20120116 Madeira Cake

(SOURCE: Nigella Lawson - My Mother-in-law's Madeira Cake)

I woke up this morning feeling not so great because of awfully swollen fingers and feet (I know I should be grateful already as my face/hands/feet have only started swelling since last week when I hit 38-week pregnancy). The frosty and sunny morning lifted my mood a little, but I needed another dose of mood booster to kick start this week. I thought a warm slice of pound cake would do the job and was keeping my fingers crossed that I had all the ingredients I need in the cupboard. I found this Madeira cake recipe online and it looks like a pound cake, so it would do! I love it when the house is filled with the smell of baked goods. This is my first Madeira cake - it tastes just like a simple pound cake but with a twist of lemon flavor. And this cake, especially its crispy topping, really made my day!

INGREDIENTS
240g softened unsalted butter
200g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 large eggs
210g self-raising flour
90g plain flour

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 170 degree C, and grease a loaf tin.
2. Cream the butter and sugar, and add the lemon zest.
3. Add the eggs one at a time with a tablespoon of flour for each.
4. Gently mix in the rest of the flour and, finally, the lemon juice.
5. Sprinkle with caster sugar (about 2 tablespoons) as it goes into the oven, and bake for 1 hour or until a cake-tester comes out clean.
6. Remove to a wire rack, and let cool in the tin before turning out.