Bookish Recipe: Lemon Cake

I haven't done a Bookish Recipe in a while, but while I was reading the fantastic The Lemon Tree Café by Cathy Bramley, I felt inspired to bake again. In this story there is a lot of delicious food, especially cake, which reminded me of my mum's lemon cake. She is a great baker and this is her signature cake (I don't even know how many times I brought this cake to school for fairs and celebrations) so I asked her for the recipe and tried my hand at it. 

It turned out quite delicious, even if I have to say, not as delicious as my mum's (probably because I left it in the oven a few minutes too much or maybe because she has a special touch, who knows?) but I definitely recommend this recipe. It's quick, easy and you get a light and fluffy lemony sponge. Perfect for when life gives you lemons 😉 

Ingredients: 

- 4 eggs 

- 1 lemon yogurt (125 g)

- 1/2 cup oil

- 1 1/2 cups flour

- 1 cup sugar

- 10 g baking powder

- finely grated zest 1 lemon

1) Heat oven to 200º C and lightly oil a 18cm round x 5cm deep cake tin. 

2) Mix the eggs with the yogurt and the oil. Add the sugar and mix again. 

3) Add the flour, baking powder and lemon zest. You can also add a couple of spoons of lemon juice to make it more lemony. 

4) Briefly and gently stir with a spoon so everything is just combined, without overmixing. 

5) Spoon the mixture into the tin and level the top. Turn oven to 180º C and bake for 40 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. 

6) Dust with icing sugar. 

About the book: 

The Lemon Tree Café is a charming and heart-warming story that will make you laugh but that will surprise you too. Definitely the perfect read for a crispy weekend, to be enjoyed with a good Italian coffee and a big piece of lemon cake.

Blurb: The Lemon Tree Cafe was originally published as a four-part serial. This is the complete story in one package.

When Rosie Featherstone finds herself unexpectedly jobless, the offer to help her beloved Italian grandmother out at the Lemon Tree Cafe – a little slice of Italy nestled in the rolling hills of Derbyshire – feels like the perfect way to keep busy.

Surrounded by the rich scent of espresso, delicious biscotti and juicy village gossip, Rosie soon finds herself falling for her new way of life. But she is haunted by a terrible secret, one that even the appearance of a handsome new face can't quite help her move on from. 

Then disaster looms and the cafe’s fortunes are threatened... and Rosie discovers that her nonna has been hiding a dark past of her own. With surprises, betrayal and more than one secret brewing, can she find a way to save the Lemon Tree Cafe and help both herself and Nonna achieve the happy endings they deserve?