Lemon & Lime Cake with Lemon Buttercream - recipe by Bex

I've made a version of this cake a few times now and it's always a winner!  It's light, moist and super tasty - sort of a cross between a lemon drizzle and a normal sponge cake with buttercream (I use my own buttercream recipe which isn't too sweet).  The original version includes lemon curd which I'm not a fan of but if you want it to be sweeter and even more lemony then by all means add a layer between the slices and mix some in to the icing.  I added the lime when I ran out of lemons and it worked well so here's my version of this delicious cake.

Ingredients:

For the lemon cake:
250g butter, softened
250g caster sugar
250g self-raising flour
4 medium eggs
2 tbsp milk
Finely zested rind of 1 lemon

Finely zested rind of 2 limes

For the lemon syrup:
4 level tbsp caster sugar
4 tbsp water
Juice of 1 lemon

Juice of 2 limes

For the Buttercream:

120g butter, softened

250g icing sugar

Finely zested rind of 1 lemon

Juice of 1/2 lemon

2 tbsp milk

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C.  Grease and line the bases of two 8" solid base sandwich tins.
2. Beat the butter until pale.  Add the remaining ingredients, sieving the flour, and beat until smooth.  Divide the mixture between the two sandwich tins and level the surface.
3. Bake cakes in centre of the oven for 20-30 mins, or until they have risen and feel just firm to the touch in the centre.
4. Meanwhile, to make the syrup: Pour 4 tbsp water into a small pan and add the sugar.  Place the pan on a low heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.  Increase heat and bring mixture to the boil and boil rapidly for 1 minute then remove pan from the heat and add the lemon & lime juice.
5. When the cakes are cooked, remove from oven and pour the syrup over each one.  Leave cakes in the tins for about 10 minutes until syrup has soaked in, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. To make the icing: beat the butter until very soft and light, then add the remaining ingredients and beat well until fluffy.
7. Sandwich the cakes together with half the buttercream and spread the rest on top.