Lakeland Lemon Cake

Recently a friend sent me a lovely little cookbook all the way from Great Britain. It is a book dedicated to English Teatime recipes and one that looked especially appealing to me was a small 7"round cake known as a Lakeland Lemon Cake. This is what I would refer to as a pound cake; dense, moist and far from crumbly. It also is best left for 48 hours before digging in so the crumb really firms up and the flavors all merge together. This lemon cake, lightly spiced with ginger and cinnamon, is perfectly fine served on its own or with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream. Traditionally it can also be divided into two layers and filled with lemon curd. Whatever your poison, you really should give this wonderful little cake a try. I am very glad I did !

You may not have a 7" cake tin handy but they are not hard to find once you start looking. In fact, I purchased mine at my local grocery store. It is high sided with a removable bottom which worked out perfectly for this cake. You could most likely bake this in a traditional 8" tin as well but keep an eye on baking time as it would be reduced somewhat.

LET'S BEGIN !

A superb small cookbook to keep handy when teatime beckons

RECIPE:
*source recipe: English Teatime Recipe

WHAT YOU NEED

8oz self-raising flour
6oz unsalted butter at room temperature
6oz caster sugar
2 large eggs, beaten lightly with a fork
pinch of salt
pinch of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
grated rind and the juice of 1 large lemon
1 tablespoon milk (2% is fine)

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 325F
GREASE BOTTOM AND SIDES of a 7 inch round cake pan
LINE BOTTOM of pan with parchment paper

IN LARGE BOWL of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar 4-5 minutes MED speed
SLOWLY add eggs, blending til combined
IN MEDIUM BOWL, sift together salt, cinnamon, ginger and flour
ADD to cake batter blending til combined but do NOT over-mix
ADD lemon rind, juice and milk mixing on low speed to fully incorporated into batter
POUR into prepared pan, level top, and bake for 1 hour
REMOVE from oven and let sit in pan 15 minutes
REMOVE cake from pan and place on cooling rack. When cooled wrap with cling film or place inside covered cake platter
ALLOW to rest 48 hours before slicing

ENJOY !