Collecting recipes to try out at the weekend...
Nigella's: Quite like the sound of this, it is drenched with syrup AND has lemon glaze on top when cooled. There is also another version.
Then there's the BBC Good Food one. Equal amounts of butter, fat, eggs and sugar - not so much lemon syrup.
Or the Guardian's favourite...
175g butter, softened
175g caster sugar
2 unwaxed lemons
3 eggs
100g self-raising flour
75g ground almonds
A little milk
100g demerara sugar
175g caster sugar
2 unwaxed lemons
3 eggs
100g self-raising flour
75g ground almonds
A little milk
100g demerara sugar
1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C/160C fan. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin with greaseproof paper. Beat together the butter, caster sugar and the finely grated zest of 1 lemon until light and fluffy. Add a pinch of salt and the eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined before adding the next.
2. Sift over the flour and fold in, followed by the almonds. Add just enough milk to bring the mixture to a dropping consistency (so that it falls off the spoon), then spoon into the prepared tin and even out the top. Bake for about 50-55 minutes, until a skewer comes out dry (crumbs clinging to it are fine).
3. Briefly mix together the remaining lemon zest, and the juice of both the lemons with the demerara sugar, then poke holes all over the top of the warm cake and pour over the drizzle, waiting for the cake to absorb one lot before adding the next.
2. Sift over the flour and fold in, followed by the almonds. Add just enough milk to bring the mixture to a dropping consistency (so that it falls off the spoon), then spoon into the prepared tin and even out the top. Bake for about 50-55 minutes, until a skewer comes out dry (crumbs clinging to it are fine).
3. Briefly mix together the remaining lemon zest, and the juice of both the lemons with the demerara sugar, then poke holes all over the top of the warm cake and pour over the drizzle, waiting for the cake to absorb one lot before adding the next.
4. Allow to cool in the tin before turning out.
Lemon drizzle cake: a big wet sticky kiss of a teatime treat, or a damp squib? And is lemon even the best choice: why do we never hear about orange, or grapefruit drizzle cakes – can anyone remedy the situation?
• This article was amended on 24 January 2013. Originally we specified a 1lb tin instead of a 1lb tin. This has been corrected.
Of course, there is Mary Berry, queen of cakes...Hmmm.... too much choice....
Other lemon cakes...Lemon drizzle loaf, which uses cornflour - wondering about substituting with potato flour...
SO...THIS IS WHAT I HAVE TRIED:
for the cake
4 oz softened baking margarine(make sure it's really soft)
5 oz self-raising flour
1 oz potato flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
6 oz granulated sugar
2 large eggs
4 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 large lemon (unwaxed, finely grated rind of)
for the syrup
1 large lemon (juice of)
4 oz granulated sugar
For the glaze
juice of ½ a lemon
150 g icing sugar
Preheat oven to 180 C/ gas mark 4.
Butter and line a loaf tin well. The cake sticks easily!
Cream together butter and sugar.
Add remaining ingredients and whiz together until a dropping mixture forms - 2 sessions of 20 seconds each in a food processor.
Spoon the batter into the prepared tin, level top, bake for 45 mins or until cake tester comes out clean.
For the syrup: Put the lemon juice and sugar into a small saucepan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves.
As soon as cake is out of oven, puncture all over with skewer and pour over the syrup.
Leave cake to cool completely before removing from the tin.
For the glaze: Combine lemon juice and icing sugar until smooth and white, add a little more icing sugar if needed. Make sure the cake is completely cool before drizzling with the glaze.
