Citrus Yoghurt Cake

Kath July 16, 2018

I call this a citrus yoghurt cake, rather than specifying any particular citrus, as I think almost any variety of citrus would be great in this cake. I have flitted between classic lemon and then bergamot, and both work really well. If you have read a little of my blog or follow me on Instagram, you won’t be surprised to hear the bergamot version is my favourite! Bergamot anything would be my favourite, but thats not to say the classic combination of lemon and yoghurt would be playing second best. Not at all. A mixture of lemon and lime would also be nice, and even going for a blood orange when they are in season would be great.

I will be making this cake a few more times this Winter, as it is my favourite thing to bake with citrus and we have an over supply here at home. We got at least 30 or 40 lemonades from our tree, 4 very large bergamot and I also bought 10 bergamot online from Mountain Yuzu - as the name suggests their main crop is yuzu, however they are also the first people I have come across that grow and sell fresh bergamot in Australia (much to my delight!).

The reason I really like this cake, is that the combination of the oil and yoghurt gives the cake a moist crumb that really retains the juicy-ness of the fruit. Whichever citrus you choose to use will be the hero here, and nothing else but a cup of tea is necessary to enjoy a slice (or two!).

Citrus Yoghurt Cake

Ingredients:

210g plain flour (The Healthy Baker Low FODMAP Flour works well here too)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

300g caster sugar

250g plain Greek style yoghurt

125ml vegetable oil

2 eggs

2 tbsp fresh lemon or bergamot juice

zest of two medium lemons or bergamots

For the Icing:

210g icing sugar (confectioners)

3 tbsp fresh lemon or bergamot juice

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius, and grease and line the base of a 23cm round cake pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda.

In a large bowl, whisk together the caster sugar, yoghurt, oil, eggs, citrus juice and zest. Whisk until combined, then add the flour mixture a third at a time whisking until just incorporated after each addition.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for 30 minutes or until golden in colour and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. If not cooked after 30 minutes, continue to check the cake at 5 minute intervals until it is done.

Allow the cake to cool in its tin for a few minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Don’t worry if the middle of the cake has dipped a little, it will still be perfectly cooked inside.

To make the icing, whisk the icing sugar and 2 tbsp of the citrus juice together, adding more juice to get the right consistency if needed. You want the icing to be smooth, but not overly runny or it won’t cover the cake evenly. Spread the icing over the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides a little.

Reference: https://www.davidlebovitz.com/lemon-yogurt-cake-recipe-apricot-cherry-compote/

A Cirtus Tart & Surviving the 9-5

Kath August 31, 2017

I found this recipe in Catherine Phipps' book ‘Citrus’ and found the book, via the podcast ‘Stir the Pot’ by Edd Kimber. I have really taken to listening to podcasts in the past year, after my initial introduction to Cherry Bombe magazine’s ‘Radio Cherry Bombe’, my list of favourites has grown. At first these podcasts, were my way of doing something for myself on my commute to and from a job I really didn’t want to be doing anymore. My emotional health was suffering a lot because of this job, and having something that was just for me on a topic I am obsessed with made each working day a little easier. I had a little bit of a walk from the train station to my old work, and I will always remember the sense of dread I felt once I got closer to work. I would turn the corner and the knowledge that my time was up, until 5pm, would hit me. The following 7-8 hours were all about spending time in an often toxic environment, doing a job that was literally going nowhere.

The highlights of those work days mostly involved food. Apart from the podcasts, what I planned to eat at lunch, what ingredients I would buy on my lunch break or having a quiet lunch with other like minded colleagues were the moments that kept me going. I also stress purchased many a cookbook from the couple of bookstores in the area, which is where I found ‘Citrus’. I had listened to Edd Kimber’s interview with Catherine on his podcast, and had made a mental note to keep an eye out for Catherine’s book. During the interview they had discussed cooking with citrus, and to my delight, cooking with bergamots (see more on my bergamot obsession here). When I found a copy of the book, I instantly knew I had to buy it. I hadn’t been expecting to find it so easily, and being so unhappy in my job made my weakness for buying cookbooks all the more feeble.

There are so many good recipes in ‘Citrus’, covering all types of food and occasions. This tart comes from the Desserts section, which also includes recipes for a Blood Orange and Rhubarb Meringue Pie, Bergamot and Rose Turkish Delight Pavlova (be still my heart) and a Earl Grey and Rose Parfait (was this book actually written just for me?!). I love Catherine’s flavour combinations, and the information on how to use particular and less common citrus.

You don’t need a food processor for the pastry in this recipe, which I loved as we no longer have one (we weren’t using it so gave it away!). I used a selection of citrus for the filling, lemon, lemonades and bergamots. You could just use one type of citrus, it just depends what you feel like. However as a guide, the original recipe stipulates the zest of 2 lemons and the juice of 3 lemons for the filling - use this as a guide re the quantities of juice in particular as for example, a large orange will hold more juice than a lemon.

Winter Citrus - Lemons, Bergamots & Lemonades

Citrus Tart

Ingredients for the Pastry:

200g plain flour

pinch of salt

125g unsalted butter, cold & cubed

50g icing sugar

2 egg yolks

Ingredients for the Filling:

6 eggs

300g caster sugar

250ml heavy cream

finely grated zest of 2 citrus (lemons, lemonades, bergamots etc) and the juice of three citrus (lemons, lemonades, bergamots, small/medium oranges etc)

Method:

To make the pastry, put the flour and salt in a bowl, and rub in the butter until it looks like almond meal. Stir in the icing sugar, then add the egg yolks and mixing it all together with your hands. If the dough is too crumbly at this stage, add a small amount of ice cold water to help bring it together. Shape into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap, and leave to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Once the dough has rested, preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and lightly flour a work surface. Roll out the pastry, dusting with extra flour if necessary. Roll it fairly thinly, however don’t go so thin that it will easily break when you are placing it into the tart tin. The pastry needs to have the circumference to line a 24cm tart tin (approx.). Gently place the pastry over the tart tin, and gently push it in to the sides of the tin, trimming the edges that hang over the sides. Keep some of the left over raw pastry for later in case you need to patch up your tart case after the blind baking process.

Put the raw pastry case in the freezer for 10 minutes, then prick the pastry all over with a fork. Crumple up a piece of baking paper, then place it over the tart and fill with pastry weights. Bake the tart for 15 minutes, then remove the pastry weights and the baking paper and bake again for about 5 minutes. At this stage you don’t want any of your tart shell to be raw. Leave the tart shell to cool while you make the filling, and turn down the oven to 150 degrees Celsius.

To make the filling whisk the eggs and caster sugar together until they are well combined, then whisk in the cream and citrus zest and juice. To fill the pastry case, place on a lined baking sheet and pull out one of the oven racks and place it on the rack. Gently pour the filling into the case from here (best to use a jug for this), then gently push the oven rack back in and bake for 30-40 minutes until the tart filling is just set (it will still wobble slightly). Leave the tart to cool before serving, and store in the fridge if there are leftovers!

Reference: Citrus by Catherine Phipps (Quadrille, 2017), p.168.

If you are struggling at work…

I would highly recommend one or more of these books/podcasts. While I am no longer working in the environment I mentioned in this post, I still find these resources immensely valuable.

Bergamot Loaf Cake

Kath July 20, 2017

If you’ve been following me on Instagram lately, you may have noticed my slight obsession with bergamots. I seem to be drawn to interesting and lesser known fruits, and bergamots are no exception. Bergamot is a citrus, and is best known for being the flavour in Earl Grey tea. It has a slight floral flavour, which in my opinion not only makes it slightly sweeter and less sour than other citrus, but also it’s best quality. As evidenced by how many times I have used rose in my cooking, it is no surprise that I like the floral notes of bergamot. It may be a little much for some, I guess it depends on what you like, but as far as I’m concerned, it is now my favourite citrus.

This does however pose a problem. Bergamot being a lesser known variety of citrus, are therefore not grown and sold nearly as readily as other citrus varieties. To the point where I have never seen bergamots being sold anywhere here in Sydney (if you know of anywhere please let me know!).

As I have mentioned before, last year we were able to buy and plant a bergamot tree. I watched the three bergamots growing on the tree for months, hoping they would survive, and be as tasty as I hoped. Finally last month, they had turned from a bright green, to yellow and were ready to be picked. I deliberated for quite a while about what to make with them, with only three bergamots for the whole season, I needed to make a good choice.

One of the options I settled on was this loaf cake, which can be made with any other citrus if you don’t have access to bergamots. The zest in the cake, and the juice in the syrup and icing give the cake a lovely flavour that will brighten up any dreary Winter’s day.

What is your favourite citrus? Have you even eaten or baked with bergamots before?

Bergamots growing on the tree before they have ripened

Homegrown citrus picked fresh from the garden - (top to bottom) lemonades, kaffir limes, mandarin & bergamots.

Bergamot Loaf Cake

Ingredients:

250g margarine or softened unsalted butter

265g caster sugar

zest of 1 bergamot

3 eggs

265g plain flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

100ml milk

Ingredients for the Syrup:

1 tbsp water

1tbsp caster sugar

2 tbsp bergamot juice (about half a small/medium bergamot)

Ingredients for the Icing:

250g icing sugar (confectioners)

2-3 tbsp bergamot juice, approx. (about half a small/medium bergamot)

remaining bergamot zest

Method:

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius, and grease and line a loaf pan (31 x 7.5 x 8cm, approx). Allow some of the baking paper to come above the sides of the tin so it will be easy to remove the cake from the tin later.

In using a stand mixer, beat the margarine and sugar until well combined and creamy. Add almost all of the bergamot zest, leaving some to add to the icing later. Mix well then add the eggs separately, ensuring they are well combined.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour and baking powder, then add half of this to the cake batter until just combined. Add the milk, then the remaining flour and mix until just combined.

Transfer the cake batter into the prepared tin and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the cake is golden, springy to the touch and cooked in the centre (check with a skewer).

Once the cake is of out of the oven, make the bergamot syrup by gently heating all the ingredients in a small pan over low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Poke holes in the cake using a skewer, then spoon over the syrup so it evenly covers all of the cake. Allow the syrup to soak in and the cake to cool.

Once the cake has cooled, remove from the tin using the overhanging baking paper to help. Make the icing by whisking the icing sugar in a medium bowl until most of the lumps have been broken up. Add the remaining bergamot zest and 2 tbsp of the juice and whisk until combined. If the icing is too thick add a little more juice (or water), if the icing is too runny add more icing sugar and mix. When you have a good consistency, ice the cake allowing the icing to run down the sides.

Reference: ‘The Violet Bakery Cookbook’ by Claire Ptak (Ten Speed Press, 2015), pp.114-115.

Citrus Yoghurt Cake

Citrus Tart

If you are struggling at work…

Bergamot Loaf Cake

Kulinary Adventures of Kath

Food Photography, Recipes & Baking