Tuesday 22 October 2013

Lemon Yogurt Cake | Gâteau au Citron (Butter free | Low fat cake)


A small lemon plant was the first thing that we got for the garden from nursery when we shifted to our home some years ago. The plant shed its leaves in the first week leaving us guessing as to how long it would take to adapt itself to the new home and new soil. But I trusted Yogi’s green fingers and our love which the tiny plant was showered with, by timely feed of water and warm loving touch and sweet talk with unfailing regularity. Yes! Plants do respond to loving touch, conversation and good music.
One fine day two tiny curled up leaves were discovered by my daughter and all of us gathered around the plant, as though admiring some marvel. Yes! The plant was alive and had responded and signaled that it liked its new home. Many more tiny leaves appeared in due course of time, and transformed into shiny leaves and soon became uncountable. And after a year, the plant gave us four lemons. To us, they were the best lemons on Earth! Shiny, perfectly oblong and juicy. 

The lemon plant has now become a tree, a bountiful tree that has been giving lemons twice a year out of which we’ve made salads, lemonades, pickles and cakes over and over again. Last week, we plucked all the lemons for a sweet pickle.  Few days later, we discovered that there were few more left in the tree.
 I used these to make Lemon Yogurt Cake. This cake is very easy to make. It has a lovely tangy taste and refreshing lemony aroma. A slice of the cake leaves you asking for more. A must try recipe.

Lemon Yogurt Cake | Gâteau au Citron
Adapted from Orangette,  and this is how I made it
Ingredients
1 ½ cup all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
½ cup plain yogurt
½ cup olive oil / canola oil
3 eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons lemon zest
For the glaze
Juice from two lemons
½ cup powdered sugar
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
In a large bowl, mix yogurt and sugar. Add eggs and stir until well blended.
Whisk flour with baking powder.
Add flour to wet ingredients, add zest. Add oil and stir. The batter looks shaggy at this point. Keep stirring till it becomes smooth.
Grease and line a 6 inch round cake tin. Pour the batter and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or till a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Remove from the tin after 10 minutes. Cool in the rack.
To prepare the glaze, mix sugar and lemon juice. Pour evenly over the cooled cake.




6 comments:

  1. Hello Namita! Here after a long time. Such a pretty sight this cake is. I have tried orange-yogurt cake once and loved the flavour. Am sure to like this one too. Will keep this in my to-do list and try an egg-free version of it sometime.

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  2. I have been so wanting to make a citrus cake esp with oranges having arrived in the markets and this looks so inviting..love the dripping glaze on the cake

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  3. I was wondering what to do with a stash of ripe limes a friend gave me and some milk kefir sitting in the fridge door and now I know. Cheers for this excellent looking cake. I am sure that Steve will enjoy it and Bezial likes to share a bit of cake with him as well. Earl isn't all that fussed on eating citrus based baked goods but he can eat dog biscuits ;). Cheers for sharing :)

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  4. Hello Binu, I love your baking experiments. Do share your experience with strawberries.

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  5. Namita Ji such a fantastic and easy recipe.....the cake turned out super moist and fragrant .....Lots of love ......Madhuri

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    1. Thank you so much Madhuri for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback. I am so happy that the cake turned out well.

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