Madeira Cake

“This is baking at its simplest and most elegant. There’s no folderol or fancy footwork: you just feel humble and worthy and brimming with good things.” Awwwww! Doesn’t this quote make you want to buy lemons and dust off your old granny’s baking pan, just so you can try your hands at making this cake? Well, it does for me anyway, and that is what I did yesterday morning. A Madeira cake is a classic English sponge cake, and although the name would have you believe otherwise, it does not originate from the Madeira Islands. The cake is named after Madeira wine, which is not included in the cake itself. My best guess is that this cake is usually served with a glass of Madeira wine in England … Am I right? Wine or no wine, this cake was lovely! Rating: 4 out of 5.

My Mother-in-law's Madeira Cake recipe: Nigella Lawson - How To Be A Domestic Goddess

Ingredients:
- 1 cup softened unsalted butter (240g)
- ¾ cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling (200g)
- grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 3 large eggs
- 1 ⅓ self-rising cake flour (210g)
- ½ cup all-purpose flour (90g)

Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (170ºC).
- Cream the butter and sugar, and add the lemon zest. Add the eggs one at a time with a tablespoon of the flour for each. Then gently mix in the rest of the flour and, finally, the lemon juice. Sprinkle with sugar (about 2 tablespoons should do it) as it goes into the oven, and bake for 1 hour (I let mine bake for 45 minutes to keep it a little bit moist) or until a cake-tester comes out clean. Remove to a wire rack, and let cool in the tin before turning out.


My-Dear-A Cake.


It is best described as a damp lemon pound cake.


The lemon zest countered the sweetness of the cake,
making it an ‘eat-all-day-long’ kind of cake.


The texture was incredibly light and smooth.
I like to serve this cake sliced and sandwiched with some raspberry jam.

Comments

Dianne said…
Would you believe I have just bought a new trendy little lemon zester and today your recipe calls for lemon zest SO !! here goes I will make your madeira cake and try out my new zester. How exciting is that.
Dianne xx
A Bowl Of Mush said…
This was the first thing I ever made from that book!

Sooo yummy!!!
BonjourRomance said…
Looks like a wonner - I've been baking alot this last year which can be dangerous for me though, so I have to try this.
Hope all is going well for you.
Mimi
J e l e n a said…
always wondered what is up with the madeira cake...I mean no Madeira anywhere...this cake so light and fluffy and elegant fits perfectly with your lovely header!
You just can't beat the plain and simple things...looks beautiful and golden!! Well done.
Eliana said…
Love love love simple cakes, especially when they are flavored with lemon.
looks like the lemon olive oil cake I made..yummy!!
Lucie said…
Mmm! This reminds me of a big madeleine--it looks nice and buttery, and the hint of lemon is probably amazing!!!
Phoebe said…
that looks incredibly delicious!
Moon said…
I could SO eat that right now
That quote is very sweet :). The cake sounds like a wonderful treat and a classic.
Anonymous said…
Hi, would it be ok to use regular self-rising flour instead of self-rising cake flour?
Paris Pastry said…
@ anonymous: I'm not sure actually... But you could certainly try it! :)

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