Lemon Lavender Pound Cake

lemon and lavender is a fabulous combo. this lovely simple pound cake shows it well.

bright fresh aromatic flavors really pop with this easy recipe.

just get ahold of some organic dried lavender and the rest is probably in your pantry and fridge.  

Organic you might ask?...

i DID happen to have some that i had bought a while back, BUT i have used lavender from the garden and i'm not dead yet!...so if that's what you've got, or your neighbor (thanks Wendy) has some in the yard...

i don't think the lavender police will be knocking anytime soon.  wash it well or look up some safe methods for drying lavender...maybe you can just use the buds straight from the stem.  we're pretty pesticide free here at this house.

with a nice cuppa tea for a quite afternoon break...

or sliced and presented for that last late summer brunch...

everyone enjoyed this cake.

it's not dense and heavy like some pound cakes and it's not too light like a regular cake.  it's right between the two.  the texture is smooth and the flavor is sweet and tart from the pop of lemon...the slight hint of lavender just gives you a nice calming effect.  be careful and don't get heavy handed with the lavender...more is not better.  you want just a slight..."hmmmm, what is that?" aroma to hit the senses...as you and your guests fight for the last crumb.

LEMON LAVENDER POUND CAKE

adapted from MommaKnows.com by Hanna Trafford

preheat oven to 350 F.  grease 9 x 5 loaf pan

CAKE

1 1/4 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 large lemon, zested and juiced...keep seperate

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 lemon extract

1/4 tsp lavender extract (if you have it)

2 Tbsp dried lavender (if no extract use a little more dried lavender)

2/3 cups milk

GLAZE...squeeze 3 Tbsp of lemon juice into a small bowl.  stir in 3/4 cups powdered sugar until there are no lumps.

in a small bowl combine the flour baking powder and salt...stir in zest of 1/2 lemon...set aside.  in another bowl, beat butter and the 2 Tbsp of lavender with mixer...gradually add 1 cup of sugar and beat until light and fluffy.  add eggs 1 at a time.  then vanilla, lemon, lavender extracts and slowly add the milk.  it will look kind of curdled...that's OK.  Hanna, the original poster, says to do the rest with a wooden spoon...Momma knows best so i did as i was told.  stir in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon just until well combined.  don't over mix.

pour into prepared loaf pan and bake for approx. 55 minutes or until golden brown and tooth pick comes out clean.

when the loaf is done put pan on a rack and get a skewer to poke holes in the top while the loaf is hot.  drizzle or brush half of the glaze over the top.  let cool for about 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan.  turn the loaf out, then right side up and drizzle the remaining glaze...finish with a little more lemon zest.

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