Our courgette and lemon cake is a delicious lighter alternative to heavier chocolate cakes. Packed full of flavour, it will soon become your favourite teatime treat.
Ingredients
- 300g grated courgette
- 250g soft unsalted butter
- 200g caster sugar
- 200g cream cheese
- 100g plain flour
- 100g self-raising flour
- 85g icing sugar
- 3 lemons
- 3 eggs
- 4 tbsp lemon curd
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180℃/160℃ fan/gas mark 4. Grease and line 2 round sandwich tins with butter and greaseproof paper, then set to one side. Zest two of the lemons to use in the cake, and save the third lemon’s zest for the icing. Juice the lemons, then put the juice in your Cooks Professional bowl before setting to one side.
- Use your Cooks Professional stand mixer to combine 200g of the soft butter, caster sugar, courgettes, eggs, the zest of two lemons, and vanilla extract. Mix together until a creamy batter forms. Gradually stir in the mixed flours, baking powder, 1 tbsp of the lemon juice, and a generous pinch of salt.
- Divide the batter between the prepared tins, then bake for roughly 25 minutes, or until golden and springy to the touch. Once cooked, removed from the oven and allow to cool in the tins for roughly 15 minutes, before turning out onto a cooling rack.
- While the cake is baking, prepare the lemon drizzle. In a bowl, mix 1 tbsp lemon juice with 25g icing sugar, then set to one side.
- Use a cocktail stick to prick the prepared sponges once they’ve been turned out onto the cooling rack, then spoon over the prepared drizzle and allow the cakes to cool completely.
- Make the icing. Use your Cooks Professional stand mixer to mix the remaining icing sugar, butter, cream cheese, and the remaining lemon juice, as well as the remaining zest you set to one side earlier. Combine until you’ve got a creamy frosting.
- Place one cake on a plate, and use half the frosting to cover it. Spread over the lemon curd, and then place the second cake on top. Use the remaining frosting to cover the top of your cake, then serve immediately.
Lead image: Manyakotic via Getty Images.