Elegant French Yogurt Cake

Looking for an easy but elegant way to honor your mom this Mother’s Day? This diminutive “barely there” frosting cake is the perfect dessert to show her you love her. The light lemon frosting paired with the delicious French yogurt cake makes a treat she will surely love.

The yogurt cake is a fun treat for kids and adults alike to make. The main measuring device is actually the yogurt container itself. (But we’ve also included conversions for American and metric measurements.) The accents that we used for finishing touches were flowers and lemons from the grocery store, making an inexpensive and simple way to top off this cake with a touch of class.

French Yogurt Cake

Servings: Yield 1 small cake | Time: 5 minutes active; 40 minutes inactive | Difficulty: Easy

INGREDIENTS:

• • 4 oz. container (1/2 cup or 113 g) natural or plain yogurt

• • 2 yogurt containers (1 cup or 200 g) sugar

• • 3 yogurt containers (1 1/2 cups or 180 g) flour

• • 3/4 yogurt container (6 Tbsp. or 90 ml) oil

• • 2 tsp. (9 g) baking powder

• • 3 egg yolks

• 3 egg whites, whipped

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. (180° C.).
2. Pour the yogurt into a mixing bowl.
3. Rinse and dry the yogurt container. (If you’re using measuring cups or a food scale, skip this step.)
4. Add the sugar, flour, and oil to the bowl, using either the dry yogurt container or other measuring tools.
5. Add the baking powder and egg yolks together.
6. Fold in the whipped egg whites.
7. Divide into 2 greased 5″ (12.7 cm) round cake pans (or other food-safe dish; we used ceramic oven-safe bowls), and bake for 40 minutes.
8. Let cool. 
9. Frost the bottom layer, then stack and frost the entire cake.

The consistency of the batter will be very thick—not thin like a traditional American cake batter.

When frosting the cake, put large dollops of frosting on the cake, and smooth it over all the sides. Then, using the edge of a frosting spatula, scrape off the excess frosting for a rustic, elegant, bare look. Add flowers and lemon rinds as accents, if desired.

NOTE: To add flavor to your cake, add 7–10 drops of your desired flavor of essential oil. Orange or lemon would be a nice addition. If you prefer not to use frosting, you could sprinkle the cake with powdered sugar or eat it plain.

Light & Fluffy Lemon Frosting

Servings: Yield 4 cups | Time: 5 minutes active | Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:

• • 1 cup (2 sticks or 226 g) unsalted butter, room temperature

• • 3 cups (340 g) powdered sugar

• • 1 tsp. (5 ml) pure vanilla extract

• • Pinch sea salt (up to 1/4 tsp. or 0.5 g, to taste)

• • 2 Tbsp. (30 ml) heavy whipping cream

• 12 drops lemon essential oil

Instructions:

1. 1. Beat together the butter and powdered sugar on low speed until well blended. Then increase the speed to medium for an additional 2 minutes.

1. 1. Add the vanilla extract and salt, and whip for an additional 30 seconds.

1. Add the whipping cream, and beat for about 1 minute.
2. Add the lemon essential oil. (It is important to add the essential oil as the last step; otherwise it might curdle the cream.)

NOTE: This frosting can also be used on cookies, cupcakes, or any of your favorite recipes calling for frosting!