LO-CAL LEMON DRIZZLE CAKE

Like most people in January, I am trying to eat less sugar/fat/calories etc. I had a lonely lemon in the fridge and, as my usual lemon cake is sugar-packed, I went looking for a less calorific one to make. I adapted this Rosemary Conley recipe to include spelt flour, less egg and to make a smaller loaf.

If you make 12 slices of the cake, it is 100 calories per slice, which is pretty great.

I used a 2lb loaf tin which resulted in a squat enough cake, I was too lazy to line a 1lb tin (I have readymade liners for the 2lber). You could make double this recipe for a 2lb tin (bake for 1 hour), or this amount for a 1lb tin.

INGREDIENTS
90g low-fat marg
90g caster sugar
1 egg, beaten
90g wholegrain spelt flour (or plain flour)
2 tbsp of porridge oats
1 tbsp milk
half tsp baking powder
1 lemon, zested

TOPPING
juice of the lemon
1 tsp demerara sugar

METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/Gas Mark 2
- Line your loaf tin
- Zest the lemon
- Juice the lemon
- Beat the marg with the caster sugar, gradually adding the egg
- Sieve in the flour and baking powder and beat again
- Add the lemon zest, porridge oats and milk and mix through
- Pour into lined loaf tin
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 mins, or until a skewer inserted into the thickest part comes out clean.
- Pour over the lemon juice and sprinkle with sugar, allow to cool in tin
- Serve cold

LEMON DRIZZLE LOAF

I love lemon drizzle cake and this recipe is adapted by one from How to Be a Domestic Goddess, Nigella's wonderful book. I always adapt recipes to reduce the amount of sugar. Most recipes have far too much IMO and that results in super sweetness. I love sweet things but don't want to feel icky after eating cake. I also substitute some or all of the flour with spelt flour. I like spelt's denseness but didn't want this cake to be too dense either. Anyway, it turned out gorgeous: properly lemony, nice and sweet, and sticky on top. In fact, it is calling to me from the tin: Eat more of me!

Ingredients

125g caster sugar
100g self-raising flour

75g spelt flour
125g butter

pinch of salt
zest of 1 large lemon

2 eggs

4 tblsps cow's or soya milk

Drizzle

75g icing sugar
juice of 1 large lemon (4 tblsps)

·        Preheat oven to 180˚C

·        Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin

·        Cream the butter and caster sugar

·        Add the eggs and zest and beat well

·        Add flour and salt and fold in completely

·        Mix through the milk

·        Pour into the cake tin

·        Make the syrup while the cake is cooking by gently heating the lemon and icing sugar until the sugar is melted

·        Bake for 45 minutes or so, until golden on top, make sure it is cooked through with a cake tester/skewer

·        Using your skewer, puncture the top of the cake and pour the syrup evenly over the cake

·        Cool completely in the tin before turning out