A title like that practically challenges you to bake the darn thing, doesn’t it?

After all, you either fling yourself into it optimistically, confident that it really will be the best dang lemon cake you’ve ever sunk your teeth into or you grudgingly do it, all curmudgeon-like, waiting for that moment of  smug satisfaction to prove hoity-toity Saveur magazine wrong.

My verdict?

Since I’m not one to scarf up lemon cake after lemon cake on a regular basis, I can’t say if it’s the very best damn Meyer lemon cake I’ve ever had in my life. But I will say it really is pretty darn wonderful.

As it should be since it’s based on a recipe by baking doyenne Maida Heatter.

A simple batter enriched with milk, ground almonds and plenty of butter gets livened up with Meyer lemon zest and concentrated lemon extract. It bakes up in a loaf pan — a light-colored one works best so that the cake doesn’t overbrown. When the cake emerges from the oven, it’s doused with a warm syrup of Meyer lemon juice and sugar.

Once the glaze has soaked in, turn the cake out of the pan. The recipe doesn’t say so, but I would advise using a piece of parchment paper to do this, rather than a plate, as the now-sticky top of the cake can easily adhere to a plate and come ripping off. Once you have the loaf out of the pan, invert it right-side up on a rack to cool completely.

Then, wrap the cake in plastic wrap and wait 24 hours before eating it.

I know, I know, you have to be patient, so that the glaze melds completely with the cake.

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Want to make jam when you’re, um, in a jam for time?

This no-fuss, no-mess, no-time-at-all recipe allows you to do just that — with help from your microwave.

My good friend and fellow Bay Area food writer Beth Hensperger has just come out with her latest cookbook, “Not Your Mother’s Microwave Cookbook” (Harvard Common Press) that will have you looking at this common appliance in a whole new way.

Let’s face it — most of us use our microwave oven primarily for reheating leftovers. But it can do so much more, as evidenced by Hensperger’s book. Roast peanuts? Yup. Toast coconut? For sure. Dry fresh pasta? You bet. Dry fresh herbs? But, of course.

You’ll even find a microwave version of my Dad’s “Foil-Wrapped Chicken” in the book, of which I just received a review copy. Only, this version is safe for the microwave because it uses parchment paper instead.

Her microwave “Orange Marmalade” takes just minutes to make. You can even turn it into “Meyer Lemon-Orange Marmalade” as I did, and add fresh chopped thyme for a twist. This easy recipe is a boon to those who have citrus trees in their yards and are trying to find new ways to use that bounty at this time of year.

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