Who doesn’t love a fresh citrusy dessert? I have been making this recipe for years and it doesn’t last long. Minimal ingredient baking is right up my alley. This recipe is great as a dessert with some whipped cream, fruit salad or on it’s own with a hot cup of tea. This enticing loaf has also been known to make an appearance at breakfast! Something about citrus makes a dessert guilt free. This loaf travels well. Perfect for a picnic or potluck, and in the unlikely event there are leftovers, freezing works too!

Some additional add-in ideas are poppy seeds or blueberries!

Buy me a coffee

Ingredients

Lemon loaf

1/2 cup butter, soft and at room temp

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup of half and half cream

2 Tbsp lemon rind zested

Lemon syrup

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp lemon rind zested

Method

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl beat the sugar and butter until fluffy. Add vanilla extract then the eggs one at a time while continuously beating.

3. In a separate large bowl combine the flour, lemon zest, salt and baking powder; stir into the butter mixture alternating with the cream. Make three additions of dry and two with cream.

4. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan (8x4 inch or 1.5 litre). Bake for 1 hour or until a cake tester comes clean. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack.

5. Prepare the lemon syrup in a small skillet on low heat until all the sugar has melted.

6. Using a skewer, pierce the lemon loaf in multiple areas all over (I usually do around 12-14 piercings straight through to the bottom).

7. Pour the lemon syrup over the loaf so that the full loaf has been coated .

8. Let cool for 40 minutes before removing the cake from the loaf pan.

9. Let cool completely prior to serving.

Serve and enjoy!