Julia’s Wheat & Gluten Free Lemon Drizzle Cake

 

 

I’ve been playing with wheat-free baking for a while now and have sometimes found the results a bit disappointing as the flour can make the end product quite crumbly. Not this cake! It’s like a ‘proper’ lemon sponge!  Light, slightly moist and delicious!

 

By the way, this recipe also makes delicious little buns - just cook for less time, about 15-20 mins.

 

Ingredients (mem: use organic and fair trade products wherever possible)

 

• 4 free range eggs (at the time of writing, the Co-op is selling 6 for £1.00 !)
• 225g / 8 ozs marge / butter
• 225g / 8 ozs caster sugar
• 225g / 8 ozs wheat & gluten-free self-raising flour (I use Doves Farm)
• 2 lemons - washed
• 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
• Icing sugar - to taste (eg. 75g)

 

 

Method

 

1.  Heat oven to 160ºC.

2.  Grease ovenproof dish using marge / butter.   

3.  Whisk the eggs well - the mixture will thicken, lighten

and be very airey.

4.  In a separate large bowl, cream the marge and sugar together.

5.  Add the whisked eggs to the creamed mix and stir well.  

6.  Then add the flour and the xanthan gum.  Stir all together.

7.  Use a fine grater to remove the zest from 1½ lemons - stir this in.

8.  Squeeze half a lemon, then take 1 tablespoon lemon juice from that and stir in.

9.  Spoon mixture into tin, level the top with a spoon and bake in the middle of the oven for approx 60 mins.

10. Check cake regularly from about 40 mins. Use a thin knife or skewer, inserted into the centre - if it comes out clean, the cake is done. You may need to cover the cake with foil to stop the top burning and ensure the middle is cooked.

11. Take the cake out of the oven and leave to cool in its tin. Prick the cake all over the top with a skewer or fork - this is for the ‘drizzle’ to seep through.

12. Whilst the cake is cooling, make a lemon drizzle to taste,

using the remainder of the lemon juice from both lemons,

warmed in a saucepan with icing sugar. (You can use caster

sugar if you prefer.) Pour this over the top of the cake whilst

both are still warm - it will cool to form a sweet, lemony topping.

(You can add vegetarian sprinkles at this stage too - they will

stick to the wet drizzle, as shown in the picture.)

13. Remove cake from tin when cool.

14. Put the kettle on!