Sprouted Flour Yogurt Cake

Photo Credit

This recipe, adapted from Orangette, is her version of the classic French yogurt cake.  The recipe for yogurt cake is so simple, that it can be the first dessert a French child would make.  Ingredients were normally measured in the cup the yogurt was purchased in.

Yogurt cake is a very dense cake, similar to pound cake, but not as rich.  I love it with fresh berries or a fruit compote and, of course, lots of real whipped cream, sweetened with organic grade B maple syrup and real vanilla extract.

Yogurt Cake  

For the cake:

•  ½ C plain yogurt
• 1 t vanilla extract
•  2/3 C powdered turbinado
• 3 large eggs from pastured chickens
• 1-1/2 C sprouted soft whole wheat flour, sifted twice
• 2 t baking powder
• ½ C expeller-pressed coconut oil, gently melted
• Optional: 2 tsp. grated lemon zest

Optional lemon glaze:

• Juice from 2 lemons
• ¼ C  powdered turbinado

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter 9” round cake pan.
2. Place turbinado in blender or food processor.  Process until powdery and most of the large crystals are gone.
3. In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, turbinado, and eggs, stirring until well blended.
4. Add the flour, baking powder, and zest, mixing to just combine.
5. Add the oil and stir to incorporate. At first, it will look like a horrible, oily mess, but keep stirring, and it will come together into a smooth batter.
6. Pour batter into the prepared cake pan.
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the cake feels springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not over bake.
8. Cool cake on a rack for about 20 minutes; then turn it out of the pan to cool completely.

Optional:  When the cake is thoroughly cooled, combine the lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl and spoon it gently over the cake. The glaze will be thin and will soak in like a syrup.

Variations by Orangette:  This type of yogurt-based cake is a terrific base for many improvisations. For a basic yogurt cake, simply leave out the lemon zest, and do not use the lemon juice glaze. For an almond version, try replacing ½ C of flour with ½ C finely ground almonds. You can also play with adding various fruits (if frozen, do NOT thaw before adding) or nuts, if you like. When I add fruit, I generally pour half the cake batter into the prepared pan, top it with a layer of fruit, and then pour in the other half of the batter, sometimes adding more fruit on the very top.