Drizzle cakes are possibly one of the world's favourites, partly because of their simplicity both in making them and decorating them. They're light and delicate, with a citrus syrup spooned over them and only a thin glaze on top to finish. Drizzle cakes are usually only five or six centimetres high, so that the syrup soaks right through the crumb and delivers a zesty sharp flavour in every bite. This cake keeps very well.
100g unsalted butter
50ml sunflower oil
200g castor sugar
zest of 2 lemons
50ml thickened cream
3 eggs (180g)
50g ground almonds
160g plain flour
1 level tsp baking powder
30ml lemon juice
30g castor sugar
25g icing sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1. Line the base and sides of a 22-centimetre springform cake tin with non-stick paper and heat the oven to 170C (150C fan-forced).
2. Put the butter, oil, sugar, zest and cream in a mixing bowl and beat on high speed for two to three minutes until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the ground almonds. Sift the flour and baking powder and stir in to mix. Spoon batter into the prepared tin, smooth the top and bake for about 40 minutes or until a skewer poked in comes out clean. Remove from the oven.
4. Heat the syrup ingredients in a cup in a microwave or in a small saucepan. While the cake is still warm, make holes in the top of the cake with a toothpick and spoon the syrup over.
5. When the cake has cooled, remove from the tin and place on a plate, then beat together the glaze ingredients and smooth this sparingly over the top with the back of a spoon.
If you like this recipe, try my coconut lime drizzle cake.
Find more of Dan Lepard's recipes in the Good Food Favourite Recipes cookbook.
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