Sweet Caroline's Lemon Pound Cake

It’s lemon season! And when life gives you lemons and sticks you at home, guess you can turn those lemons into pound cake.

This easy recipe comes from Visit Concord’s own Caroline Cabral. She found it in the New York Times cooking section 3 years ago and has tweaked it for simplicity and taste. Last weekend, she planted her very own dwarfed Meyer lemon tree. Hopefully by next year she won't have to borrow these citrus fruits from her neighbors in order to make the tasty summer treat. 

Ingredients

  • Butter, for greasing pan
  • 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour, more for pan
  • Zest of 2 lemons
  • 1 cup sugar
  • ½ cup buttermilk (If you don’t have buttermilk, use 1/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup plain yogurt or replace with sour cream!)
  • 5 tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ⅔ cup butter (melted)
  • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
  • ½ cup confectioners’ sugar

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour an 8-inch loaf pan.

2. In a bowl, combine lemon zest and sugar and rub with your fingers until it looks like wet sand. Whisk in buttermilk, 3 tablespoons lemon juice and eggs. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk dry ingredients into the batter, then whisk in butter and poppy seeds.

3. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the loaf cool in the pan until warm to the touch, then turn out onto a baking rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Turn the cake right side up.

4. Whisk together the remaining 4 teaspoons lemon juice and the confectioners’ sugar. Spread glaze evenly over the cake. Cool completely before slicing.

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