Lemon loaf is the perfect sweet treat to welcome spring. Tip: if you’d like to make the recipe a bit more calorie-conscious, replace half of the cream and butter with unsweetened applesauce. It will leave the cake moist and yummy while omitting half the fat, and you won’t even taste it!
Ingredients
5 eggs
300g/11oz castor sugar
140ml/5fl oz double cream
3 lemons, zest only
1½ tbsp dark rum (optional)
1 pinch salt
80g/3oz unsalted butter, melted
240g/8½oz plain flour
½ tsp baking powder
Lemon glaze:
1 lemon, zest and juice
150g/5oz icing sugar
Directions
Preheat the oven to 180 C. Lightly butter a loaf tin (26cm x 9cm x 8cm).
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, cream, lemon zest, rum, salt and butter.
Sift the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl then whisk it into the egg mixture until you have a smooth batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes, turning halfway through cooking. The cake is cooked when a knife blade inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove the cake from the tin, turn onto a cooling rack and leave to cool for 10 minutes. This will allow the steam to escape before you glaze the cake.
For the lemon glaze, mix together the lemon juice, zest and icing sugar. Heat the mixture in a small pan, or in the microwave, until the sugar has dissolved and you have a syrup. Brush the lemon glaze all over the cake and leave for a few minutes to set.
Text: Lydia Parafianowicz