Kirsty’s Lemon Drizzle Cake

There is always a cake on the go for guests to help themselves. Lemon drizzle is the most popular, and has elicited 2 marriage proposals!!

I usually make 2 at a time and use 5 lemons. The raw cake batter freezes well, just defrost before you cook it.

• 175g butter, softened
• 175g caster sugar
• 2 unwaxed lemons large, or 3 small
• 3 eggs
• 175g self-raising flour
• 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. 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 minutes, until a skewer comes out dry (crumbs clinging to it are fine).

3. Briefly mix together the zest of the remaining lemons, and the juice of all the lemons with the demerara sugar, then poke holes all over the top of the warm cake with a skewer 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.