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Lemon Feta Cake with Lemon Buttercream Frosting — The Birthday Cake That Shows Up When Mom’s Recipe Is Already in Your Hands

My birthday. Twenty-six. Ryan made pancakes — actually good now. He's been secretly practicing. The man practices PANCAKES the way he practices MARKSMANSHIP. Caleb made me a card. A potato with a party hat. I now have a gallery of potato portraits. I'm the most painted potato in military spouse history. Hazel said 'happy mama' which is close enough to 'happy birthday' and far better because it's just TRUE. Megan called. 'Twenty-six! You're almost thirty!' 'I'm FOUR YEARS from thirty, Megan.' Mom and Dad called together. Mom sang. Dad hummed because Kevin Abernathy does not sing. 'Happy birthday, sweetheart,' Dad said. 'Thanks, Dad. How are the plants?' 'Dormant. But the indoor herbs are thriving.' Kevin Abernathy's indoor herbs thrive because he gives them the attention he once reserved for naval operations. Ryan took me to the taco shop for birthday lunch. Fish tacos and horchata. No fancy restaurant needed — the best food in San Diego costs three dollars through a window. Made my own chocolate birthday cake — Mom's recipe, three layers, twenty-six candles. Too many candles, not enough surface area. A fire hazard in a good way. Twenty-six. A happy mama. A potato in a party hat.

I made Mom’s chocolate cake this year — twenty-six candles, a surface area crisis, the whole thing — but the cake I keep coming back to, the one I want to make next year, is this lemon feta cake. It’s the kind of recipe that sounds unexpected until you taste it, and then it just makes sense — bright and a little tangy and worth every minute you spent on it. If you’re the kind of person who bakes their own birthday cake (and I fully am), this one is worth the candles.

Lemon Feta Cake with Lemon Buttercream Frosting

Prep Time: 25 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 1 hr (plus cooling) | Servings: 12

Ingredients

  • For the Cake:
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup whole milk
  • 4 oz crumbled feta cheese
  • For the Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest
  • 2–3 tablespoons heavy cream
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans (or three 8-inch pans for thinner layers) and line the bottoms with parchment paper.
  2. Mix dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  3. Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl using a hand or stand mixer, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed for 3–4 minutes until light and fluffy.
  4. Add eggs and flavorings. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until combined.
  5. Alternate wet and dry. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk (starting and ending with flour). Mix just until combined — do not overmix.
  6. Fold in feta. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the crumbled feta until evenly distributed throughout the batter.
  7. Bake. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 30–35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the tops are lightly golden.
  8. Cool. Let cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely before frosting — at least 1 hour.
  9. Make the buttercream. Beat the softened butter on medium speed for 2 minutes until creamy. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, mixing on low. Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, a pinch of salt, and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. Increase to medium-high and beat for 3 minutes until fluffy. Add more cream as needed for spreading consistency.
  10. Frost and serve. Place one cake layer on a serving plate and spread an even layer of buttercream on top. Place the second layer over it and frost the top and sides. Garnish with extra lemon zest if desired. Slice and serve.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 610 | Protein: 6g | Fat: 32g | Carbs: 78g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 280mg

Rachel Abernathy
About the cook who shared this
Rachel Abernathy
Week 401 of Rachel’s 30-year story · San Diego, California
Rachel is a twenty-eight-year-old Marine wife and mom of two who has moved five times in six years and learned to cook a Thanksgiving dinner with half her cookware still in boxes. She married young, survived postpartum depression, and feeds her family of four on a junior Marine's salary with a freezer full of pre-made meals and a crockpot that has never let her down. She writes for the military spouses who are cooking dinner alone in base housing and wondering if they're enough. You are.

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