Pink Grapefruit Drizzle Cake

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This light, fluffy, moist and buttery sponge loaf bursting with pink grapefruit flavour is drizzled with a sweet and tangy pink grapefruit syrup and then topped with a crispy, zesty pink grapefruit icing. Fresh and delicious, it is no surprise that drizzle cakes are so popular.

Classic Lemon is, without doubt, the most famous drizzle cake. However, with similar levels of tart versus sweet, pink grapefruit makes an incredible alternative. You can enjoy this cake all year round, but I really enjoy these flavours at the beginning of spring, which also happens to be when the fruit is in season and at its best.

How to make Pink Grapefruit Drizzle Cake

Collect all your ingredients together:

For the basic cake –

• unsalted butter, at room temperature
• caster sugar
• eggs
• plain/all-purpose flour
• corn flour
• baking powder
• bicarbonate of soda
• vanilla extract
• fine salt
• sour cream
• grated pink grapefruit zest

For the soaking syrup –

• water
• caster sugar
• pink grapefruit juice

For the icing –

• icing sugar
• pink grapefruit juice

How to make this delectable, delicious drizzle cake:

First, make the sponge –

1. It is important that the butter is at room temperature and soft enough to beat. If it is a little hard, beat it with a whisk before adding the other ingredients. If it is already quite soft, you do not need to do this.
2. Measure all the remaining ingredients, apart from the pink grapefruit zest, into the mixing bowl with the butter. I place my mixing bowl on top my scales and weigh everything in directly.
3. Use an electric whisk to beat until combined. This should take less than a minute.
4. Scrub the pink grapefruit, grate the zest directly into the bowl and fold it into the cake batter. Be careful not to over-mix at this stage.
5. Tip into 2 x 450g/1lb lined baking tins or 1 x 900g/2lb lined baking tin and level the surface, ensuring the cake goes into all the corners.
6. Bake in the centre of a preheated oven for 35 – 40 mins for the smaller size, or 45 – 50 minutes for the larger size, or until cooked. It is cooked when:
   • the centre feels springy when lightly touched with your finger and no imprint remains.
   • a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
   • the cake is beginning to come away from the sides of the tin/dish.

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While the cake is baking, make the soaking syrup –

1. Heat the water and caster sugar in a saucepan over a moderately low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Take off the heat and add the pink grapefruit juice. The syrup is now ready.
3. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, puncture it all over with a cake tester or skewer.
4. Spoon the syrup over the cake, trying to let the middle absorb it as well as the sides.
5. Leave the cake to cool in the tin.

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Cover with icing –

1. When the cake is cool, mix the pink grapefruit juice with the icing sugar. Use a balloon whisk to mix well, until there are no lumps. It should be a pouring consistency. If it is too thick, add a little more pink grapefruit juice or water. If too runny, add a little extra sugar.
2. Remove the baking parchment from the cooled cake and place it on a wire rack.
3. Pour the icing over the cake, ensuring it covers the top of the cake, and let it trickle down the sides.

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Made this recipe?

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