Luxurious Lemon Loaf

I know. It has been a long time. It has been an eventful year. In the past year I have planned a bridal shower (my own, of course, and to my specifications), was married to the love of my life, and went on a fabulous Hawaiian honeymoon. I also moved into to an amazing townhouse with a kitchen any foodie would be proud of. I haven’t stopped cooking and baking, but I just haven’t had the time to blog about it. I have been living in the world of 'Adulting 2.0', which involves a lot of meal prep and mini dinner parties (and pre-dinner parties, just to practice). I haven't forgotten about you and have been making mental notes of blog worthy material.

What’s new with you all? I hope you are staying warm in this cold season. It has been on and off between cold and polar vortex and we’re trying our best to stay positive. We are hopeful that spring is trying to break through. In the meantime we stay inside our cozy kitchens, drink tea and bake lovely cakes. Or at least I do. Hubby and I find our favourite time together is when we bake.

There is a new little addition to our extended family- a baby cousin in law that is bringing joy to all. This little baby girl is melting all of our hearts and distracting us from the cold winter weather. I don't know about you, but I love babies, and I love buying things for babies. I could blame this on my short lived career at Baby Gap during university, but it honestly goes back to my childhood helping my mom babysit, and the fact that as an only child I loved being around other kids. In honour of the new arrival, I decided to crack open my Martha Stewart's Cakes book- an essential for any aspiring baker- to try an elegant lemon loaf cake to celebrate her arrival.

Let's be clear that I didn't choose a simple loaf cake, like a normal person. I chose lemon, thinking it was an easy classic. As I reviewed the recipe I found that the loaf cake was a bit intricate, but worthy of a celebratory bake. Don't let me scare you off. It is not a challenging recipe, but be prepared to spend some time. This cannot be made in a rush. To simplify things I completed the loaf over two days, making and cooling the cake one afternoon (steps one through seven below) and glazing on the next morning before serving.

This lovely lemon pound cake uses lemon in as many ways as it can- zest in the batter, lemon syrup to soak in the cake once out of the oven, a sweet lemony glaze for the top, and slightly tart candied lemon slices to balance the flavour. Lemon is used to elevate a simple loaf to an extraordinary bake that your grandma would be proud to serve with her tea.

Who says lemon is boring? Martha knows what she is doing.

Lemon Tea Loaf

Makes two loaves, using 9x5 or 10x5 inch pans

Time: 3 hours, plus cooling (includes preparation and letting the glaze set)

Ingredients

Cake

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature, and more for greasing pans

2 cups all-purpose flour, and more for pans

¾ tsp salt

½ tsp baking soda

2 tbsp finely grated lemon zest (approx. 3 lemons)

2 ½ cups granulated sugar

6 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream

Candied Lemon Slices and Syrup

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup water

2 lemons, sliced very thin, seeds removed

½ cup fresh lemon juice (approx. 3 lemons)

Glaze

2 cups confectioners’ sugar

4 to 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (approx. 2 lemons)

Instructions

1. Prep all of your lemons. Zest lemons for the cake, juice lemons for the glaze and lemon garnish, and cut and remove the seeds for the lemon slices. Set aside.
2. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Butter and then flour your loaf pans, and tap out the excess flour. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and lemon zest.
4. Using a stand mixer bowl (or a large bowl), beat together granulated sugar and butter on high speed until pale and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Add the eggs in one at a time and beat until combined. Mix in the vanilla. Reduce the speed to low and add flour in 3 batches, alternating with 2 batches of sour cream. Ensure the batter is well combined. Scrape down the sides with a silicone spatula if needed.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Bake the cakes on the baking rack for approximately 60 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean. Be careful that the cakes don’t brown too quickly- I tented the cakes loosely with tin foil halfway through to minimize browning.
6. While the cakes are cooking, make your candied lemon slices and syrup. In a medium saucepan, mix together the granulated sugar and water, and bring to a boil until the sugar is dissolved. Then add in the lemon slices, trying to minimize overlapping where possible. Reduce the heat to bring the mixture to a simmer. Cook for approximately 35 minutes, swirling the mixture in the pan occasionally; the slices should be translucent. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the lemons to a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Using wax paper will ensure that the lemons retain the lovely syrup. If making the lemons the day before, let the lemons cool on the sheet, cover with plastic wrap and leave them out at room temperature. Make sure to keep the remaining sugar syrup, and add in the fresh lemon juice a bit at a time until you are satisfied with the taste. You don’t want the syrup to be too sour!
7. Once finished, remove the cakes from the oven and move the pans to baking racks. With the cakes still in their pans, poke a few holes in the tops of the cake using a toothpick. Set aside ¼ cup of the lemon syrup and pour the rest over both of the cakes. Let the cakes cool completely in their pans for approximately two hours, while soaking up the syrup. Once cool, place a parchment lined baking tray below the cakes and remove the cakes from their pans.
8. Brush the remaining syrup on the cakes. Any additional syrup will drip on the pans. If the ends of the cakes are shorter, use less syrup to ensure a more consistent level of sweetness inside the cakes.  Let the cakes absorb the syrup for at least 15 minutes.
9. Make the glaze. Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar and 4 tablespoons of lemon juice in a small bowl. Add additional lemon juice as required until the glaze is thick but easy to pour. If the glaze is too thin it will dry slightly transparent. Let the glaze set for approximately 30 minutes and garnish with the lemon slices.

Serve with tea and enjoy!