Name: Madeira cake
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Yield: 10
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 175g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for the tin; 175g caster sugar; 3 medium eggs, lightly beaten; ½ tsp vanilla bean paste; 200g self-raising flour; 75g ground almonds; 1 lemon, zested and juiced

175g unsalted butter
softened, plus extra for the tin
175g caster sugar
3 medium eggs
lightly beaten
½ tsp vanilla bean paste
200g self-raising flour
75g ground almonds
1 lemon, zested and juiced

Method

step 1
Heat the oven to 170C/150C fan/gas 3. Lightly butter the base of a 900g loaf tin and line with baking paper. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy using an electric whisk or in a stand mixer.
step 2
Beat in the egg a little at a time, adding a spoonful of flour if the mixture begins to curdle. Stir in the vanilla, then fold in the remaining flour, ground almonds and lemon zest. Add 1 tbsp of the lemon juice, and stir until smooth – add a little more of the lemon juice if needed.
step 3
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 55 mins-1 hr until risen and golden. If it starts to brown too quickly, cover with foil. Cool for 15 mins in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely before slicing to serve.