Cherry and almond cake

This nice cut-and-come-again cake will keep in an airtight container for several days – that is if you can keep it that long!

200 g butter
200 g caster sugar
3 eggs
150 g self-raising flour, sifted
80 g ground almonds
Grated rind and juice 1 lemon
Half tsp almond essence
150 g glacé cherries, rinsed, dried and quartered
6 heaped tbsp icing sugar

Toasted flaked almonds and roughly chopped cherries todecorate

Preheat the oven to 170ºC. Lightly grease a 20-cm cake tin and line with non-stick baking paper or greased greaseproof paper.

Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the sifted flour with each one, then fold in the rest of the flour. Stir in the ground almonds, lemon rind, almond essence and cherries. Turn the mixture into the cake tin and level the top.

Bake for about 50 minutes to an hour, until firm to the touch and a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then turn out on to a wire rack and cool completely.

Mix the icing sugar with enough lemon juice to make a thick icing. Spread the top of the cake with the icing, letting it dribble down the sides, then sprinkle with the flaked almonds and chopped cherries.