Lemon Loaf Cake

Monday, November 15, 2021

This recipe is
Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy,
inspired by a Snapchat filter,
that made me want to make something lemony.

Now that Summer is basically in full swing, we all look for light cakes and desserts to appease our sweet tooth.That being said, nothing beats a simple, yet delicious Lemon Loaf Cake.

As someone who doesn't bake much, I will say this recipe is super easy to make, and because it's not complicated, you'll be done in no time.

If you have a lot of lemons on hand, with this extreme heat we're experiencing, you can also make some Home-made Lemonade.

- QUICK TIPS -

These are all tips I share in the method,

but I'll note them here as well.

Remember to be light-handed with the lemon juice. Start off with a little, taste and add more till you're satisfied with the flavour. You should have a hint of the lemon in the batter and icing. It should not be overpowering. When adding lemon in the batter, and in the icing it can flop really quickly, by making everything sour, and you don't want that!
Do not fill your loaf tin till the top, fill it around 1/2 to 3/4 way, depending on the size of the loaf tin you are using.
If you're left with a little extra batter, there's no need to waste it, you can always turn those into cupcakes.

- INGREDIENTS -

1 1/4 Cup Castor Sugar (Granulated Sugar)

1 Lemon - Zested

1/4 Cup Fresh Lemon Juice

3 Eggs

2/3 Cup Milk

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

2 Cups Cake Flour (or All-purpose Flour)

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

3/4 tsp Salt

1 1/2 Cup Icing Sugar (Powdered Sugar)

1 tsp Fresh Lemon Juice

2 Tbsp Milk

9" x 5" or 16" x 4" Loaf Pan

Wax/Parchment Paper

Grease-Proof Spray

- METHOD -

1. Firstly, pre-heat your oven to 180 Degrees C.

2. Zest one lemon, keeping the zest to the side, before squeezing the juice out of the lemon, till you have 1/4 cup, keeping that to the side as well.

3. In your stand mixer bowl, or in a large bowl you use for baking, add in your castor sugar, and mix in your zested lemon.

4. Next add in your 3 eggs, milk, oil, and mix it at a low speed.

5. While your wet ingredients are being combined, slowly add the1/4 cup of lemon juice. Personally, I added bit by bit at this step, stopping to taste the batter until I was happy with the flavour. I did not want the lemon to be very overpowering, so this was just me being cautious.

6. Once the wet ingredients are combined, add in your sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

7. Turn your mixer on a lower speed, letting your wet ingredients combine with the dry ingredients, for 1 - 2 minutes. Remember to not overwork the batter.

8. Once your batter is smooth, turn off your mixer, and prep your loaf tin. Spray some greaseproof spray in the tin, before lining it with some wax paper or parchment paper, in a sling form.

9. Depending on what size loaf tin you will be using, remember not to fill the batter till the top. Pour in your batter in slowly, and very lightly bang the loaf tin on the counter 1 - 2 times. This will release any air pockets, and level the batter as well so it raises, and bakes evenly. Once done, pop it into the oven for 30 - 40 minutes.

10. While your cake is baking, it's time to make your icing. Mix your icing sugar, lemon juice, and milk in a medium-sized bowl. Once again I added the lemon juice slowly because I didn't want the icing to taste sour.

With your whisk mix it all together till you get a glossy smooth icing. Don't worry, just with that amount of liquid it will combine into icing, just keep whisking.

11. Once your lemon loaf cake has baked, remove it from the oven, and leave it to cool, before removing it from the loaf tin.

12. Once the cake has cooled it's time to drizzle the icing. If you notice your icing has hardened in the bowl, just give it a quick mix it by hand again, and it should soften and smoothen out. Now you can slowly drizzle the icing over your cake till it your cake is covered and it drips lightly on the side.

- EXTRA DECORATION SUGGESTIONS -

For extra decoration, you can top with some lemon spirals/curls, lemon zest, fresh mint leaves, or as I used some homemade dehydrated lemons.

Which were easy to make, I just sliced some lemons. placed them on a lined baking pan, and popped them in the oven at 100 degrees C, for approximately 1 - 3 hours.

It can be tedious, you have to keep checking on them, they're in the oven for long, and flipping on them, till they're golden, and completely dry.