Vintage on line

Well Easter weekend is on it's way and I saw this recipe for Raspberry & Lemon Easter cake in a Supermarket magazine, doesn't it just look so yummy and pretty?
Mmmmm look at that photo, oooohh I could just eat a slice now!!!

So the recipe goes as follows:

Ingredients
300g caster sugar
350g butter, softened
2 tsp almond essence
6 medium eggs, beaten
150g ground almonds
300g self-raising flour
grated zest of 4 lemons
6 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Mini eggs to decorate

For the drizzle
150g icing sugar
3-4 tbsp lemon juice
For the filling
300ml double cream
150g lemon curd
200g raspberries

For the icing
300g royal icing sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
yellow food colour

Method

Preheat the oven to 180˚C/350˚F/Gas 4. Grease and flour 2 x 20cm (8in) cake tins.

Beat the sugar, butter and almond extract together until pale and fluffy. Gradually add the egg, then fold in the ground almonds, flour, lemon zest and juice.

Spoon into the tins, smooth the top and bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Make the drizzle by mixing the icing sugar and lemon juice together. When the cake comes out of the oven, turn out onto a cooling rack set over a plate. Prick all over with the skewer and drizzle with the syrup. Set aside to cool.

Whip the cream and fold in the lemon curd. Set one cake on a plate, level the top if necessary and spoon over the cream. Sprinkle with the raspberries and set the other cake half on top. Set aside.
To make the icing, mix the lemon juice and icing sugar until it’s a spoonable consistency, but still quite paste-like. Use a few drops of the yellow colour to make a pastel-yellow shade and spoon the icing evenly over the cake, allowing it to drip down and coat the sides. Run a spoon or pallet knife around the sides to neaten and evenly distribute the icing.

***

Eeek, Easter already! For some reason I don't feel prepared, I had all these great plans to do things & make things, but it seems to have crept up on me somehow!

Well I sent all my Easter cards out today, so at least that is done. I bought some fresh daffodils to pop in a jug on my dining room table too today, so that is one other thing to cross off my list, (oooohhh I should have picked up some tulips while I was there!!!)
Ooohhh and I have already dropped some Easter eggs off, so that is another thing done too.
(oh I'm not doing too badly really when I think about it now!)
I still need to buy some eggs for painting, so will have to get on with that tomorrow or Thursday, and I want to 'Spring' things up a little more around the house so I will have to get on with that tomorrow too, and of course try and get around to baking this fabulous cake in the next few days also.
Anyhoo hope you are all getting prepared for Easter weekend, I just wish the weather would warm up a bit for it don't you?!? Lets keep our fingers crossed!
x