Key Lime Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting..ohh and more Lime

Now, for those of you who are not sure what a key lime is. It is a lime that is about the size of a ping ping ball.

Yes they are yummy, but boy are they small so you really need a lot of them. Thankfully our neighbor has a lime tree that he said I can pick from anytime. It isn’t a key lime, but you know what..the cake turns out so beautifully that really, who cares?

Key Lime Pound Cake with Key Lime Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients:

  • 4 sticks butter, that’s 1 pound, room temperature
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 6 large eggs, room temperature
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup fresh key lime juice
  • 1/4 cup evaporated milk, (I always keep a good number of those small, 5 ounce cans in my pantry.)
  • 4 teaspoons key lime zest, minced
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 300°.
  2. Cover inside of 10 inch tube pan with non-stick spray. My pan is 10 1/2″ and it’s just fine. Set aside.
  3. Using a stand-up mixer or electric hand-held, beat the butter well until light in color and fluffy.
  4. Add the sugar and again beat well for at least 5 minutes.
  5. One at a time add the eggs and beat only until the yellow disappears.
  6. Stir juice, milk, zest and vanilla together.
  7. Now mixing by hand, gradually flour to the butter-egg mixture alternating with the key lime juice and milk mixture.
  8. Begin and end with flour.
  9. Mix well but just enough to incorporate all ingredients. You don’t want a tough pound cake!
  10. Pour evenly into the tube pan and tap pan on the counter to loosen any air bubbles.
  11. Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.
  12. Cool on a cooling rack for 20-25 minutes in the pan then transfer from pan to cooling rack and allow to cool another hour or until completely cool.

Key Lime Cream Cheese Icing

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 3-4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
  • 4 cups confectioner’s sugar
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed key lime juice
  • 2-3 teaspoons key lime zest
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Using a hand mixer beat cream cheese and butter in a large bowl until well mixed.
  2. Add confectioner’s sugar and beat well until completely smooth and fluffy.
  3. Add key lime juice, zest and vanilla and mix until all ingredients are incorporated.
  4. Frost cake.
    Quick Tip: If you have lemons..you can substitute lemons for the limes. Try it, I am sure it is amazing.
Photo and recipe courtesy of Alicia at The Irreverent Kitchen

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