The long Easter weekend is upon us and chocolate will no doubt dictate the theme of your sweet treats. Refresh your palate along the way with this sweet/citrussy traybake, perfect as an afternoon treat with a cuppa but equally good served as a dessert with whipped or clotted cream.
Ingredients
225g room temperature butter
225g caster sugar
225g self-raising flour
4 eggs
4 tbsp milk
The finely grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons
For the glaze
175g granulated sugar
The juice of 2 lemons
Method
Preheat the oven to 180c/gas mark 4. Lightly grease a 30x23cm baking tin and line the base with baking paper.
Tip all the ingredients (apart from the glaze ingredients) into a large bowl and beat until well blended. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin, level the top and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cake has shrunk a little from the sides of the tin and springs back when lightly pressed with a fingertip.
While the cake is baking, make the glaze: mix the sugar with the lemon juice and stir to achieve a runny consistency.
When baking time is up, allow the cake to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before lifting out (leaving the lining paper still attached) and placing on a wire rack set over a tray.
Lightly pierce the entire surface of the warm cake with a fork or a sharp knife and brush with the glaze. Leave at room temperature until the glaze has set and the cake is completely cool before removing the lining paper from the cake and cutting into 12 large or 18 small squares.
The squares will happily keep in a tin for up to 4 days.
