miss b loves........St Clement's drizzle cake

My Mum makes the best lemon drizzle cake (she makes three or four at a time for friends) so when I spotted St Clement's drizzle cake  in the Marks and Spencer magazine I knew I had to have a go at this variation. The recipe was actually taken from Jo Pratt's  book 'In the Mood for Entertaining.'.........


Supposed to serve 10 (depends on how greedy you are!)
175g butter softened plus extra for greasing
175g caster sugar
grated zest and juice 1 lemon
grated zest and juice 1 orange
4 tbsp milk
2 large eggs
175g self-raising flour
3tbsp granulated sugar
  
1. Heat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 (160°C for fan ovens).
Grease 1 large(900g) or 2 small(450g) loaf tins and line the base with baking paper.
2. Put the caster sugar, butter and lemon and orange zest in a bowl and beat together until pale and creamy. Add the milk, then beat in the eggs, one at a time, with a spoonful of flour to prevent the mixture from curdling. Fold in the remaining flour. Spoon into the prepared tin(s) and level the surface.
3. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes for a large cake or 30-35 minutes for the smaller cakes, until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Don't worry if you see the cake peak in the middle and split - it adds character and will give you a crunchier drizzle topping.
4. Meanwhile, pour the lemon and orange juice into a saucepan, bring to the boil and reduce to about 3tbsp. Leave to cool, then stir in the granulated sugar so it just starts to dissolve.
5. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, prick it several times with a skewer, then slowly pour the syrup over the top, letting it soak into the cake. Leave to cool completely in the tin before turning it out.
For an extra-special finish....mix 75g sifted icing sugar with 3-4tsp lemon juice until smooth. Drizzle over the cake, then top with a little lemon and orange zest.


The result was a deliciously moist, buttery cake with a gorgeous citrusy flavour and there were even compliments from my Mum too!

Perfect served on a pretty vintage bone china plate with a cup of my favourite Twinings tea...............