Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake

I've been baking this cake for as long as I can remember.

A very long time ago my cousin was involved in a pretty serious car crash. It was all a little bit scary and my family kept their breath held for quite some time.

After life saving surgery, he was flown back to England where his mum, my Auntie Madge, nursed him back to health day by day. When I finally got to visit him in the hospital and words completely failed me, I let this cake do the talking. 

I don't know whether it was the baking or the doctors that pulled him through, but nevertheless, pull through he did. I count my stars for that every single day.

I keep this recipe stashed away in a particularly cobwebbed corner of my mind for the times I'm most in need of comfort.

(And also for when I'm feeling low on sugar and have a hankering for a good cake.)

To make a loaf for your loved ones, you're going to need:

1 2lb loaf tin. (I much prefer metal tins to those weird silicone creations).
225g soft unsalted butter
225g caster sugar
225g self raising flour
Finely grated zest of two lemons
4 eggs
85g extra caster sugar (for the drizzle)
Juice of two lemons

Preheat the oven to 180 and beat the butter & caster sugar until pale & creamy.

One by one, crack in your eggs, mixing as you go. Sift in the flour and sprinkle in the grated lemon zest. Mix until combined and pour into a lined loaf tin.

Bake for 45-50 minutes until cooked through with a slightly crisp top. Leave to cool in the tin and get to work on your drizzle.

Mix together the lemon juice and caster sugar until well combined and syrupy. Prick the cake all over with a fork and pour over the drizzle.

Leave to cool completely and pop in the fridge overnight. The top will go nice and crunchy, leaving the sponge moist and moorish. A couple of hours will do the trick if your short on time, but the longer, the better.

Slice off the sides to reveal sunny yellow flesh and dust over a little icing sugar. 

I like to decorate mine with thinly sliced lemons, but I also like Marmite and peanut butter sandwiches so I'm probably not the best judge of character.

Enjoy!