Preheat your oven to 350°F. Prepare the cake pans (6” rounds) with butter or oil and parchment lining on the bottom. Spoon in a little flour and coat the sides.
In a stand mixer beat your butter and sugar for about 2 minutes on a low- medium speed (4) with a paddle attachment, until fluffy. Scrape sides of bowl as needed.
Add in your eggs and egg whites one at a time, until thoroughly combined. Scrape down sides of bowls. Then add your vanilla extract and lemon juice and mix until combined.
In a separate medium-large mixing bowl mix your dry ingredients for the cake and mix (flour, baking flour and soda, salt).
In 3 batches add your dry mixture into the wet mixture on a lower speed, alternating with 2 batches of yogurt. ⅓ of the dry ingredients, ½ of the yogurt, ⅓ of the dry ingredients, ½ of the yogurt, ⅓ of the dry ingredients. Don’t over mix, just mix until it comes together.
Scoop batter evenly into the three separate 6” pans. Lightly slam the cake pans on the counter to try to get rid of any major air bubbles.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, test with a toothpick and make sure it comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool for 10-20 minutes before releasing from the pans. Flip cakes out of the pans and let them cool on racks.
Then transfer to the fridge in an airtight container for a minimum of 30 minutes and up to 24 hours before decorating.
Buttercream Instructions
Using your mixer and the paddle attachment again, whip the butter for 8 minutes on medium speed. Scrape sides of the bowl every 1-2 minutes or as needed. The butter will become very creamy! Add in the vanilla and lemon juice until combined.
Sift the powdered sugar into a separate bowl.
Add the powdered sugar into the butter in 3 batches. Go slowly until incorporated, scraping sides of bowl as needed, then mix on medium for 1 additional minute. The frosting should become very light and fluffy.
Add in milk ½ tablespoon at a time and incorporate. You might find you need a little less milk or a tad bit more to get it the right consistency for your preference of piping. Whip on a medium speed for 2 minutes.
Assembly
Trim the tops of the cooled cake with a serrated knife or cake leveler to make a flat surface.
Place the first layer on your stand or serving dish with the cut side on top.
Pipe or use a spatula to pipe a bit of frosting around the outer rim of the top of the cake layer. Spoon a thick layer of the strawberries. You want the strawberries to touch the cake so the juices can soak into the cake. Then pipe frosting on top of the strawberries and even out with an offset spatula as needed.
Lay the next layer of cake on top of that, cut side up again, and repeat step 3.
Lay the final layer of cake, cut side down, on top of the strawberries and frosting. Add a crumb coat with frosting. This is a thin layer of frosting around the entire cake. Place into the fridge or freezer for 10 minutes to make the next layer of frosting easier.
Pipe and spread the remaining frosting until you’re satisfied.
Decorate and enjoy.
Notes
• Don’t over mix or you’ll end up with too rubbery/dense of a cake. Just 2 minutes maximum at the start and until incorporated with all other steps.• Scrape your bowl often, about once in the middle of each step and once at the end of each step. With this small of a batter, you need to make sure everything is being mixed thoroughly.• Use the spooning method to scoop your flour. Use a spoon to scoop your flour into your measuring spoon. It gives a more accurate measurement.• Grease your baking pans well and line with parchment for easy release.