Oh cake. I do love you. Did you know this is the first time I’ve actually made a ‘proper’ cake, not cupcakes not cake pops, but a proper all-comes-out-in-one-bit cake. So, naturally, I went for a classic lemon drizzle cake as lemon seems to be my ‘thing’ at the moment – I can’t get enough of it. Plus, I saw Vivianna post about hers and it’s been firmly wedged in my head ever since (and I may have watched the video about 10 times now). I opted for a loaf style instead of a larger, flatter cake as there’s something weirdly satisfying about slicing it. Is that just me? Anyway, this recipe makes the most moist (ew), soft and amazingly tangy sponge. Seriously, it’s like the perfect cake…
Ingredients (makes a large loaf):
175g unsalted butter, room temperature
175g caster sugar
Zest from 3 lemons, finely grated
3 eggs, room temperature
175g self-raising flour
A pinch of sea salt
A splash of milk (optional, but probably needed)
200g icing sugar
75ml lemon juice
How To Do It:
Step One | Grease a large (one litre capacity) loaf tin and line the base and sides with baking parchment.
Step Two | Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until pale and creamy (for 5 minutes, but 10 if you can as it makes the cake much lighter). Add the lemon zest and mix in the eggs, one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour in with each egg so it doesn’t curdle.
Step Three | Sift in the remaining flour and salt and fold the mixture in lightly with a metal spoon until combined. Add a splash of milk if the mix doesn’t have a good dropping consistency (ie. it drops easily when you tap the spoon on the side of the bowl). Spoon the mix into the loaf tin, smoothing it out so it’s even and bake for 45-50 minutes at 170C / Gas Mark 3, until a skewer in the centre comes out clean.
Step Four | Mix the icing sugar and lemon juice together in a bowl until smooth. Skewer lots of holes, quite deep but not all the way down to the bottom, in the cake when it’s still hot and slowly pour over the lemon icing. It’ll sink into the holes, so just keep reapplying one spoonful at a time. Wait until the cake is completely cool before slicing. You can keep it in an airtight container for up to four days.
So there you have it, the perfect lemon drizzle cake. I’m not exaggerating when I say how wonderfully soft it is, too. It’s one of those cakes where one slice just isn’t enough and you find yourself scoffing pieces whenever you go into the kitchen. Addictive, but in the right sort of way. Sorry, thighs. Let me know if you make it or any of my other recipes!
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