Meyer Lemon Syrup Cake with Jam Swirls

I’m on a one-bowl cake train right now due to laziness and lack of time.  Nothing fancy here.

And you know what?  It’s summer and we don’t need fancy.  We need fast, delicious, easy, and having the oven on for only a minimum amount of time.

This actually came about because I was at the grocery store (a rare occurrence for me lately) and they had meyer lemons.  I’ve been obsessed with the idea of meyer lemons for a long time, but have never made anything with them or I think even HAD anything with them.  They’ve been on my “to try” list for a while, so I threw them in my cart, not knowing exactly how I planned to use them.

After tons of searching (particularly taking into account the amount of time I could really devote to something), I decided to try this syrup cake.  I’m hit and miss on cake as a dessert, they’re often a bit underwhelming to me, and often dry as well.  I love the idea of the syrup cake because it would keep it much more moist.  The batter also comes together in one bowl, so less dishes and it’s all very fast (about 10 minutes to pull everything together).

At the last second, I decided that it needed something extra, so I added some jam swirls to provide a complementary flavor and some extra texture.  I had a jar of apricot jam open, and knew that the sharp, sweet apricot would be a great pairing with the sharp, sweet meyer lemon.  But strawberry or raspberry would be great as well, or you can leave the jam out if you prefer.  This was a hit at work, gone within an hour of putting it out.

Preheat the oven to 180°C / 355°F and grease and line an 8-inch cake tin.

In a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until pale and fluffy (about 2 minutes).

Beat in the eggs one at a time, then gently mix in the flour, baking powder and salt, then add the milk and mix lightly until everything is combined.  It’s a pretty thick batter.  Transfer to the cake tin and spread so it’s even on top.

Microwave the jam in a bowl for 10-15 seconds just to loosen it up, then spoon on top of the batter.  You can just dollop it randomly, do in a snake “S” pattern, or whatever you want.  Then take a large skewer or a knife (I used a toothpick but it wasn’t quite as effective) to get the swirl effect.

Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.  For me it was closer to 35, so after a half hour start keeping a very close eye on it because you don’t want it to overbake and get dry.

In the last 10 minutes of the baking time, make the lemon syrup.  In a tiny saucepan, stir together the lemon juice and icing sugar (and zest if you’re using) over gentle heat until the sugar is fully dissolved.  Keep stirring, it will start to get a little more clear (rather than milky cloudy).  I allowed mine to come to a very gentle boil for just a few seconds before removing from heat, to make it a bit stickier.

As soon as the cake comes out of the oven (leave it in the pan!!!), puncture it all over with a skewer or even toothpick. Spoon or pour the syrup over the cake, making sure the whole thing gets soaked.  Leave the cake to cool completely in the pan before removing.

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Meyer Lemon Syrup Cake

Note, there are some ounce volume measurements below but I would HIGHLY recommend using weight measurements instead to be more accurate, the volume ones vary wildly.

For the cake:

• 125 g (4.5 oz) unsalted butter, softened (5-6 tablespoons for me)
• 175 g (6 oz) caster sugar (I used regular granulated) (was under a cup)
• Zest of 1 Meyer lemon
• 2 eggs
• 175 g (6 oz) of all-purpose flour (this ended up being a little over a cup)
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 4 tablespoons of milk
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup of jam (I used apricot; strawberry, raspberry, etc. would be good)

For the syrup:

• Juice of 2-3 Meyer lemons
• Zest of 1 Meyer lemon (if you have it, optional)
• 50 grams of icing sugar (about a half cup), more to taste if necessary

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 355°F and grease and line an 8-inch cake tin.
2. In a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until pale and fluffy (about 2 minutes).
3. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then gently mix in the flour, baking powder and salt, then add the milk and mix lightly until everything is combined.  It’s a pretty thick batter.  Transfer to the cake tin and spread so it’s even on top.
4. Microwave the jam in a bowl for 10-15 seconds just to loosen it up, then spoon on top of the batter.  You can just dollop it randomly, do in a snake “S” pattern, or whatever you want.  Then take a large skewer or a knife (I used a toothpick but it wasn’t quite as effective) to get the swirl effect.
5. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.  For me it was closer to 35, so after a half hour start keeping a very close eye on it because you don’t want it to overbake and get dry.
6. In the last 10 minutes of the baking time, make the lemon syrup.  In a tiny saucepan, stir together the lemon juice and icing sugar (and zest if you’re using) over gentle heat until the sugar is fully dissolved.  Keep stirring, it will start to get a little more clear (rather than milky cloudy).  I allowed mine to come to a very gentle boil for just a few seconds before removing from heat, to make it a bit stickier.
7. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, puncture it all over with a skewer or even toothpick. Spoon or pour the syrup over the cake, making sure the whole thing gets soaked.
8. Leave the cake to cool completely in the pan before removing.

Original recipe here