Raspberry and Lemon Loaf Cake

Spring is most definitely here. Blossoms are blooming on the trees and lambs are leaping in the fields. Spring is lovely, it really is. But in brief moments, I can glimpse Summer peeking tentatively out from under it's winter blanket. And I think I'm ready for summer, so with this recipe I'm definitely trying to coax it out from under the blanket. Raspberries and lemons are a beautiful pairing, and a bit of this cake is just like a little bite of summer.

Raspberry and Lemon Loaf Cake
225g Butter
225g Caster Sugar
4 Free-range Eggs
225g Self Raising Flour
Zest of 2 Lemons
100g Fresh Raspberries

Tangy Lemon Icing
Juice of 2 Lemons
250g Icing Sugar

1. Grease and line a standard loaf tin and preheat the oven to 180°C
2. Cream the butter and sugar, then add the four eggs one by one.

3. Fold in the self raising flour
4. Zest the lemons and wash your raspberries. Gently fold into your cake mix and then pour the cake mix into the tin

 5. When the cake has been in the oven about an hour check on it, and if a knife doesn't come out clean put some tinfoil over the top to ensure the cake doesn't burn. Check regularly until a knife comes out clean. Meanwhile, juice the two lemons you zested earlier.

 

 

 6. Add the lemon juice to 200g of the icing sugar. This will make a very runny, tangy icing that you should sieve any lumps of icing sugar out of. Reserving 3tbsp, pour over the cake whilst it's still warm, which will make sure it sinks into the cake and leaves it nice and moist.

7. Place the remaining 50g of the icing sugar in another bowl. Table spoon at a time, add the left over thin icing until you have a thick white pourable icing. When the cake is completely cool drizzle this thick icing over the cake to make your cake reeeeally pretty.