Serves: 12; Prep: 20 mins; Cook: 80 mins; Cals per serving: 452
Ingredients: 225g (8oz) butter, softened; 225g (8oz) caster sugar; finely grated rind of 2 lemons; 4 eggs, size 3, beaten; 225g (8oz) ground almonds; 200g (7oz) semolina; 150g (5oz) self raising flour; 10ml (2 tsp) baking powder; 5ml (1 tsp) almond flavouring; juice of 2 lemons; juice of 1 orange
Syrup: 1 lemon; 2 oranges; 75g (3oz) caster sugar; 2 cinnamon sticks
Lemon Curd Icing: 90ml (6 tbsp) lemon curd; 30ml (2 tblsp) icing sugar, sieved
- Beat together butter, sugar and lemon rind until pale and fluffy. Gradually beat in eggs. Fold in almonds, semolina, flour and baking powder. Stir in almond flavouring and fruit juices to form a smooth firm consistency. Pour into a greased and lined 21cm / 8 ½ in round tin. Bake at Mark 4 / 180oC / 350oF for 80 mins until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- To make the lemon syrup, use a vegetable peeler to remove strips of orange and lemon zest and put them into a pan. Squeeze the lemon and the orange and add the juice with the caster sugar and the cinnamon sticks to the zest in the pan. Bring the mixture to the boil, stirring gently, then simmer for a few minutes. Remove from the heat and keep to one side.
- Pierce several holes in the cake with a skewer and drizzle over the syrup, reserving the citrus peel and the cinnamon sticks. When cook, remove the cake from the tin and put it onto a serving plate. Gently warm the lemon curd, stir in the icing sugar, and use to drizzle over the cake just before serving. Decorate with the reserved peel and the cinnamon sticks.
timeonyourhands.org 