An Inspired Cook

I’ve been in the mood for something sweet, something citrussy, something lemony.   As I was looking for ideas and going through my recipe files I found a recipe for Lemon Pound Cake.  Lemons in the springtime, it was just what I was looking for.  A really moist lemony pound cake dripping with glaze that would taste oh so good any time of day.  But there was one more thing that would make this cake even better.  Some sliced strawberries!

You’ll need 2 sticks butter, cake flour, sugar, 4 eggs, baking powder, lemon juice and zest plus a little sour cream.

Melt 2 sticks of unsalted butter plus 2 tablespoons lemon zest in a saucepan over low heat.  Continue stirring until butter is completely melted, set aside.

In a mixing bowl combine sugar, eggs and lemon juice.

Blend on medium speed 30 seconds.

Reduce the speed to low and stream in the melted butter and zest.

Combine the dry ingredients of cake flour, baking powder and salt.

Add the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until well blended.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the sour cream.

The sour cream made it a pastel yellow creamy batter.

Prep a 9 inch loaf pan by greasing it first with butter, then dust with cake flour.

Pour batter into the loaf pan and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees.  After 15 minutes turn down the heat to 325.  Bake an additional 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Rotate pan about halfway through bake time.

The glaze consists of 3 tablespoons lemon juice, 1 teaspoon lemon zest and 1 cup powdered sugar.

Sift 1 cup of powdered sugar into a medium size bowl.

Pour in the lemon juice and zest.  Start whisking.

After a few turns around the bowl you have this lemony glaze.

Let your cake cool for 10 minutes then turn over to a plate.  You can glaze the cake now or . . .

Slice it up and drizzle some lemony glaze over top.  Add a few strawberries for color and just because it tastes real good.

Lemon Pound Cake  (adapted from Emeril Lagasse)

2 sticks Unsalted Butter
1 1/2 cups Cake Flour
1 1/4 cups Sugar
2 tablespoons Lemon Zest
4 Eggs
2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Sour Cream
Lemon Glaze, recipe follows
Strawberries, sliced, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prep a 9″ loaf pan with butter and dust with flour, set aside.

Place the butter and lemon zest into a saucepan over low heat.  Stir until butter melts, set aside.

Using a mixing bowl, combine sugar, eggs and lemon juice.  Beat on medium speed for 30 seconds.  Reduce the speed to low and gently stream the melted butter and zest into the mixture.  Combine the dry ingredients together and add about half to the wet ingredients.  Blend on low speed, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add remaining dry ingredients.  When the batter is blended evenly, add the sour cream and mix just until blended.

Pour the batter into the prepared loan pan and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.  Reduce the heat to 325 degrees and continue baking for 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Rotate the pan about halfway through the baking time.

Remove the cake from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Turn the cake over to a plate and continue to cool.  Pour glaze over cake or over individual slices.

Lemon Glaze

1 cup Confectioner’s (Powdered) Sugar
3 tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 teaspoon Lemon Zest

Sift  powdered sugar into a medium size bowl.  Whisk in lemon juice and zest until glaze forms.