, use a skewer through the center of the cake to hold the layers steady.



Now put the full-sized layer on top and completely frost the cake.



You can touch up the icing before serving after the cake has chilled. Keep frosted cakes refrigerated until 1/2 hour before serving.