Any cake with more than two layers is a special celebratory cake in my cookbook. A spring green cake even more so.

At the first sign of brilliant blue skies, I start to think of making my Aunt Kathy’s Lime Cake. Will it be for Easter, Mother’s Day, a birthday or a bridesmaids luncheon? All of the above.

The inside of the cake gets its spring green color from a box of lime jello. Plus, the icing calls for three tablespoons of lime juice.

Aunt Kathy’s Lime Cake

Cake

• 1 box Duncan Hines lemon cake mix
• 3/4 cup orange juice
• 1 3/4 cup Wesson oil
• 5 eggs
• 1 small box instant lime jello

Frosting

• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 Tablespoons lime juice

Spray three (3) 8- or 9-inch cake pans with non-stick spray. Preheat oven according to instructions on cake box (350 degrees). Mix all cake ingredients together in stand mixer on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes. Bake according to box instructions. Mine turned out well in 350 oven for 31 minutes.

Frosting: For the frosting, mix all together until smooth. Note: The frosting makes just enough for a thin layer – so don’t use up too much between the layers.

Cooking with Kids: Of course, when I made this, it became a cooking fun ^[5] session. We keep a lemon supreme cake mix and a box of lime jello in the Cook Box ^[6]. Plus, we didn’t have cooking spray on hand, so we did it the butter and flour way. The girls had fun greasing and flouring the pans! I think the cake layers came out of the pan easier.

And little hands really enjoyed squeezing the lime!

Make it pretty: Now this cake is so delicious it really doesn’t matter what it looks like. But you can dress it up a bit. When the girls and I made this we added a few pansies to the side and top.

But it is also pretty with Cadbury mini eggs on individual slices. Really, it is a treat no matter how it is presented.

Refrigerate cake until ready to serve. (Yes, I meant to tell you that first. I had to rearrange the fridge to be sure to have room).

I’ve written down each time I’ve made this cake. It’s a scrapbook of celebrations! Another recipe from that red and white checked cookbook ^[7].