Lemon slices

The perfect accompaniment to a nice cup of tea, these lemon drizzle slices are light and zesty, and a good alternative for those who don’t particularly love heavy cake. If you aren’t too keen on baking, this all-in-one recipe makes things very simple and gives impressive results.

Lemon slice Credit: Donal's Kitchen Hero

• makes

  30

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  35 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 250 g (9oz) self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 225 g (8oz) caster sugar
• 4 large free-range eggs
• 225 g (8oz) butter, at room temperature
• 45 ml (2 tbsp + 1 tsp) milk
• Grated zest of 3 lemons

Lemon drizzle

• 200 g (7oz) icing sugar
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon

Setting time: 1 hour.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F), Gas Mark 3. Line a 30 cm x 23 cm (12 in x 9 in) rectangular baking tin with parchment paper.

2. Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the middle with the back of a spoon. Add the eggs, butter, milk and lemon zest and beat with an electric hand mixer until well combined, about 2 minutes.

3. Pour the mixture into the lined tin, place on the middle rack in the oven and cook for 35 minutes until risen and golden brown on top. Turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool completely before icing.

4. Whisk together the ingredients for the drizzle and spread over the top of the cooled lemon cake. Allow to set for about 1 hour before slicing into 30 pieces.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.