Citrus Drizzle Cakes

Oranges & Lemons

“Oranges and lemons” say the Bells of St. Clement’s

“You owe me five farthings” say the Bells of St. Martin’s

“When will you pay me?” say the Bells of Old Bailey

“When I grow rich” say the Bells of Shoreditch

“When will that be?” say the Bells of Stepney

“I do not know” say the Great Bells of Bow

“Here comes a Candle to light you to Bed

Here comes a Chopper to Chop off your Head

Chip chop chip chop – the Last Man’s Dead.”

With a bag full of oranges and lemons sitting in the pantry crying out to be used and my mothers birthday looming the obvious choice was a citrus drizzle cake. Obvious? Why? Well, that’s simple, they are my mother’s favourite cake and there had been subtle hints dropped that Bill Granger’s Lemon Pound Cake would be the ideal.

Drizzle cakes are a traditional British favourite and a cake you will find in most tea rooms over the country. They are it has to be said, perfect for afternoon tea.

When choosing citrus fruits look for ones that are fragrant with brightly coloured oily skins. If you can I would advise you buy organic. The best fruits have firm flesh, are plump, and heavy for their size.

Taking heed of the subtle and not so subtle hinting going on I decided to stick with the basic recipe from the Lemon Pound Cake but just take a little risk and add some orange flavours too, oh and I baked the cakes in individual portions too.

These citrus drizzle cakes are sweet and buttery, having a moist yet dense texture somewhat reminiscent of a Madeira cake.

As the name implies, these lovely cakes have a tangy citrus flavour that comes from adding both lemon juice and orange juice to the cake. The citrus flavouring is also enhanced in the lemon(or orange) flavoured frosting, made with icing sugar and fruit juice, that dries to a hard crusty glaze.

Citrus frosting provides a tangy sweetness that is incredibly pleasing to the palate and turns what is in reality a pretty ordinary cake into something that little bit extra special.

All in all, a very easy cake(s) to make and very easy to eat too. Just be sure to have friends, family or work colleagues around to help you eat the goods as I am not taking the blame if you overindulge and eat the lot

Citrus Drizzle Cakes

• 250g butter, softened
• 250g caster sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 4 eggs
• 250g self-raising flour, sifted

1. Preheat the oven to gas 180C or the equivalent.
2. Mix the butter and sugar together until smooth, I used my KitchenAid but you could do this by hand pretty easily.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix well after each one is added.
4. Fold in the sifted flour, half first, mix well and then the second half and mix well until combined.
5. Add the lemon juice and orange juice and mix in.
6. Spoon into the muffin cases and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer comes out cleanly.
7. Allow to cool before icing.

NB This will make around 12 standard muffins.

Citrus Drizzle Icing

• 100g icing sugar
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or orange juice

1. Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually add the citrus juice until you have an icing thicker than a glaze but still thin enough that it will just run over the sides of the cake. If not quite the right consistency add more lemon juice or icing sugar, accordingly.

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Tagged as: afternoon tea, Bill Granger, Butter, Cake, citrus, citrus fruits, Cupcakes, drizzle, frosting, lemon, lemon pound cake, lemons, orange, oranges, oranges and lemons, Recipe