Raspberry & Lemon Loaf Cake

So I interrupt regular programming of over the top decadent American treats to bring you this rather English bake for once! It isn't the sort of thing I'd choose to whip up in my spare time but I was going to Oxford to pay a visit to my granny and I wanted to bring her something she enjoyed.  I heard she is a lemon drizzle fan, but that was a little too boring for me to bake so I decided to jazz it up a little with some raspberries.

The recipe I had bookmarked a few weeks before that fit the bill perfectly called for plain yoghurt.  I was in the yoghurt aisle trying to decide which yoghurt would be best when my eyes landed on this Yeo Valley Lemon Curd yoghurt! It was a done deal and I like to think it doubled the yumminess of this little loaf cake!

I think the yoghurt helps to keep it deliciously moist too, and nothing beats fresh raspberries! Whilst I said at the start of this blog post it's not the kind of bake I'd usually whip up, I wouldn't think twice about baking this again because it really did impress me! 

Raspberry & Lemon Loaf Cake:

Serves 10

Adapted from Shopgirl

1 1/2 cups plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup lemon curd yoghurt (or you can use plain if you'd prefer but your cake won't be as tasty!)

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

grated zest of one lemon

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups fresh raspberries

Drizzle:

1/2 cup icing sugar

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Grease a loaf tin.

In the bowl of a freestanding electric mixer, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.  In another smaller bowl, whisk together yoghurt, 1 cup of sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla.  With the mixture running, begin adding the wet ingredients to the dry, until you have a smooth mixture.  Then, using a spatula, fold in the oil.  

Sprinkle the raspberries with about 1/2 tbsp of plain flour and toss gently so they are all coated.  Add them to the batter, make sure you stir them in very gently and carefully so they don't fall apart.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 50-60 minutes, until an inserted knife comes out clean.  Leave in tin to cool for 10 minutes, then loosen the edges of the loaf with a knife before transferring it to a wire rack to cool completely.

While the loaf is cooling, make the drizzle.  In a small bowl, whisk together the sifted icing sugar and lemon juice.  Pour the drizzle over the loaf and let it sink in, this will make it moist and give a nice crunch on top.

I'm entering this into bookmarked recipes over at Tinned Tomatoes...

and since raspberries are in their prime right now (and I just can't get enough of them) I'm also entering it into   Calendar Cakes hosted by Dolly Bakes and Laura Loves Cakes because the theme is British summertime and fruit picking to me is one of the best British summer pastimes there is! I used to be a strawberry girl at heart but these days raspberries have taken over and are now my fave summer fruit!