YOU CAN HAVE YOUR CAKE AND DRINK IT TOO – WITH THIS MOJITO INSPIRED DESSERT

As a professional pastry chef, I feel a bit ashamed for admitting that there is a time and place for ingredients that come in a box with vibrant food coloring. Things like, well, Jell-O. What I’m not ashamed to say is, many of us enjoy the taste of nostalgia and nothing beats the flavor of a childhood summer. It’s my little dirty secret in this cake recipe and happens to be my most requested dessert every birthday. From strawberry to lime, the flavor is unbeatable and yields the most moist delicious cake that cuts clean and freezes like a dream.

For this particular occasion, my husband’s birthday, I picked a fresh batch of mint and was inspired by our love for the Cuban muddled citrus libation. So, I surprised him with a key lime mojito layer cake that he now claims is his absolute favorite. I hope this recipe can bring the same joy to one of your loved ones and their special event.

Chef’s Notes

*Sigh* You know, it’s okay to use box cake mix every once in a while. I’m not saying you should, but if you must, then I support it 100%. In fact, it has made this recipe shine in the past when I was in a pinch. It’s a quick drop in replacement for the dries, just make sure to use white or yellow mix. I promise, I won’t tell.

Print Recipe

Mojito Key Lime Birthday Cake

Bryan's favorite and will be yours too

Course

Dessert

Cuisine

American Regional

Keyword

cakes, Citrus, Cocktail, dessert, Key Lime, mint, mojito

Prep Time

1 hr

Cook Time

45 mins

Servings

9" Layer Cake

Ingredients

For the Cake

• 2 cups Cake Flour or AP Flour I blend both
• 2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1/2 c Neutral Oil or Melted Butter 50/50 is always a good call
• 1 1/3 c Sugar
• 4 lrg Eggs
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 c Lime Juice I use a blend of Lemon, Lime, and Orange juice
• 1/2 c Milk You can cut this back a little bit if you choose to use water or more juice
• 3 oz Lime Jello Mix (1 box)

For the Mojito Syrup

• 1 cup Cane Sugar
• 1/2 cup Freshly Squeezed Key Lime Juice Regular lime works great
• 1/4 cup Water
• 1 tsp Lime Zest, extra fine
• 2 tbls Mint Leaves

For the Frosting

• 1/4 cup Cold Water
• 2 tsp Unflavored Gelatin
• 3 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
• 3 tbls Powdered Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice
• 4 oz Cool Whip or Pre-whipped Rich's Bettercreme Make sure it is slacked in the fridge
• 5 oz Jarred Lemon Curd We used T.N. Dickinson's

Course Dessert Cuisine American Regional Keyword cakes, Citrus, Cocktail, dessert, Key Lime, mint, mojito Prep Time 1 hr Cook Time 45 mins Servings 9" Layer Cake Ingredients For the Cake 2 cups Cake Flour or AP Flour I blend both 2 tsp Baking Powder 1/8 tsp Salt 1/2 c Neutral Oil or Melted Butter 50/50 is always a good call 1 1/3 c Sugar 4 lrg Eggs 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract 1/2 c Lime Juice I use a blend of Lemon, Lime, and Orange juice 1/2 c Milk You can cut this back a little bit if you choose to use water or more juice 3 oz Lime Jello Mix (1 box) For the Mojito Syrup 1 cup Cane Sugar 1/2 cup Freshly Squeezed Key Lime Juice Regular lime works great 1/4 cup Water 1 tsp Lime Zest, extra fine 2 tbls Mint Leaves For the Frosting 1/4 cup Cold Water 2 tsp Unflavored Gelatin 3 cups Heavy Whipping Cream 3 tbls Powdered Sugar 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract 2 tsp Lemon Juice 4 oz Cool Whip or Pre-whipped Rich's Bettercreme Make sure it is slacked in the fridge 5 oz Jarred Lemon Curd We used T.N. Dickinson's

Instructions

Baking the Cakes

1. Preheat oven to 350f degrees. For for a four layer cake, use two 8-9-inch round cake pans. Spray with pan spray and line with parchment. Spray additional on the parchment inside the pan. (you also have the option to bake in sheet trays for creating individual layers)
2. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together two times. Add lime jello packet. Set aside.
3. Combine oil/butter and sugar in a mixing bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Allow to beat together at medium speed for 2-4 mins. until light.
4. Reduce speed to medium/low and add eggs in one at a time until well blended. Add vanilla and scrape down.
5. Reduce to low speed. Add the remainder of the cake ingredients alternating between dries and liquids until completely incorporated and smooth. Distribute equally between both pans for baking 2-4 layers. For three layers, divide batter 1/3 in one pan and 2/3 into another.
6. Bake for 30-40 mins, rotating halfway. To test the cake for doneness, insert a toothpick or gently press the centers to see if they spring back. You may need to bake an additional 5-10 mins depending on the oven or for single deep pan.
7. Remove the pans and transfer them to a cooling rack allowing the cakes to cool in them for at least 15 mins. Once cooled, invert them onto the rack and remove their parchments.
8. Wrap the cakes in plastic and transfer them to the refrigerator allowing them to cool for at least one hour before icing.

For the Syrup

1. Add all ingredients into a small sauce pot and bring to a gentle boil. Strain out mint leaves and transfer syrup into a squeeze bottle. If the tip is small, you may need to trim it to allow the zest to come through, otherwise, strain the zest or snip the tip.

For the Icing

1. Chill mixing bowl and beaters for at least 10 mins before using. In a microwave safe dish, add the water and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Allow to soften and absorb for 3 mins. Microwave for 30 second intervals for 1-2 mins, stirring between until gelatin is dissolved. Set aside and allow to come back to body temperature for about 10 mins.
2. Remove bowl and beaters. Add heavy whipping cream, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice and set back on the stand mixer. Begin whipping cream at medium/high speed until cream is at super soft peaks or beat marks begin to show.
3. Stream in gelatin mixture to cream, beat until stiff peaks form. If the cream still feels a bit unstable, add 1 tsp of dream whip cream stabilizer. Do not over whip, if so, add some extra heavy cream and re-whip. It will come back to medium peak.
4. Fold in cool whip/bettercreme into whipped fresh cream until smooth. Fold in lemon curd to taste. Cover and transfer to fridge. Until ready to use, you will want to use it immediately.

To Assemble Cake

1. Remove cakes from plastic wrap. Cut cakes horizontally to create three-four layers. If cake is domed, trim off the extra to make flat layers. Place one cake layer onto a cardboard round or flat plate. If you have a lazy susan or cake turner, moisten a paper towel and place it in between the plate and the top of the turner to create friction so your cardboard/plate will not shift.
2. Drizzle just enough syrup onto the layer to keep the layers moist, approx 1/4 of the syrup in the bottle. Remove frosting from the fridge, using a rubber spatula, place a large dollop of frosting onto the center of the cake layer. Using an offset or straight icing spatula, quickly spread the icing across the cake layer, beginning from the center, outward until you reach just about 1/4 inch from the outer edges. Repeat this until all layers are complete and you have about 1/3 of the icing left.
3. Finish icing the outside of the cake starting from the bottom to the top in a straight angle. Smooth the top with horizontal strokes. There are lots of cake decorating techniques you can find on youtube that will help you through this process. Otherwise, feel free to ice the cake however you feel, creatively.
4. To garnish, place mint leaves and thin slices of lime along the outside and tops of the cake. Cover with a hard cake dome and refrigerate for at least 1hr-overnight before serving. Cake freezes so well and tastes just like key lime ice cream if you happen to have any leftovers.