Lemon drizzle cake
A buttery lemon loaf soaked while still hot with sharp lemon syrup, leaving a crisp, crackly sugar crust across the top.
Method
- 1
Heat the oven to 180°C. Grease the loaf tin and line it with baking paper.
- 2
Beat the butter and caster sugar together until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes with an electric mixer.
- 3
Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour with the last one to stop the mixture curdling.
- 4
Fold in the rest of the flour, then the lemon zest and milk, until the batter is smooth and drops easily from a spoon.
- 5
Spoon the batter into the tin and level the top.
- 6
Bake until golden and risen and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean.
- 7
While the cake bakes, stir the lemon juice and granulated sugar together. Most of the sugar should stay undissolved.
- 8
As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, prick it all over with a skewer, right down to the base.
- 9
Spoon the drizzle evenly over the hot cake, letting the juice soak in and the sugar settle on top.
- 10
Leave the cake in the tin until completely cool, then lift it out using the paper.
Notes
- Granulated sugar is what gives the crisp, crackly top. Caster or icing sugar dissolves into the cake without leaving any crunch.
- If you only have waxed lemons, scrub them in hot water and dry them before zesting.
- Wrapped, the cake keeps for 3 to 4 days.
Equipment
900 g (2 lb) loaf tin, Baking paper, Electric hand mixer, Mixing bowl, Fine grater, Skewer