Forget what you know about traditional baking – here, Juliet Sear utilises the modern magic of an air fryer to conjure a beautifully light blueberry lemon cake
“This delicate lemon and blueberry sponge is light in texture and a breeze to make. I’ve added a quick luscious buttercream dotted with jam to add flavour and colour.
Using a toothed scraper is a fab fast way to elevate your cakes, as the texture and colour will hide any imperfections, so you don’t have to worry about being super-neat with this cake. Make sure all the ingredients are room temperature.”
Makes 15cm (6In) 2-Layer Round Cake (Serves 8–10)
Ingredients
For the sponge
• 135g softened butter, plus extra for greasing
• 100g full-fat Greek yoghurt, plus extra to serve
• 3 medium eggs
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon, plus extra zest to decorate
• 150g self-raising flour
• 135g golden caster sugar
• 150g blueberries, plus extra to serve
For the buttercream
• 250g unsalted butter, softened
• 500g icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• A little milk, to loosen
• 3 tbsp blueberry jam
Method
1 Grease and line two 15cm (6in) round cake tins, or use silicone moulds.
2 Start by making the sponge. Put the butter, yoghurt, eggs, lemon zest and juice, flour and sugar in a large bowl. Mix briefly with an electric whisk until the batter just comes together. Divide half the batter equally between the prepared tins. Sprinkle over half the blueberries, then top with the remaining batter. Sprinkle over the remaining blueberries.
3 Preheat the air fryer to 140°C. Bake for 25–30 minutes until risen, golden and slightly shrinking away from the sides. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.
4 Cool in the tins for 10–15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Trim the tops of the cakes to level them, if needed.
5 To make the buttercream, beat the butter until smooth and creamy, then gradually beat in the icing sugar and vanilla until you have a light, smooth and fluffy buttercream. Loosen with a little milk to make it easier to spread but make sure it still holds its shape.
6 Place one cake onto a plate or stand and spread over about 150g of buttercream. Make a well in the middle with a palette knife, pushing the buttercream out to the edge, and fill the middle with 2 tablespoons of the jam. Place the second cake on top and cover the top and sides of both cakes with the remaining buttercream, using a palette knife to spread it around.
7 Using the tip of a knife or the back of a teaspoon, splodge dots of the remaining jam around the sides and dot over the top, then using a toothed scraper, drag around the outside to sweep the jam through. Use the tip of a palette knife or the handle of a teaspoon to make a circular swirl over the top of the cake to add a spiral design and sweep the jam through the icing.
Recipe courtesy of Juliet Sear, extracted from Air Fryer Baking Magic.
