orange drizzle cake

This orange drizzle cake is a classic teatime treat. The orange juice and sugar form a delicious glaze.

I walked outside, picked an orange off my tree, and grated the zest.  I don’t think I’ll ever get over the thrill of being able to do this.

It’s a basic pound cake recipe and you whip it up in minutes.

I adapted a lemon version to an orange version, but you could just adapt it back if lemon is preferable.

What you need:

• 225g butter – room temp, soft
• 225g caster sugar
• 225g self-raising flour
• 4 large eggs – room temp
• finely grated zest of 1 orange (or lemon)
• FOR THE DRIZZLE TOPPING:
• juice of 1 orange (or 1 1/2 lemons)
• 85g caster sugar

How to make:

1. Preheat oven to 180 c
2. Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy
3. Add the eggs one at a time, allowing to fully combine between each addition
4. Add the orange zest and mix
5. I then did the rest by hand: sift the flour over the mix and fold in to combine
6. Line a 8x 21 cm loaf tin (or you could make a 21cm 1 layer round cake) and then empty the cake batter, smoothing over the top
7. Bake for 45 – 50 mins, until golden brown, risen and when a tester is inserted it comes out clean.
8. when it’s removed from the oven, mix the orange juice and the caster sugar together but don’t over-stir to dissolve the sugar
9. Pierce the cake all over the surface with a skewer or a sharp knife and then pour over the drizzle mix
10. The juice will get absorbed by the cake and the undissolved caster sugar will form a light sugary crust
11. Allow the cake to cool completely in the tin before removing it

It’s extremely moist with a nice crumb, perfect with a cup of tea.