'Highly Commended' Lemon Cake with Earl Grey Icing

After our recent participation in the North Freo Cake Bake , I thought it would be fitting to share with you the recipe that earned me the coaches award for icing efforts. Quite chuffed with the acknowledgement, I must admit! The recipe came from my favourite coffee table book 'Food Fashion Friends' by Fleur Wood. A beautiful compilation of recipes and styling ideas to create unforgettable parties.

225g (1 1/2 cups) self-raising flour

100g (2/3 cup) plain flour

240g butter, softened

170g (3/4 cup) caster sugar

zest and juice of 2 lemons

3 eggs

flowers to decorate (optional)

Earl grey icing

4 earl grey teabags

2 tablespoons boiling water

100g butter softened

160g (1 cup) icing sugar sifted

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Grease and lightly flour a 20cm round cake tin.

Sift the flours into a bowl. In a separate bowl, use an electric beater to cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the lemon zest and then the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Gently fold in the flour, then add the lemon juice. Transfer the mixture to the cake tin and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into middle of cake comes out clean (personal note: I found 30-40 mins was long enough in my oven). Place on a wire rack and allow to cool before icing.

For the earl grey icing, place the teabags in a small bowl and pour over the boiling water. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool completely and allow the flavour to infuse, then squeeze each teabag to extract the liquid. Place the butter and icing sugar in a separate glass bowl and use an electric beater to beat until pale and fluffy. Slowly pour in the tea infusion and beat for 1 minute more. Use a small spatula to spread the icing over the top of the cake, creating small peaks as you work.

To serve, decorate the cake with flowers of your choice.

Serves 8