Almond and lemon syrup cake

Method

1. Line the base of a 20cm cake tin with non-stick baking parchment, and lightly grease the sides. Mix the breadcrumbs with the sugar, almonds and baking powder.

2. Add the oil and eggs and beat well. Stir in the lemon zest. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin. Put the cake into a cold oven and set the heat to 190C/ gas 5.

3. Bake for 40-50 minutes until the cake is a rich brown colour and a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin then turn out onto a plate.

4. Make the syrup while the cake is cooling. Put all the syrup ingredients in a pan and bring gently to the boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Simmer for 3 minutes. Pierce holes in the cake with a skewer while it is still warm and pour over the syrup.

5. Leave the cake to cool, spooning any excess syrup back over it every now and then until the syrup is all soaked up. Decorate with primrose flowers just before serving.

6. Serve with sliced fresh fruit and a dollop of crème fraiche, Greek yogurt, whipped cream or mascarpone.