WHISKEY CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a bundt pan and dust with bread crumbs. In a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat butter, 1 1/4 cups sugar and lemon zest until fluffy and fragrant. Beat in vanilla and 2 eggs. Add remaining eggs. Beat again.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add half the mixture to the batter and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Add remaining mixture and mix again until almost smooth; the rest must be done by hand using a spatula.
• Scrape the batter into the bundt pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Meanwhile, combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar with 1/3 cup water in a saucepan. Boil until bubbles grow small and make fine snapping sounds, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Stir in the whiskey.
• When the cake is done, let it cool for a few minutes. Unmold onto a serving plate with a lip. (The whiskey may pool at the base.) Pierce the top of the cake in about 20 places with a skewer, then pour the whiskey syrup over it. Once the cake is cool, cover with plastic wrap. This cake is best served the next day.