Lemon Drizzle Cake: The British Loaf Cake With a Crackling Sugar Crust

For the drizzle:

• Juice of 1 1/2 lemons, about 4 tablespoons (60 ml)
• 100 g (1/2 cup) caster sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for the top

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180C (350F; 160C fan). Grease a 900 g (9 x 5 in) loaf tin and line the base and long sides with baking parchment.
2. Beat the butter, sugar and lemon zest together for 3 to 4 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Rub the zest into the sugar first with your fingers if you want a stronger flavour.
3. Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour with the last egg if the mixture looks like it might curdle.
4. Sift in the flour and salt, and fold with a large spoon until just combined, then fold in the milk. The batter should drop easily from the spoon. Do not overmix, or the crumb will be tough.
5. Scrape into the tin, level the top, and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden, risen, and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. If the top browns too fast, tent with foil after 30 minutes.
6. While the cake bakes, stir the juice and 100 g sugar together for the drizzle. Do not heat it; the sugar will stay partly undissolved, and that is what makes the crackle.
7. As soon as the cake comes out, prick the top all over with a skewer, going most of the way down. Spoon the drizzle slowly over the top, letting it sink in, and sprinkle on the extra spoon of sugar. Cool completely in the tin, at least an hour, before lifting out.

Notes

Use unwaxed lemons, or scrub waxed ones in hot water. One medium lemon yields about 45 ml (3 tablespoons) of juice and 2 teaspoons of zest, so check your count. The butter should be soft enough to take a fingerprint but not oily; a cold dense butter gives a heavy cake. A cake like this is a treat, and the sugar is deliberate. The NHS guidance on sugar in the diet is a useful reminder that free sugars should make up no more than 5 percent of daily energy, so slice it thin and make it an occasion. For a gentler version reduce the drizzle sugar to 75 g (6 tablespoons) and add a spoonful of yoghurt to the batter in place of the milk. Store in an airtight tin for up to four days, wrapped in baking parchment. It freezes for three months, whole or sliced; defrost at room temperature. Serve with tea, or with berries and cream. The NHS balanced diet guidance has a sensible view of where a slice of cake sits in the week.