This lemon and raspberry loaf cake is light and refreshing, with a vibrant citrus kick! It's the perfect recipe to bake and enjoy on a lovely spring or summers day.Favoured with vanilla extract and lemon zest, the cake is dotted with fresh raspberries and infused with a lemon drizzle sugar syrup. I've decorated the cake with simple lemon glace icing and scattered freeze-dried raspberries on top.
300gMargarine or unsalted butterI use Stork Original
300gGolden caster sugar
3largeEggsAt room temperature
1tspVanilla extract
300gSelf-raising flour
1tbspMilk
1LemonZest only
150gFresh raspberries
Lemon drizzle
0.5LemonJuice only
25gGolden caster sugar
Lemon Icing
225gIcing sugar
1LemonJuice only
2-3tspCold water
1tspFreeze-dried raspberries
Instructions
Start by making the raspberry loaf cake
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Lightly grease a 2lb loaf tin (I used this one by Circulon) and line with greaseproof paper (see notes in the post above for how to do this). Set the baking tin aside.
In a large bowl, beat the margarine, golden caster sugar and vanilla extract together until creamy.
Mix in the eggs one at a time, adding 2 tablespoons of the 300g flour after each egg to stop the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining flour, lemon zest and milk. Fold the mixture together until smooth and fully combined.
Gently fold in the fresh raspberries. I tossed the raspberries in a teaspoon of flour first to stop them from sinking to the bottom.
Spoon the mixture into the loaf tin, smoothing it out the top. Bake for 60-70 minutes* until golden in colour and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out crumb-free.
Make the lemon drizzle
Mix the lemon juice and sugar together in a bowl.
As soon as the loaf cake is out of the oven, prick it all over with a toothpick or skewer and spoon over the lemon drizzle, letting it sink into the cake.
Leave the cake to cool in the baking tin for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
Decorate with lemon icing
Stir the icing sugar and lemon juice together. The consistency of the icing should be thick but still pourable. If it's too thick, stir in a teaspoon of cold water at a time.
Pour the lemon icing over the cake, letting it drip down the sides.
Sprinkle over the freeze-dried raspberries and leave the icing to set for 10 minutes.
Notes
*If the cake starts to brown too much, you can lightly place a piece of foil over the cake after 45 minutes. T