Lemon Loaf Cake Recipe

In January, I never got around to decluttering the filing cabinet, or writing the courses I’ve been wanting to write. The Tesla Solar Panels are still not installed due to a hold-up with the HOA. There wasn’t an afternoon of nothingness. But I did travel up the coast in a campervan with my best friend. I read books on my queue, signed up for farm shifts, and completed Bucket List Bake Club’s Challenge. When January got blue, I swapped a blood orange meringue pie recipe for a lemon loaf cake recipe. Because that’s what you do when life gives you lemons.

This lemon loaf cake recipe is so simple to make and takes hardly any time at all. It came from the Kinfolk Table book, a bible for recipes worthy of a simple life. I made a batch and brought it into work for my staff, having received the lemons from a co-worker’s lemon tree. I got asked a lot of questions about it, which is why I decided to share the simple, easy, and delicious recipe.

Ingredients:

For the Cake

21 tablespoons (10.5 ounces or 300 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature.
1.5 cups (10.5 ounces or 300 g) sugar
Grated zest of 4 lemons
0.5 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract
6 large eggs at room temp9
2 cups plus 1 tablespoon (10.5 ounces or 300 g) self-rising flour (If you don’t have self-rising flour, use regular flour and add 2.25 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) boiling water

For the Glaze

1.5 cups (10.5 ounces or 300g) sugar
6 ounces (180 mL) fresh lemon juice (I used the 4 lemons I zested!)

The Process:

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray coconut oil cooking spray on a 9×5 inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper.
Beat the butter, sugar, and lemon zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer (this almond cream colored one has got me drooling!) on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes. The mix should become light and fluffy.
Beat in the vanilla extract.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. I make sure the eggs are completely incorporated before adding the next one. As a safety measure, I also break the eggs into a separate bowl, not directly into the Kitchen Aid bowl.
Fold the flour into the batter with a rubber spatula. Then fold in the boiling water.
Transfer the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 1 hour. Check for doneness by inserting a tester in the center of the cake and confirming it comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet and cool it in the loaf pan for 10 minutes.
While it is cooling, go ahead and make the glaze. Combine the sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until the sugar is dissolved. Don’t forget to stir along the way!
Invert the cake onto the rack, turning it right side up. Poke it all over with a skewer. Drizzle the glaze over the cake. Allow to cool completely, about 1 hour, before serving.