When it comes to cakes & desserts, lemon wins for me, hands down. Fresh & vibrant, this super moist Honey Yogurt Lemon Syrup Cake is perfect to serve with coffee & tea or add a dollop of cream & a little extra syrup & you’ve got yourself dessert.
Now, one may wonder why I bake cakes when I’m on a mission to lose weight. Some of you might have seen other recipes I’ve baked for my husband. Unlike me, my hubby doesn’t have to worry about losing weight. I’ve got into the habit of baking him muffins at the weekend to freeze for him to take one to work each day for his mid morning snack with coffee. The man never seems to tire of the same food, unlike me. So this week I decided to make a loaf cake for him instead of muffins. This is another recipe from my Canadian cooking show – ‘Simple, Fresh, Delicious’.
The ingredients for the cake are simple: honey, lemons, yogurt, sugar, eggs, butter & flour. Ingredients most of us have in the pantry & fridge. If you don’t have yogurt but have sour cream, then use that instead. Sour cream, yogurt & buttermilk all work in relatively the same way in baking – they impart a moist, soft crumb in cakes, muffins are quick breads.
Don’t ever think that because a recipe sounds & looks simple that it’s not going to be sensational. This is one of those recipes. There’s nothing showy about it. Honey Yogurt Lemon Syrup Cake shines with its texture & flavor. Both are perfect. This is one of those recipes I picture served to the hard working men on the farm back in the days of old, left in the pan & cut into slabs & passed around as hot tea is being poured from battered old thermoses sitting around an old farm table.
I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t steal a piece of this cake. I took a moment, enjoyed a pot of tea & flicked through an old book & just savored 15 minutes of doing nothing much at all. It’s a rarity, especially amidst the chaos of house renos. Take a moment for yourself today, put your feet up & enjoy a slice of lemony syrup cake. And if you love lemon as much as I do, you have to try my Blueberry Lemon Glazed Scones, Lemon Blueberry Crumble or Lemon Sour Cream Raspberry Glazed Muffins. Cheers for now,
- 3/4 cup butter, softened,
- 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt, at least 4% milk fat, at room temp
- 1/2 cup honey, at room temp
- 1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
- 2 large eggs, at room temp
- 1/3 cup granulated (regular) sugar
- 1 3/4 self-rising (raising) flour
- LEMON SYRUP
- 1/3 cup honey
- 3 tablespoons water
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- Grease a 9 x 5-inch (23 cm x 12.5 cm) loaf pan. Line base and sides with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Beat butter, yogurt, honey & zest in a large bowl using an electric mixer until well combined.
- Beat eggs & sugar in a medium bowl using an electric mixer until thick & creamy , this takes about 4 to 5 minutes & is best if you use a balloon whisk attachment.
- Fold the egg mixture into the butter mixture along with the flour; continue folding the ingredients until everything is well combined. Spread the mixture into the prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes or until golden brown & a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake.
- To make the lemon syrup, while the cake is cooking, heat & stir all the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Simmer, uncovered, for about 5 minutes or until thickened slightly. Pour hot syrup over hot cake; let stand until the cake is cool. Cut into 10 to 12 slices to serve.
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