There are some Chefs that I probably spend a little too much much time with and am admittedly inspired by their work a little too much also. And just to be clear, when I say “spend time with”, I really mean, long for them to be permanent fixtures in my personal friendship list (i’m looking specifically at you Tarek, Yotam, Jamie, Ruth & Rose, David, Benjamin and Thomas) (and yes, first name basis, obvs). While my Instagram stalking does help, let’s take it one step further. Bali Body fund < Hummingbird cake.
Goody goody gum drops.
lemon & thyme drizzle cake
Adapted from The Hummingbird Bakery in London
Makes 1 loaf
Ingredients
Cake:
300g caster sugar
3 eggs
Zest from 1 1/2 lemons
1tsp salt
1 1/2tsp baking powder
1tsp vanilla extract
250ml milk
350g plain flour
200g melted butter
2tsp fresh thyme
Drizzle sauce:
Zest from remaining 1/2 lemon above and juice from 1 lemon
50g caster sugar
100ml of water
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
Method
Heat your oven to 170 and line a loaf tin.
Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or by hand with a wooden spoon, fully combine the sugar, eggs and lemon zest until smooth, light and creamy. Add the remaining cake ingredients to the bowl and work through until you get a super smooth, thick cake batter. Pour into your lined tin and bake for 50-60 minutes (each oven will differ so check at the 50 minutes mark), or until golden and a skewer comes out clean.
While thats cooking, clean up your bench a little then move onto the drizzle (of course the loaf is delicious on it’s own so if you can’t be bothered, just skip this step). In a small saucepan bring all the drizzle ingredients to a boil. Keep the sauce boiling away until it has reduced by half and is a little thick and sticky – around 5 minutes.
While the cake is still warm, gently transfer it onto a wire rack and poke it will little holes all over using a skewer. Drizzle the sauce all over the cake, letting it soak up all the goodness.