Hello everyone! Today we are making a delicious, easy cake that is all the rage right now, perfect for an afternoon or anytime snack: lemon cake. If you are ready, let's bake it together.
Lemon cake is perfect as an afternoon treat with coffee or tea. It is easy to make yet turns out delicious and very moist. It keeps in the fridge for about 5 days. Because it is made with butter, if kept too long the crumb becomes firmer and drier than bakes made with oil.
Many people will have seen lemon cake around: a soft, fluffy cake that is very popular right now. The not-too-sweet crumb pairs perfectly with a sweet, fragrant lemon sauce.
Lemon Cake Ingredients
- 100 g salted butter
- 110 g cream cheese
- 80 to 90 g sugar
- 3 eggs
- 135 g all-purpose flour or cake flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1½ tbsp lemon zest
- Yellow food colouring
- Lemon (for decoration)
Lime Icing Glaze
- 150 g icing sugar
- 3 tbsp lime juice
How to Make Lemon Cake
- Put the salted butter in a mixing bowl and beat until slightly fluffy, then add the cream cheese and beat until combined.
- Add the sugar and mix until combined, then add the eggs and beat well. Sift in the cake flour and baking powder.
- Fold or beat until smooth, add the lemon juice and zest, then add the yellow food colouring and stir to combine.
- Spoon the batter into moulds until about 3/4 full. Bake at 180°C with top and bottom heat for 20 to 25 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.
- Make the icing glaze by stirring the lime juice and icing sugar together.
- Pipe or drizzle the glaze over the cakes and finish with lemon decoration.
A Simple Trick to Check Whether Your Lemon Cake Is Done
Besides inserting a toothpick into the centre of the cake, there is another way if you don't have one. When the time is up and you think the cake should be done, open the oven and gently shake the tin. If the batter moves and looks runny, it is not ready yet, so give it more time. How much longer depends on your own judgement of whether it is still very wet or almost done, or you can add 5 minutes at a time. This method takes practice, as you learn to judge not only by colour but also by touch. When you think the cake is nearly done and no longer runny, tap the centre lightly with your finger. If it springs back with some resistance but is not hard, take it out of the oven and let it finish cooking outside. If you leave it in the oven too long, the cake will be rather dry.
