Everyday Food, January/February 2010
- Prep Time 30 minutes
- Total Time 30 minutes plus cooling
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Yield Makes 24
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Ingredients
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1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
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1 1/3 cups sugar
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1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest, plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
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1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest, plus 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
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2 large eggs
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1 cup all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
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1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
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1 lemon (ends cut off), very thinly sliced and seeded
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, 2/3 cup sugar, and lemon and lime zests on medium speed until light and creamy (not fluffy). Add lemon and lime juices along with eggs and beat to combine, scraping down bowl. With mixer on low, gradually add flour and salt and beat until blended. Divide batter among muffin cups (about 1 tablespoon each). Bake until cakes are golden around edges and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 15 minutes.
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Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine 2/3 cup water and 2/3 cup sugar; cook over medium, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Add lemon slices and rapidly simmer until peel turns translucent and lemon syrup thickens slightly, 5 minutes.
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With a toothpick, poke holes all over tops of warm tea cakes in pan. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon lemon syrup over each cake. Let cakes cool slightly in pan; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Spoon lemon slices on top if desired.
Cook's Note
The cakes also work well using the zest and juice of a single citrus -- lemon, lime, or orange -- or any combination. Lemon is best for making the syrup and candied slices.
These were delicious! I made them exactly as directed above and they turned out perfect. Very easy with a wonderful flavor. I will definitely be making these again!
Wonderful little treat. Everyone in my office loved them. Will definitely make these again. Plenty of lemon syrup leftover, I just froze it and will use it for other desserts.
These were so good, I could not stop eating them!!!
The recipe worked well and were a great hit! A sure repeat!
It should be noted that the "ingredients" should be separated for the "tea cakes" and the "Lemon Syrup"! A fast read may cause double amount of sugar to be added to the "Tea Cakes"!
This recipe did not work for us...perhaps the flour ratio is off? Batter consistency looked thin but was tasty. However, after the cook time, the "cakes" were runny and more like a curd. 24 "cakes" spooned out into a 1/2 cup mixture which we improvised and spooned over vanilla ice cream or yogurt. Disappointing results to say the least...