My long awaited copy of Like Mam Used to Bake arrived last Friday and I couldn’t wait to get stuck in. This gorgeous baking book is new from Rosanne Hewitt-Cromwell and I have been a long time fan of her blog, you should check it out here. I wanted to try everything in it but decided to start with the lemon squares.
As someone who hated all things lemon until fairly recently, I now can’t get enough of lemon baked treats. The squares are just gorgeous. I love the combination of lemon and poppy seed and often make that in a loaf, so I decided to try adapting this recipe to that. And then I got carried away and added a white chocolate and cream cheese icing. You can make the icing in advance and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. If you want to make the lemon squares exactly as in the book, don’t use the icing, leave out the poppy seeds and double the syrup.
Ingredients:
- 175g unsalted butter, softened
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 175g caster sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tbsp poppy seeds
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (not essence)
- 200g plain flour
- 25g cornflour
- 1 tsp baking powder
For the syrup:
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 50g caster sugar
White Chocolate and Cream Cheese Icing
- 100g good quality white chocolate (I use Lindt with a hint of vanilla)
- 110g cream cheese
- 30g unsalted butter softened
- 125g icing sugar, sifted
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
Method:
- Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4. Line a 10in x 6in brownie pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and lemon zest using an electric hand or stand mixer. Add the sugar and cream together for 3 or 4 mins until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, one by one, beating well after each addition and adding the vanilla extract with the last one. If you are using the poppy seeds add them now too. Don’t worry if your mixture curdles, it will come back together when you add the flour.
- Sift the flour, cornflour and baking powder into the buttery mix and fold through until just combined. You don’t want to over work the flour as it can cause your cakes to have holes.
- Transfer the thick batter to the prepared tin, level off as best you can and bake for 30-35 mins or until golden brown and a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. I started checking the cake at about 25 mins and it was done after 30.
- While the cake is baking make the syrup by mixing the lemon juice and caster sugar until dissolved.
- Remove the cake from the oven once done and pierce all over with a skewer. Pour over the lemon syrup and leave the cake to cool in the tin.
- While the cake is cooling, make the cream cheese icing.
- First, melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl suspended in a pot of simmering water (a bain marie). Make sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. When it is fully melted, set to one side to cool.
- Put the cream cheese and butter into a large bowl and cream together with a hand or stand mixer. When fully combined mix in the lemon juice and zest.
- Add the icing sugar and mix well to combine. Pour in the cooled white chocolate and mix.
- Taste the icing to see if you wish to add more sugar. I don’t have a very sweet tooth so this is the perfect amount of sugar for me, the white chocolate is quite sweet.
- Turn the cooled cake out onto a board and smooth the icing over the top.
- Cut into approx. 15 squares and enjoy!
