French yogurt cake
With the onset of COVID-19, necessitating everyone shelter in their homes, there's been a somewhat amusing surge in baking. I absolutely understand it--part of what I enjoy about baking is the methodical and often time-consuming nature of it all. And for those finding themselves with a lot of time on their hands, baking is a lovely way to spend an afternoon, tinkering around with measuring spoons and flour. I've resisted jumping on the baking bandwagon, largely because baking entire pies or cakes for just myself would have some unfortunate consequences on my waistline.
However, coming across this recipe, I appreciated its relatively small portion size (a single loaf cake) and its simplicity. Something light and simple sounded like a perfect Springtime baking endeavour.
Recipe
adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 8
1½ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¾ tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
¾ cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
½ cup vegetable oil
2 large egs
½ tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease pan and lightly dust with flour. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add yogurt, eggs, oil, and vanilla; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.
Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth the top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and tester inserted into centre comes out clean, about 50 minutes.
Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. Can be made 3 days ahead. Store air tight at room temperature.
Blueberry compote
1 cup frozen blueberries
1½ tbsp water
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Serve warm.
Musings
It was, in a word, delightful. Super easy to make and yielding a light, spongey cake on the inside and a golden crust on the outside, with just a hint of lemon throughout. If you ever want your home to smell amazing, I highly recommend throwing this in the oven. I also threw together a blueberry compote, which paired with this cake deliciously. It just added a freshness to it all. Definitely one to make again!