I made him three different kinds of lemon cake for his birthday last week.  Why would I do that?  Well he loves him some lemon cake — so I went ahead and made him a connoisseur of them.  It felt really nice to make these cakes from scratch compared to the boxed cakes we made in the past.  Plus, I’d forgotten how tasty homemade cakes were! 

Our favorite of the three was Ina Garten’s recipe for Lemon Yogurt Cake — and I’m not even a fan of lemon cake, but this one was so good!  The lemony zest and yogurt gives this cake a nice moist density. 

I also made The Kitchn’s, Lemon Yogurt Cake with Ginger-Thyme Syrup, and Chockylit Cupcake’s, Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting.  Oh, and the frosting!  The frosting was so very light and fluffy, and so very tasty!  I couldn’t stop taking sneak licks of the batter.  : )  I absolutely love Chockylit’s cupcake website — this awesome site is dedicated to cupcakes galore!!! [Mazhalai, thanks for sharing the cupcake recipe!]. 

Below is the recipe for Ina Garten’s delicious Lemon Yogurt Cake.

Ingredients + Directions:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt

1 1/3 cups sugar, divided

3 extra-large eggs

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Lastly, add a bit of that old-time charm with some parchment paper and linen twine.  Enjoy.