1/2 pound unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 cups, unbleached all-purpose flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 tightly packed tablespoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Lemon Glaze – recipe below
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 10-inch tube pan. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, blending well after each addition. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Stir dry ingredients into egg mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Add lemon zest and juice. Pour batter into prepared tube pan. Set on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 1 hour and 5 minutes, or until cake pulls away from sides of pan and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan, set on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove cake from pan and spread on glaze at once, while cake is still hot.
LEMON GLAZE
1 pound confectioners’ sugar
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tightly packed tablespoons grated lemon zest
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
Cream sugar and butter thoroughly. Mix in lemon zest and juice; spread on warm cake.
