BAREFOOT CONTESSA LEMON LOAF CAKE

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease, flour and line bottom of loaf pans with parchment paper. Cream butter and 2 c sugar in bowl of mixer about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and zest.

Sift together dry ingredients. In another bowl combine 1/4 c lemon juice, buttermilk and vanilla. Add flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately, beginning and ending with the flour.

Bake for 45 minutes to one hour until cake tester comes out clean.

Combine 1/2 c granulated sugar and 1/2 lemon juice in small saucepan. Cook until sugar dissolves.

Let cakes cool 10 minutes, then put on rack, with a tray or paper underneath. Spoon lemon syrup over the cakes. Allow to cool completely.

For the glaze, combine confectioner’s sugar and remaining lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with wire whisk until smooth. Pour over the top of the cakes and allow glaze to drizzle down sides.

Helpful hints: Bake these loaves in either shiny metal pans or glass ones. The darker pans make for an overly brown loaf and tend to dry it out a bit.

Letting the lemons sit out for a while helps when juicing them. They yield more juice, easier, if they are at room temperature.

Buttermilk can be purchased (at Heinen’s) in one cup quantities. Since you only need three-quarters of a cup, you may not want to invest in a quart, unless you like buttermilk for drinking.

I do not always do the final step – the glaze. I like the taste of the syrup poured over the warm cakes and do not think it’s necessary to add the additional glaze.