Lightly flavoured with lemon and topped with candied lemon slices, this classic English Madeira Cake is the easiest dessert you will ever make.
I have a new obsession: The Great British Bake Off.
I know I’m late to the party here… later than I thought actually. I assumed the most recent season was Season 3, but apparently what I’m watching is season 6! Where have I been for 6 years?! So much to catch up on!!
Ugh, I hope I can find the older seasons somewhere. I actually caught the last episode of season 4 (what I thought was season 2) a couple months ago and have been hooked ever since.
Kicking myself for missing out on all of those seasons.
I know Season 6 is technically over, but it just started a few weeks ago here in Canada and I’ve been happily engrossed in it ever since.
There’s something about British TV shows that’s just better than ones in the US and Canada. They have a certain feel to them and a higher quality (in my opinion). The Great British Bake Off is no exception….the US version totally tanked and I, myself, couldn’t even get through one episode. SO BAD.
I think the appeal of the British version is that the contestants are really relatable. They are not professionals, by any means, and there’s just a genuine quality about them. Plus the hosts and judges are the BEST. Sue Perkins is my fave. Hilarious!
I’m also loving the fact that in watching this show I’m being exposed to baked goods I’ve never even heard of — like this classic Madeira Cake.
Slice of cake on a plate.
According to Mary Berry, a Madeira Cake is a close textured plain cake that is signified by a dome and a crack on the top. Traditionally it is lemon in flavour and has some sort of candied lemon garnish.
I didn’t stray away from the traditional version as I wanted to try it in it’s classic form. After all, Mary did say that you can’t beat the classic. It is really simple to make. In fact, I think it might be the easiest cake I’ve ever made.
Naturally, this was attempt #2 at this cake — #1 was an epic fail. Since all of the traditional recipes are British, I had a bit of hard time figuring out ratios and amounts from grams to cups, but mostly converting from self-raising flour to all-purpose.
Unfortunately my first cake, as delicious as it was, completely sank in the middle due to too much baking powder. My sources steered me wrong!
The info I found was to add 2 tsps of baking powder per cup of all-purpose flour to make self-raising flour. This seemed like a lot (based on my experience) but, against my better judgment, I went with 4 tsps per my 2 1/2 cups in the recipe, but it was still way too much.
I ended up going with 1 tsp of baking powder per cup (which is standard) and it worked perfectly.
Candied Lemon Slices
The candied lemon slices were very easy to make. The key is to slice them very thin (1/8″ thick) then you simmer them in a sugary simple syrup until they are candied. And yes, you can totally eat the rind! It softens in the syrup and is delicious.
My Madeira Cake didn’t dome quite as much as I had hoped, there’s just a slight hump in there, but I’m happy with it. It did crack though! Pretty perfect if I do say so myself.
This Madeira Cake is perfect for afternoon tea. Or breakfast, I don’t judge.
It’s simple and delicious. Really, is there anything better than that?? I recommend microwaving pieces for about 20 seconds before eating for that fresh out of the oven taste. I’ll be making this one again for sure!
Looking for more Lemon recipes?
- Lemon Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Lemon Elderflower Cake
- Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake
- Easy Lemon Curd Recipe
Tips for this Madeira Cake
- You can replace caster sugar with granulated sugar if you can’t find any.
- Make sure your 8″ pan is at least 3″ tall or the cake may overflow.
- Be sure to slice your lemons thin and even for best results and prettiest presentation.
- The leftover syrup from the candied lemon slices can be used to drizzle over the cake or you can save it and refrigerate it to add it to iced tea.
Classic Madeira Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup caster sugar super fine sugar - not powdered
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- zest and juice of 1 1/2 lemons
Candied Lemon Slices:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 2 lemons sliced 1/8" thick
Instructions
Madeira Cake:
- Preheat oven to 325F (170C). Grease and flour a deep* 8" round cake pan, line with parchment.
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour and baking powder. Set aside.
- Beat butter, sugar, and lemon zest on med-high until pale and fluffy (2-3mins). Add eggs one at a time along with one tablespoon of flour mixture for each egg. Fully incorporate after each addition.
- Gently fold in flour mixture, then lemon juice.
- Bake for approximately 1 hour or until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10mins then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely.
Candied Lemon Slices:
- Place sugar and water in a large, shallow, saucepan. Bring to a simmer and stir until dissolved. Gently lay the lemon slices in a single layer in the saucepan. Simmer for 15mins, turning over half way through.
- Carefully remove slices from pan, dripping off excess syrup, and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Allow to dry at room temperature. Dip in granulated sugar if desired.**
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Notes
** The cooled lemon syrup can be drizzled over cake or used in various beverages. I used mine in homemade iced tea. Madeira Cake recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson.
Candied Lemon recipe from Our Best Bites
Originally published Aug, 21, 2016
Elsa says
My cake came out dry. I compared your recipe to Mary Berry’s and I would one more egg in your recipe next time I made them.
Olivia says
Hi Elsa! The cake should not be dry. Is it possible it was overbaked?
Elsa says
Whoops sorry Olivia, my bad, I misread the recipe. I read 1 butter and I thought it was 1 stick instead of 1 cup. That’s why it was dry!
Just a little suggestion, perhaps also put stick measurement in the bracket, that would really help!
Stacey Cox says
This is an amazing recipe! I’ve just made my first one for the middle layer of a 3-tier wedding cake and it’s wonderful 🙂
The bride and groom don’t like “bits” so I left out the zest and added extra juice and some lemon essence….. DIVINE!
One more to make and then to layer them with some zesty citrus filling 🙂
Olivia says
Hi Stacey! Yay! So happy you loved it 🙂
Cynthia says
I am giving you 5 stars for figuring out the correct measurements for me!
I am making this today, I’ll let you know how it goes! I am just watching GBBS and saw this episode last night and promised my 11 y.o. I’d take a stab at it!
THANKS
Olivia says
Hi Cynthia! Yay! I hope you guys love it. Let me know 🙂
Nick says
I do mine in a 1lb loaf tin and you get the most awesome crack the length of it
Olivia says
Hi Nick! Thanks for your tip!
Liz says
Hi Liv,
I’ve recently become obsessed with baking cakes & I love your recipes, they are very inspiring!! I live in england so don’t use cups & I noticed you said your 1st attempt on a Madeira cake flopped as you struggled with the conversions so I was just wondering how you do your conversions between cups & grams? I’ve been using your conversion button on some of your recipes but wondered if they were perfect or it would be best to get myself some cups (since over half the recipes on the line are American & in cups (nightmare for me!!))
Olivia says
Hi Liz! The conversion button is an automatic tool and I don’t verify the results. Most people seem to have had success using the metric amounts though! But honestly, sooooo many recipes are in cups that it would be wise to invest in some. A lot of sites don’t have a metric conversion option either. I would get some just to have them 🙂
Liz says
Great, I’ll invest in some cups, already invested in some cake strips (which I didn’t know was a thing!) on your recommendation – my cake game is gunna start getting strong!!
Olivia says
Haha yes!! Let me know how it goes 🙂
Lynn says
One thinks of the oddest things in the middle of the night. I used baking soda. Argh. 😱
Olivia says
Doh! That would definitely be too much leavening and cause the darker color, sinking, and bitter taste! I hope you try it again with baking powder 🙂
Lynn says
I must have done something terribly wrong. The inside of my cake was much darker than your photos, perhaps from using free-range eggs which had very orange yolks. If I make this cake again I will need to find out how to adapt it for baking at 7500’. I will also mix the baking soda in with the butter, sugar, and eggs. It didn’t fully incorporate into the batter and tastes very bitter. The center of the cake didn’t rise, maybe because of our elevation. I was really looking forward to a “stay home” treat, but this didn’t work for me at all. 😢
Olivia says
Hi Lynn! Elevation definitely plays a huge part in baking and can wreak havoc on recipes. It might require some experimenting to figure out what works for you, but here are some guidelines to get you started 🙂 https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking
Bonnie says
Did you use baking soda instead of baking powder? That would be the problem.
Also if either baking powder or baking soda have been around for a while, it’s a good idea to put it through a sifter with a little flour to make sure you have no bitter lumps. DO NOT try to dissolve it in your wet ingredients!
Trina says
This cake was so much fun to bake and it tasted delicious!
Olivia says
Hi Trina! So happy you liked it 🙂
Stacey says
what better to do during lockdown than bake a cake?! 🙂
deliciously lemony, and the candied lemon is spectacular! i split mine between two 6″ pans and it worked well (my 8″ is only 2″ high, though i think it could have been okay in that height?), but one cracked more beautifully than the other.
thanks for another winning recipe olivia! 🙂 stay safe and healthy 💕
Olivia says
Hi Stacey! So happy to hear you liked it 🙂 Stay safe as well!
Diane says
Self-rising flour also contains salt, not just baking powder. I believe a 1/4 teaspoon per cup of flour. Being from the South, I’m familiar with self-rising flour.
Olivia says
Hi Diane! Thanks for the tip 🙂
Sita says
Hi !
So I tried this recipe and had a couple of major issues :
1. The batter was super dense. I added milk to get a good falling consistency .
2. The heat was too low it took two hours to bake
3. Then the crust came out super hard
On the plus side I added orange zest which gives a great flavor and instead of lemon juice used vanilla essence. Flavor was great but texture was not
Olivia says
Hi Sita! Sorry to hear you had trouble with this one.
1. The cake is more of a pound cake so the batter will be more on the dense side. It should be easily spreadable in the pan though. When measuring your flour be sure to spoon and level into the cup rather than using the cup as a scoop.
2. This could be due to the milk you added to the recipe and/or your oven runs cooler than it should. I recommend getting an oven thermometer to test if your oven heats properly.
3. This is due to baking it for an hour longer than the recipe calls for.
Elizabeth Davis says
You can find all episodes of The Great British Baking Show (as it’s called in the US) on Amazon or PBS.com. I have them all and love re-watching them! I’m anxious to try your Madeira cake recipe!
Olivia says
Hi Elizabeth! Thanks for the tip, I’ll have to take a look! I haven’t had much luck finding them anywhere in Canada and the ones they run on PBS on tv are either inconsistent or out of order!
Heather says
Hi! I’m using your recipe to make a wedding cake. Wish me luck. Any advice on adapting to other size pans? I’m doing a 12″ layer, a 10″ layer and an 8″ layer.
Olivia says
Hi Heather! Converting pan sizes is always tricky. Here’s a site I use as a guideline: http://www.joyofbaking.com/PanSizes.html
Ken says
Sounds good. Though 1/2 tsp salt would be pretty standard in most recipes. I’d add that.
Olivia says
I hope you like it! 🙂
Erica Fuentes says
Tried out this recipe last night and I am in love! As suggested I drizzled the remaining liquid from the candied lemon wedges on top of the cake while it was warm to allow it to soak in a bit easier. It added a nice lemon bar sort of tang to the cake. Delicious! My new favorite lemon cake.
Olivia says
So happy to hear that you liked it, Erica!
Anita says
Can you use a bundt pan for this cake? It is the only deep baking pan that I have.
Olivia says
Hi Anita! Yes, it should work just fine in a Bundt pan.
Veronica says
Thank you thank you for this! I too am newly obsessed with this show. I just tried to bake the Madeira last night and failed pretty hard converting from grams to cups. My cake had a crack, but a deep deep sink in the middle. I can’t wait to try your adaptation!!
Olivia says
Hi Veronica! Sorry to hear about the fail 🙁 I have those all too often. I hope my version works for you!!
Marni S. says
The British Baking Show is my new obsession, too! I’m watching them on Netflix. I’m looking forward to trying your recipe. Thanks for sharing your converted recipe.
Olivia says
OH, I have to check for it on Netflix!! I thought I had at one point, but we didn’t have it in Canada. I should check again. Glad to meet a fellow BBS fan 🙂
Alice marian phelan says
Looks divine
Thanks for sharing
Olivia says
Thanks Alice! 🙂
Hannah says
This recipe looks absolutely beaitiful! I’m definitely going to make this!
Olivia says
Thanks Hannah!! I hope your like it 🙂
jacquee | i sugar coat it! says
Loving that ring of lemons!! Been a while since I’ve had Madeira cake. I’ve only made it once for the blog (w/o lemon), but my grandma baked all things British when we were kids. I saw one episode of that show and really enjoyed it, but haven’t seen it since.
Olivia says
Thanks!! You’re so lucky to have grown up with your grandmas bakes :). I’m off to check out your recipe!
Nila @ The Tough Cookie says
Hey Olivia, this cake looks amazing! Love the classics 😉 And yes, LOVE the Great British Bake Off. There’s also a Dutch version that’s pretty decent, but watching the British original just makes me think of all those other great British things, like HP and Nigella Lawson!
Olivia says
Exactly!! <3 HP and Nigella -- all the best things, right??
Jess @ What Jessica Baked Next says
Love madeira cake – classic cake recipes are always the best! 🙂 The Great British Bake-Off is one of the highlights of the summer for me and I’m really looking forward to the new series which starts tonight! Definitely need to give this madeira cake recipe a try sometime, it looks beautiful and gorgeously light and fluffy. 🙂
Olivia says
You are so lucky you get to watch it right away!! It will probably be months before we see it. This cake is a delicious one for sure, and so easy, I hope you try it! 🙂
Olga says
I haven´t heard before about that show… I will search… Here in Spain we had something similar called “deja sitio para el postre” (more or less “leave place for the dessert”) and it was really bad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The classics are allways big!!!!!!!!!!! less is more for me
A big kiss
Olivia says
Haha there are a LOT of bad baking shows, hopefully you can find this one :). xo
Anna says
I found The Great British Baking Show on PBS and I am hooked. Season one is on Netflix. The bakers made Madeiras Cake on this season. Your cake looks delicious and has the crack!!
Olivia says
Omg I will have to check Netflix! Thanks for the tip 🙂
Sarah says
Oooh Madeira Cake. So simple and so good! It often gets overlooked and is considered quite a plain cake. However, as someone who loves any cake, there really is nothing wrong with being bought back to basics and trust me, one slice of this cake is nothing more than a heavenly treat. I shall have to “get my bake on” now…..can’t wait!
Olivia says
I totally agree! This was my first time having one and I LOVED it. For sure will be making it again :).
Marg says
This one sounds yummy and easy. I might just give it a try! Lovely photos as usual:)
Olivia says
Thanks Marg! You can totally do it. I have faith in you! 🙂
Saira says
Which channel is it on here? I’ve watched some here and there a year ago or so.
Olivia says
Hi Saira! Its on PBS — 204 for me 🙂 But I think the most recent one just wrapped up.
Lorna says
Hi Olivia,
Don’t feel bad about missing Great British Bake-off. I live in the UK and watched my first series last year. I’m now counting the days to season 7 which starts on Wednesday. Enjoy season 6.
Olivia says
So exciting!! It will be a while since we get season 7 here I’m sure :(. I need to hunt down the other ones in the meantime!