Preheat your oven to 350.

Let your eggs come to room temperature. If you're in a hurry, fill a bowl with warm water from the tap and submerge the eggs in it for a few minutes.

Cut a round piece of parchment paper that will fit in the bottom of your 8-inch round cake pan. Rub the sides of the pan with butter, as well as the top of the sheet of parchment. Forget cooking spray. A little bit of butter around the edges will do wonders for your cake.

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Sifting's important. It helps make a light cake. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then add the milk, oil and sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the vanilla or lemon extract.

Now add the liquid ingredients to the dry ones and stir with a fork until you have a smooth batter. You don't have to go crazy stirring, but do break up any big lumps. Since you're doing it by hand, you really don't have to worry about overmixing. If you're using a mixer, go ahead and give it a whir with the paddle for a couple of minutes.

Pour the batter into your prepared pan, transfer to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown, the edges pull away from the sides of the pan, and a toothpick inserted int the center comes out clean.

Take it out, let it cool for 10 minutes, then turn the cake out onto a wire rack to cool the rest of the way. You might need to loosen the edges with a knife, but thanks to the parchment, it should drop right out.

Smile! You just baked a cake.