Meyer Lemon Cake with Greek Yogurt
Happy Birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday Mountain Mama, happy birthday to me.
36 years old young and better than ever. Or so I’d like to think.
Today will be filled with things that bring me the most joy; snowboarding with my husband, getting a massage, snuggling on the couch with my kids and enjoying a home cooked meal prepared by someone other than me. The best part of my day will no doubt be singing happy birthday and blowing out birthday candles with my boys. It’s always a joint effort and what I look forward to most.
I will say goodbye to 35 and welcome 36 with wide open arms. I will kiss my little ones, hug my husband, bask in the sunshine, ski slushy groomers and remind myself just how fortunate I am.
Oh yes, how could I forget? There will be cake. Lots and lots of cake.
PrintMeyer Lemon Cake with Greek Yogurt
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 4 eggs
- 2 teaspoons zest from meyer lemon
- 2 tablespoons juice from meyer lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons meyer lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 tablespoons juice from meyer lemon
- pinch salt
- 1 teaspoon half and half
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees; butter a 10-inch spring form pan or similar.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a small bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the plain yogurt, 3/4 cup sugar, eggs, lemon zest and juice, vanilla extract and vegetable oil.
- Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, mixing just until evenly mixed but taking care not to over mix. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 28-30 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, cook the 4 tablespoons lemon juice and remaining 4 tablespoons sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear.
- When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes on a cooling rack. Carefully remove cake from pan and place on cooling rack. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool completely.
- While the cake cools, make the glaze by combining powdered sugar, melted butter, meyer lemon juice, pinch of salt and half & half. Mix to combine. Adjust ingredients if glaze is too thick add a tablespoon or two of powdered sugar at a time or lemon juice to thin. Pour the glaze evenly over the completely cooled cake.
- If desired, garnish with meyer lemon zest and/or sliced meyer lemons.
41 Comments
Looks very good! I’ve been looking for a good recipe to use the meyer lemons that are in season. I will have to give this a try!
I don’t see the recipe listed?
I have been in search of the perfect lemon cake since my trip to Italy. Loving the tanginess of yogurt.
Thanks!
Yes, where is the recipe? I really want to make this!
I’m not sure what happened but post and recipe are both up!
Happy Birthday Kelley.. Sounds like you have a great day planned. Enjoy.
Thanks Mary Lynn!
First this cake is beautiful!! And happy birthday to you!!!!!!! 😀 😀 😀
Thanks, Julie, it was a great day!
Happy Birthday! Your cake looks great, I love making lemon cake with greek yogurt!
It was such a light texture and bright flavor, I need to do it more!
Happy Birthday Kelley!!! A beautiful cake for a beautiful gal 🙂
Thanks, Karista. Hope you’re having a wonderful day!!
This cake is gorgeous and happens to be my favorite flavor.
Thanks, Carrian. I would take lemon over chocolate anyway!
Hope you had a wonderful day! Keep the celebration going! Love this cake!
Thanks, Maria. Let’s get together soon!
I hope you had a fabulous day! Sure sounds like a great way to spend a birthday if you ask me. And I love the look of this cake!
High compliments from the queen of making her own cake!
Happy belated birthday friend! I can’t wait to take you to lunch to celebrate. But you’ll have to bring me a piece of this cake for dessert. XO
Looking forward to it!! xoxo
I’m such a fan of Meyer Lemons!! And we’re both on the Greek Yogurt train today because I just posted a Kale Artichoke Dip with Greek Yogurt 🙂 Hope you had a fabulous birthday!!
Sounds delicious! Can’t wait to check it out!
This looks delish! Do you think this would work as a layered cake? I am making a birthday cake for my friend but I need to feed more people.
Most definitely. Double the recipe and make it into two 9-inch round cake pans. Enjoy!!
Beautiful cake!
Savannah, I’m curious how this worked out as a layered cake?
Kelley, I’d like to make a 3 layer cake using this recipe for my sister’s high altitude wedding:) Should a different frosting be used to adhere the layers? Would you stick with the glaze for the outside?
Thanks!
I think you could easily triple the recipe and make this a layer cake and, yes, I would use a different frosting. A buttercream or something similar that was strong enough to hold it together!
Perfect, thank you!! I will let you know how my trial run goes!
Happy birthday!!!! Hooray for cake! This looks wonderful.
This looks amazing Kelley! Yum. I’ll have to try this one soon.
Kelley, Hi. I just came across your blog the other day because I found this cake recipe on Pinterest. I made it yesterday for my husband’s birthday. I am a grandmother and have never had a cake fail, but I don’t know what went wrong with this cake. I made it in a 10″ springform pan as directed, although I think the 9″ may have been better. It checked done in the middle, but looked different in the middle when I took it out compared to the rest of the cake. Really, all the cake was very heavy, not light texture like yours is in the picture. It really shrunk down in height as it cooled. My glaze wouldn’t seep into the cake at all. I poked holes all over it and it still wouldn’t all go in. I poured the glaze on after 10 minutes. Do you pour the glaze on hot or does it need to cool down as mine had cooled down by the time I was ready to pour it on. I don’t think that had anything to do with the texture of the cake as I could tell it was really heavy (doughy so to speak) when I poked the holes in it. I used fat free greek yogurt not even thinking about it and wondered if that could have been the problem. Did you use full fat greek yogurt? Other than that, I am baffled. It had a pretty good flavor, but the texture of the cake wasn’t pleasing at all. I want to make it again, but am afraid to after this one failed me. Please let me know if you think it was the fat free Greek yogurt that changed the consistency of this cake. Thanks so much.
Gosh, I’m not sure what to tell you. I always use full fat dairy products but I don’t think that would have changed the texture that much. Sorry it didn’t work out for you.
Thank you. I am determined to make it again and I will use full fat greek yogurt next time. Did you pour the sugar and lemon glaze on while the glaze was hot and did you poke holes in the cake for it to be absorbed. I am wondering if somehow I left out the 1/2 cup flour, but don’t think I did. Could I have over stirred it? I know when I went to mix up the liquid with the dry it was sort of lumpy and I kept stirring to get more lumps out, but it was by hand. I am bound and determined to get this cake right!!
Please add me to your list for future recipe posts. Thanks.
Judy
Just trying to make sure this is a High Altitute Recipe. I live in Denver and I had another cake recipe go really wron.
It should work as written for Denver!
I made this today! I did not change a single thing it is a wonderful recipe and I will most definitely be making it again thank you!
Omg this recipe was so good. Made in Park City and I cut it in half and made in a loaf pan. It came out so freaking good. Thank you!!!!
Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.
I just tried this recipe and it turned out beautifully!! I am in Flagstaff, AZ and always have trouble with cakes. I am so excited this one turned out!! I can’t wait to try your chocolate bundt cake recipe next. I have also made the chocolate chocolate chip cookies several times and they never fail to turn out! 🙂