ginger key lime chiffon cake

ginger key lime chiffon cake

When I was five years old, I was so excited to take my first cooking class at the local community center. We made so many fun recipes, but my favorite part was when we learned how to make a cake. I remember feeling then—and I still feel now—a sense of amazement that you can take all these powders and liquids, mix them up, add some heat, and end up with a sweet and delicious cake. The first time I made this ginger key lime chiffon cake was for my birthday a few years ago, and from the first bite I was hooked (yes, I love to bake my own birthday cakes!). There are three layers of pillow-soft gingery chiffon, a rich and surprisingly tart key lime curd filling, and the entire cake is generously frosted with a silky smooth key lime buttercream.  –Ryan

cake ingredients
separated eggs
adding the egg whites

Since chiffon cakes are made without butter and get their lift primarily from whipped egg whites, this gives them a light, spongy texture similar to angel food cake. In fact, they are so delicate that when you bake them, you don’t grease the pans because the pan sides hold the cake up and keep it from collapsing as it cools. The tenderness of the cake complements the richness of the curd and the fluffy frosting, so eating this cake is basically like taking a bite into a ginger-lime cloud.

pouring cake batter
key lime curd ingredients
key lime frosting ingredients

One great thing about baking cakes is that most of the cooking can be done in advance. The cake layers and lime curd can both be made the day before and refrigerated overnight. That way, the following day all you have to do is make the frosting, decorate, and enjoy!

lime syrup for the frosting
key lime frosting
assembling the cake
three layers of ginger and lime

We have a wonderful collection of cakes that we are excited to share, and we started with this one because it is so unusual and so delicious. Everyone has tried chocolate cake with chocolate icing, but how often do you see ginger key lime chiffon cake? Not that there is anything wrong with chocolate, but this bright and summery cake is a perfect dessert, especially with a few candles on top.

ginger key lime chiffon cake
ginger key lime chiffon cake

Ginger Key Lime Chiffon Cake
adapted from Sky High by Alisa Huntsman & Peter Wynne
serves 12 to 16

For the ginger cake:
6 eggs, separated
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
6 tablespoons water
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 1/3 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the key lime curd:
6 egg yolks
1 tablespoon cornstarch
6 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons key lime juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

For the key lime frosting:
4 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup key lime juice
12 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature

Bake the ginger cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line the bottoms of three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper, but do not grease the pans.

In a medium bowl combine the egg yolks, oil, ginger and water, and whisk until smooth, then set aside. In a large bowl, sift together 1 cup of the sugar, the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir the dry ingredients gently to combine, then add the egg yolk mixture and whisk until the batter is smooth and even.

Place the egg whites in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer using the whip attachment on medium-high speed until frothy. Gradually add the cream of tartar and the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and continue to whip until soft peaks form. Take one fourth of the beaten egg whites and gently fold them into the cake batter, being careful not to deflate the eggs. Then add the remaining egg whites, folding them gently into the batter just until evenly combined.

Divide the cake batter among the three prepared pans, and bake for about 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack and allow to cool completely in the pans. When cool, run a blunt knife around the edge of the pan, invert cake onto a wire rack, and peel off parchment paper.

Make the key lime curd:
In a small saucepan, combine the egg yolks, cornstarch, sugar, and key lime juice. Whisk until smooth, then place over medium-low heat and bring to a boil, whisking the entire time. Boil for one minute, then remove pan from heat. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a heatproof bowl, and pour the mixture through the strainer into the bowl. Add the butter, and whisk until butter is melted and the curd is smooth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap directly onto the curd to prevent a skin from forming, and refrigerate until cold, at least one hour.

Make the key lime frosting:
Place the egg whites in a large mixing bowl, and have ready an electric mixer with the whip attachment.

In a medium saucepan, heat the sugar and lime juice over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Once sugar is dissolved, stop stirring and bring to a boil, cooking until the mixture reaches 238°F on a candy thermometer.

Turn the mixer on low, and slowly add the hot syrup to the egg whites, being careful not to pour onto the moving beaters. Once all the syrup is added, raise speed to medium and beat until the frosting cools to body temperature. Then with the mixer still running, add the butter a few tablespoons at a time, continuing to beat until all the butter is added and the frosting is smooth and creamy.

Assemble the cake:
Place one cake layer on a serving plate, and evenly spread half of the key lime curd on top, leaving a 1/4-inch margin around the edge. Place the second cake layer on top, and spread the remaining curd over it evenly, again leaving a 1/4-inch margin. Place the third layer on top, and frost the sides and top of the cake with key lime frosting.

a few notes:
— Cake flour is simply flour that is more finely ground than all-purpose flour, making it produce softer results. It is different from self-rising flour, which contains baking powder and salt.
— Fresh key limes are tiny, delicious, and difficult to find. We use bottled key lime juice which is just as good and is available year-round.
— The key lime curd is naturally yellow, but if you would like it to be green, simply add a few drops of food coloring as desired.

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12 Comments on ginger key lime chiffon cake

  1. nadira kazi
    April 24, 2016 at 9:05 am

    The cake looks exactly like the one in the books! I was thinking of making this cake and was wondering if I could make it in advance. I have a few questions if you can remember – did you refrigerate the cake layers or froze them before assembling? Chiffon cakes tend to be on drier side, did you brush the layers with syrup or they were delicious without them? Have a great upcoming birthday!

    Reply
    • husbandsthatcook
      April 24, 2016 at 10:55 pm

      Thank you Nadira! The cake layers can be used as soon as they are completely cooled to room temperature, or they can be wrapped tightly in plastic and refrigerated for a day in advance if you like! Either way is just fine. And we did not need to brush the layers with syrup: the key lime curd is enough on its own! Have fun baking, and we hope you enjoy the cake!

  2. nadira kazi
    June 19, 2016 at 9:36 pm

    Made it and it was extremely good. The grated ginger contributes to the moisture of the cake.

    Reply
    • husbandsthatcook
      June 20, 2016 at 5:02 pm

      Thank you for letting us know, Nadira! It makes us so happy to hear when people enjoy our recipes! So glad it was a success!

  3. Jennifer
    July 12, 2019 at 8:55 pm

    Frosting disaster. It’s runny and a bit curdled looking. Did I not boil the syrup long enough? I followed the instructions to a T…..

    Reply
    • husbandsthatcook
      July 13, 2019 at 7:37 am

      Oh no, we’re so sorry to hear that! Buttercream frosting can sometimes be tricky, but even a curdled frosting can be salvaged! Obviously we weren’t in the kitchen with you, so we don’t know exactly what might have happened, but this article has a bunch of helpful tips on how to fix a broken buttercream. Hopefully this will help! http://www.seriouseats.com/2017/05/how-to-fix-a-broken-swiss-meringue-buttercream.html Please let us know if you have any other questions! xoxo

  4. Jennifer
    July 14, 2019 at 11:44 am

    Thanks so much. The article was really helpful! This was my first attempt at such a complex recipe and I had a tough time with the cakes, too. They were so beautiful and fluffy in the oven then collapsed like a sad souffle when I took them out. But they tasted great. I salvaged the best of the layers, made a classic sponge cake and used the good chiffon layer in the sponge stack to approximate a cake. It looked beautiful and none were the wiser. The second attempt on the frosting worked (I boiled the syrup a little longer so it was thicker). I decorated with a small posy of flowers from my garden.

    Reply
    • husbandsthatcook
      July 15, 2019 at 11:27 am

      Hi Jennifer! Glad to hear that the article helped! That’s too bad about the layers collapsing—it’s possible that the batter was over-mixed, or the oven wasn’t quite the right temperature—but at least they tasted great and you were able to salvage the dessert! The floral decorations sound beautiful too! Thanks so much for keeping us posted! xoxo

  5. Mark
    December 26, 2019 at 3:13 am

    I am just wondering in your assembled cake, how tall are each of the three cake layers?

    I always feel that my chiffon or angel food cake layers look short. They don’t collapse, but they never seem as beautifully tall as in the pictures.

    Reply
    • husbandsthatcook
      December 30, 2019 at 1:07 pm

      Hi Mark,

      We haven’t measured the height of the layers, but we estimate them to be about 2 inches tall. If yours aren’t as tall as you’d like, its possible that the egg whites are getting too deflated during mixing, so be sure to fold them into the cake batter gently, just until no streaks of egg whites remain. The other possibility is that the oven temperature might be slightly off—have you tried testing your oven with a thermometer to see if it’s accurate? Hope that helps! If you have any other questions don’t hesitate to ask!

    • husbandsthatcook
      January 9, 2020 at 11:47 am

      Hi Mark,

      We read your last comment from 1/7/2020:

      “Thank you. That gives me a good guideline. I think generally I get about 3/4 inch to maybe 1 inch. I will check the temperature and pay closer attention to the folding of the egg whites. I was surprised to see in the frosting combining the hot syrup and egg whites. Don’t the eggs just wind up cooking from the hot syrup?”

      We had a minor technical glitch with our site, and your comment was deleted accidentally.

      Let us know if you figure out what happened. Ovens can vary widely in their actual temperatures, so it’s always the first thing to check when troubleshooting a recipe!

      As for your question about hot syrup—yes, the syrup does gently “cook” the eggs, just enough to ensure that they are safe to eat. Adding the syrup slowly while whipping ensures that you don’t end up with a bowl of scrambled eggs 😉 It’s a traditional technique, and you can google Swiss Meringue Buttercream for more info!

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