for the love of cake: lemon yogurt cake


I love cake. There’s just something about it that turns the most ordinary meal into a celebration. A cake holds much more meaning than just a sweet dessert. A pie? Well, that’s a labour of love and one should always be appreciative of a homemade pie. A cupcake? It’s sweet, it’s cute and fun and will most certainly put a smile on any face. But a cake is more than all of that. It’s impressive in stature and tone. It holds memories of birthdays and weddings past. It is love and grace blended with silk ribbons and lace.

Cake might seem to be fussy but it doesn’t have to be. This lemon yogurt cake comes from Orangette and is itself filled with its own memories and Kodak moments, but this cake is as simple as they come. I made this a couple of weekends ago for my buddy, Charlie’s first birthday. Even though I overbaked it, it still managed to garner a few oohs and ahhs. I tried again the following weekend for my mother-in-law’s birthday and it baked up to perfection. I soaked the cake with a lemon syrup rather than Orangette’s lemon glaze and then topped the cake with freshly whipped cream and strawberries. It was light and fresh and celebratory. It was perfect.

20 comments to “for the love of cake: lemon yogurt cake”

  1. 1
    Joanne   April 26, 2007 at 12:42 pm

    I agree. I love cake. But not just any cake. It has to have some oompf – and this cake does!

    I enjoy celebration cakes the most especially because I’m a fan of frosting, icing and decorations.

    Good to know it turned out well because I do have a couple of upcoming events, where I can introduce this cake: mother-in-law’s birthday, Mother’s Day, husband’s birthday and several patio bbq parties this summer 🙂

  2. 2
    Lizzy   April 26, 2007 at 3:33 pm

    This cake looks so good! Definitely one to try!

  3. 3
    Judy   April 26, 2007 at 4:44 pm

    Cake is my favourite food. Even cake without icing. I love cake.

  4. 4
    Larissa   April 26, 2007 at 10:38 pm

    YUMMY. Thanks, by the way, for consistently great posts…I’m a regular reader!

  5. 5
    kickpleat   April 27, 2007 at 8:03 am

    joanne, this is perfect mother-in-law cake! tested and approved 🙂

    lizzy, it is so yummy that i had it for breakfast (which is when that photo was taken!)

    cake, what’s not to love…right judy? i also don’t need icing to enjoy cake!

    thanks larissa for stopping by!

  6. 6
    Anonymous   April 27, 2007 at 7:34 pm

    Oh my, this looks phenomenal! I’m going to have to try it very soon – especially as the warm weather is finally coming back. Can I ask, though, what the white topping is in the photo? Yogurt, icing? Looks wonderful.

  7. 7
    kickpleat   April 28, 2007 at 6:01 pm

    anon, i used freshly whipped cream for the topping.

  8. 8
    Twelfthknit   April 29, 2007 at 3:53 am

    I made the cake to take to a natural dyeing workshop yesterday – the workshop went down well, and the cake even better!
    India

  9. 9
    kickpleat   April 29, 2007 at 9:27 pm

    India, glad the workshop and the cake went well! I’m always excited to hear how things turn out for others.

  10. 10
    Tin-Tin   April 30, 2007 at 4:19 pm

    oooooh lemon yogurt cake! i want to make this immediately. yogurt makes me think it’s not a “dessert” but rather “health-food” hehe

  11. 11
    Antara Mukherji   April 30, 2007 at 9:44 am

    :)nice..sounds perfect too!

  12. 12
    Honeybee   April 30, 2007 at 11:55 pm

    Mmmh, that looks good. I love cakes with yoghurt!

  13. 13
    Caroline   May 1, 2007 at 6:05 pm

    Dear kindred spirit,
    I too love cake and believe that cute little cupcakes (that are all the rage) do not nearly measure up to a proud, layered cake.

    This recipes looks great. I just made some limoncello, which would probably be another great thing to soak it with.

    Thank you for your thoughtful post and cake glorification!
    Long live cake…

  14. 14
    cerealia   May 3, 2007 at 3:14 pm

    i agree, cake is special. this lemon cake looks & sounds fantastic, esp for a lemon-loving lady like myself! and lemon is really a perfect flavor for spring/summer. kickpleat, you are expert at eating seasonally! i guess it’s somewhat intutitive & convenient (to eat foods that are in season)…but you have a talent for capturing that in words & pictures. for that reason, i love coming here and finding that so much of what you make and share here is just right for the season.

  15. 15
    Freya and Paul   May 3, 2007 at 10:18 am

    Stunning looking cake! It’s just how I like it, dense and substantial! Love all the cream, icing and strawberries!

  16. 16
    Anonymous   May 25, 2007 at 9:10 pm

    “Judy said…
    Cake is my favourite food. Even cake without icing. I love cake.”

    Judy, your just a fast person who loves cake in the same manner as i do….

    MMMMMMM MMMMMM GGGOOOODDDD!!!!

    GOD RokX
    †~MLC~†

  17. 17
    Anonymous   May 25, 2007 at 9:11 pm

    FAT!!! not FAST!!!!

  18. 18
    Anonymous   May 25, 2007 at 9:13 pm

    im sry, i was jk…. cake is really a good food..

    GOD RokX
    †~MLC~†

  19. 19
    S   June 26, 2010 at 8:48 am

    I made this last night for a party and people said it was good! I turned it into a strawberry yogurt cake instead of lemon because I didn’t have any. I also made cream cheese frosting for this.

    I was a little disappointed in its mild sweetness but only because we are a bunch of students and I thought that people might prefer sweeter things than this. I might add a bit more sugar next time, though the level of sweetness actually suits me personally. 🙂 I tried sifting the flour and baking powder in measuring them out to hopefully make the cake lighter in texture, but it didn’t really work. It wasn’t too dense though. Overall it was delicious, I think. Thank you for sharing the recipe, Jeannette! 🙂 I will be making this again in the future!

  20. 20
    Julia   March 14, 2011 at 4:51 am

    I threw fresh cranberries in this and substituted the yogurt with fromage blanc–I guess a bit like plain greek yogurt? I would venture to say that it came out too moist (might have been the lemon syrup I put on…I think I overdid it), so I’m trying it with whole wheat flour this time. I think it can handle it. My husband has requested it on repeat for his birthday cake and claims its his favorite baked good ever–and for sitting up on that kind of pedestal, it’s a really easy cake to make! Thanks for the recipe!

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