Food

A lemon drizzle cake that is so easy the kids can make it

Kitchen Cabinet: Instead of lemon and thyme, you can flavour this versatile cake with orange and cardamom

Lemon and thyme lemon drizzle cake. Photograph: iStock

Janice Casey-Bracken
Thu Apr 23 2020 - 07:00

This cake is so easy, my kids can make it, and in fact they do make it. The first week into lockdown, it was my brother-in-law’s birthday and this was the quick go-to cake we could make and leave on the family’s doorstep.

Instead of lemon juice, we used homemade nettle cordial, which gave a very different flavour. You can use whatever you have to hand in your kitchen. Why not try orange zest and juice, with a half teaspoon of cardamom in the flour? The possibilities are endless. This is a fabulous cake that stores well in a sealed container for a few days, and is perfect for cozy nights in with a big mug of tea.

Janice Casey Bracken is a chef at Dunbrody Country House Hotel and head cookery school tutor at An Grianán, the Irish Countrywomen’s Association adult education centre in Co Louth.

Moist lemon and thyme drizzle cake

Makes one

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Ingredients:

225g butter, soft
225g caster sugar
Zest of 2 lemons
4 eggs (large)
Fresh thyme, about one tsp of picked leaves
240g self raising flour (or 240g plain flour and one tsp of baking powder)

For the topping:

150g icing sugar
Zest and juice of a lemon

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius, or equivalent.

2. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar together until they become light and fluffy.

3. Stir in the lemon zest and the thyme leaves

4. When the mix is light and creamy add the eggs and flour and beat well. If the mix is too stiff you can add a dessert spoon of lemon juice or milk to lighten it up; you’re looking for a soft drop consistency.

5. Pour the mix into an eight-inch deep cake tin, a bread tin or two sandwich tins, if you prefer. Make sure your tin is greased and lined with parchment paper, especially if your tins are no longer non-stick

6. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

7. For the topping: Mix the lemon zest, juice and icing together and drizzle over the cake.

Kitchen Cabinet is a series of recipes from chefs who are members of Euro-toques Ireland who have come together during the coronavirus outbreak to share some of the easy, tasty things that they like to cook and eat at home #ChefsAtHome

Irish Countrywomen's AssociationCoronavirusJanice Casey