Very Lemon & Raspberry Loaf Cake Recipe

Lemon is one of my favourite flavours in any bake. I love a 'tangfastic' and zesty bite, particularly in the form of a cake. 

Taste: Zesty, fruity and sweet. Great with a cup of tea.

Texture: Soft but close textured, like a Victoria sponge.

Mood: Cake in about 2 hours. An easy, impressive loaf cake.

Ingredients:

CAKE

• 200g unsalted butter (room temp) 

• 200g golden caster sugar 

• 4 large eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 200g self-raising flour 

• zest of 2 lemons 

• 125g unsalted butter (room temp) 

ICING

• 125g unsalted butter 

• 250g icing sugar, sifted 

• juice of 1 and a half lemons 

• 1 - 2 tablespoons of milk 

• 100g fresh raspberries 

• optional - a tablespoon or 2 of lime 

Method: 

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180'C (it takes about 15-20 mins for your oven to pre-heat.) 
2. Grease or line your loaf tin. I use an 8" (H) X 5" (W) X 3" (D) tin and it think it works perfectly. 
3. Cream the room temp butter and sugar for 7 - 8 mins. You can do this by hand if you have big guns, but I prefer an electric mixer! Once you're done, the colour should be lighter and fluffy in texture.
4. Mix in the vanilla extract and eggs. Add in the lemon zest and mix until everything is distributed evenly. A well-mixed mixture = a better quality cake. 
5. Using a rubber spatula or wooden mixing spoon, stir in the raspberries by-hand. Otherwise, you'll mince your delicate raspberries!
6. Pour the cake batter into your loaf tin and bake for 50 - 55 mins or until the cake is well-done in the centre. To test this, I usually poke a fork, cocktail stick, or chopstick in the centre, hoping it comes out clean. 

...Bake bake bake 👀

1. To make the icing, first cream the butter until it's much lighter in colour. 
2. Sift in the icing sugar and add in the juice from your lemons. 
3. Remember to start everything on a low speed if you're using an electric mixer... unless you want an icing sugar explosion! 
4. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk depending on the stiffness of the consistency. 
5. Once it's reach your desired texture, spread or pipe the icing onto the top of your cooled cake. Decorate with raspberries, chocolate or the addition of dried raspberries too for more colour. 

ENJOY. Stay happy and baking!

Deo/Dd xxx