Sansa’s Lemon Cakes

I’ve always been a huge fan of lemon cakes, lemon glazes, syrups and candied lemon slices. For this weeks GOT inspired treat I decided to pay tribute to one of my favourite Stark sisters, Sansa. Lemon cakes happen to be a firm favourite of Sansa Stark so I obviously had to recreate it!

I whipped up what I’d like to call the best vanilla cake ever ever tasted, a gorgeous lemon icing glaze and homemade candied lemon slices to decorate them with.

Here’s how you can make them.

Sansa’s Lemon cakes

Ingredients

For the cake

3 and 2/3 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 and 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

3 large eggs + 2 additional egg whites, room temperature

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

Candied lemons

2-3 medium sized lemons

2 cups of granulated sugar

2 cups water

1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

For glaze

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

3-5 tablespoons cream/milk

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Method

To make the cake

1.Preheat oven to 177°C. Grease a cupcake pan with butter or spray with baking non-stick spray and set aside.

2. Whisk the cake flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together.

3. Beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula as needed. Beat in the 3 eggs, 2 egg whites, and vanilla extract until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Whisk while pouring in the buttermilk and mix just until combined.

4. Pour batter evenly into muffin tray I like using a 1/4 cup measurement for this. Bake for around 15 – 20 minutes or 25 – 30 minutes if using a cake pan or until the cakes are baked through. To test if the cakes are done, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it’s done. Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans then set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.

Candied lemons

1. Thinly sliced lemons and remove any seeds. You should have about 24 thin slices, give or take..Prepare a medium-size bowl with ice and water.

2. Bring a pot of water to boil, add lemon slices and boil for one minute. remove slices from boiling water and plunge into ice water for a couple of minutes until cool, then drain.

3. In a medium-size pa bring sugar and water to a simmer, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Add lemon slices in a single layer and simmer for about an hour, until rinds are translucent.

4. Remove lemon slices and cool on wire rack.

For glaze

1.Place the powdered sugar in a medium-size bowl. Add the heavy cream a tablespoon at a time until you reach the consistency you’d like your icing or drizzle to be.

Add the flavor extract of your choice. Mix well and immediately drizzle or spread over the cakes.