Lemon and Blueberry cake

This recipe is based on one from Yotam Ottelenghi. I love his recipes and I have a lovely collection of his books. Flavours are something I love and more recently I'm finding that when I eat out, I spend a lot of money on something that doesn't have much flavour or doesn't actually taste nice. It's all about the home bakes, good ingredients and eating it fresh.

As I have said before good quality ingredients can make all the difference. Anything with flour in, I am all for fresh or organic, I find that my body responds differently when I'm eating fresh and the least processed as possible. I'm sure we all know that feeling of enjoying something while we're eating it but then afterwards feeling bloated, lathargic, wanting more. Just by changing some ingredients, I have found it can make all the difference.

Notes: I used unrefined sugar for both sugars in this recipe. Make sure you read the method before starting so you are aware of the stages in the oven, might seem a bit faffy but it turned out so good.

Ingredients

150g unsalted butter

90g sugar

2 lemons - zested and 2tbsp juice

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 large eggs

90g Self raising flour

Pinch of salt

110g ground almonds

200g blueberries

50g unrefined icing sugar

Method

• Preheat oven to 180°C fan. Grease and line a loaf tin. ( I don't know what size mine is, just use the one you have is my motto).

• Mix the butter, sugar, lemon zest, 1 tbsp lemon juice and the vanilla in a bowl. If you're fancy enough to have a food mixer use that, if not then a hand mixer. If not that then a lot of strenght and perserverance with a wooden spoon and your arms. You want to mixer to become light in colour normally takes around 3 mins with a mixer.

• Add the eggs a little at a time, this is when you panic that the mixer has split and you've ruined it but don't panic, it comes together in the next step.

• Add the flour, salt and almonds in stages to bring the mixture back together. It should now look more like a cake batter.

• Finally fold in 3/4's of the blueberries and pour into the loaf tin.

• Bake for 15mins, then remove and sprinkle the rest of the blueberries over the top over the cake. Return to the oven for another 15mins until the top is golden brown, looking like the top is down, but well aware the middle isn't. Cover loosely with tin foil and bake for 25-30mins, until when you insert a knife or scewer it comes out clean. Remove from the oven and keep it in its tin to cool, then place on wire rack to really cool.

• I made a small amount of icing. I mixed some unrefined icing sugar with the remaining lemon juice to form a thick drizzle. If you want it sweet or like the aesthetics of the white icing, you can use that. Then drizzle over the cake.

• Lastly, Enjoy!