Lemon Drizzle Cake

A Lemon Drizzle recipe from Little Jim.

Ingredients:

• 4oz Soft margarine
• 6oz caster sugar
• 6oz sifted self- raising flour
• 4 tablespoons milk
• 2 large eggs
• Either 1 lemon or equivalent amount of lemon juice, which is about 2 tablespoons
• 1 tablespoon of sifted icing sugar

Instructions:

Oil and line a 2lb loaf tin. Heat oven to 180 or gas mark 4 .With preferably an electric mixer cream together the fat and sugar until very pale in colour, then add the eggs one at a time beating well between. Fold in the sifted flour with a palette knife, adding the milk at the same time to make a so-called 'soft-dropping' mixture. If you have a real lemon grate the rind and add. Be careful not to over stir and beat all the lightness and air out of the mixture at this stage.

Put the mixture into the tin and place in a pre-heated oven at a temperature of 180 or whatever your equivalent gas mark is - 4 I think.

Whilst the cake is baking squeeze out your lemon or measure out the equivalent amount of juice into a bowl and add your icing sugar, mix well.

Bake without opening the oven door for about 40 minutes, then check very, very carefully. If the temperature drops too quickly too soon your cake will collapse. If it looks well risen and golden brown test by gently pressing the top of the cake with your finger, but be very careful, look at it first to make sure it is not still runny inside the crust. If it springs back when pressed it is ready.

Leave in the tin and whilst it is still hot gently pour over your lemon syrup mixture so that it runs down the sides of the cake. If necessary peel back the cake liner slightly as this enables the syrup to reach all over the cake. Do not remove from the tin until the cake is completely cold.