Easy Lemon Loaf Cake

Don’t you love easy?  Don’t you love double duty? This Easy Lemon Loaf Cake is both.

As I mentioned in prior posts, I love to bring treats to the beach to share with family and friends. This cake shines as breakfast and as a snack making it an extremely versatile choice. The sassy burst of lemon is sure to please just about everyone. Using yogurt and canola oil make it a lighter option as well (but don’t think for a second it is low cal). It comes together super quickly and packs quite well for travel!

Easy Lemon Loaf Cake

• 1 loaf pan 8 ½ ” x 4 ½” or 9″ x 5″
• Oven Temp 350F
• Prep Time 20 minutes
• Bake Time 50 minutes
• Cool Time 10 minutes (in pan)

Assemble Your Tools

• Loaf pan
• Parchment paper
• Large Whisk
• Medium bowl (for dry ingredients)
• Large bowl (for wet ingredients and batter)
• Liquid measuring cup
• Measuring cups – dry
• Measuring spoons
• Rubber scraper
• Tester (toothpick or skewer)
• Small saucepan
• Small bowl (for glaze)

Ingredients

• Butter and flour for pan
• 1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup whole milk yogurt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large or extra-large eggs
• 2 tsp grated lemon zest
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ½ cup canola oil
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• ¼ cup sugar

• ¾  cup confectioner’s sugar
• 1 ½  Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in center position.

Grease loaf pan and line the bottom with parchment paper (so that parchment stick out the long side). Grease and flour the pan.

In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt – set aside.

In large bowl whisk together yogurt, 1 cup sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla.

Gently whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in the large bowl until just mixed. 

Using a rubber scraper, gently fold the canola oil into the batter until fully combined.

Scrape into prepared pan, smooth top and tap lightly on countertop to remove air bubbles.

Bake 50 minutes until the top is golden brown and the tester comes out clean (not wet) after being inserted in the center of the cake.

While cake is baking, cook the ¼ cup lemon juice and ¼ cup sugar in a small saucepan until the sugar dissolves and the liquid is clear.  Set aside.

Cool cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then using he parchment paper lift the cake out.  Place on a plate. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake slowly allowing it to soak in. Cool completely.

Make the glaze by combining the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Pour over the cooled cake allowing it to drip down all sides.

Enjoy!!!

Notes:

• This recipe is an adaptation of the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten’s Lemon Yogurt Cake recipe from her Barefoot Contessa at Home cookbook. Ina’s recipe uses more syrup and glaze for a sweeter cake. I literally have every one of her fabulous cookbooks and reach for them time and time again! Want to buy Ina’s At Home Cookbook? Buy here.*
• The Great British Baking Show (I have been obsessed!) called it a drizzle cake, because you drizzle on the syrup.
• Folding in a cup of blueberries into the batter at the end would be a wonderful twist!
• Elevate it with fresh raspberries and whipped cream for a lovely dessert.
• If for some crazy reason you could not finish this cake, wrap individual slices in plastic wrap and put in freezer bag to freeze.

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Resources for tools and ingredients

Williams Sonoma and Sur La Table are great resources for all your baking equipment needs from mixers to measuring spoons.

King Arthur Flour has a wonderful selection of baking ingredients.