I am very fond of simple, seasonal cakes.

They are what I most enjoy baking and what I most enjoy eating.

Last week’s Carrot Spice Snacking Cake and this Berry Zucchini Cake are examples of that, and very yummy ones I might add.

My husband loves lemon ANYTHING, so I knew I had to come up with a healthy-ish lemon cake that I could bake and eat regularly and feel good about. The indulgent part of this cake is the frosting, which does use butter, because if I’m frosting a cake it needs to be really good frosting. A simple glaze of powdered sugar and lemon juice is a bit of a lighter option, and one I sometimes use as well.

ingredients:

Almond Flour – using almonds in the cake supply a lot of healthy fats, helping to keep the cake moist without any butter or oil.

Gluten Free Flour – I use equal parts almond and gluten free flour in this cake, but you can use all purpose in place of the GF if you’d like.

Yogurt – Using full fat yogurt also keeps the cake really moist.

“What can i use instead?”

Almond flour is a must, as it gives fat to the cake, but the GF flour blend can be substituted with all purpose if you eat gluten.
The cardamom and ginger in the cake give a subtle warmth to it, but if you don’t like either of those spices you can leave those out.
I have experimented with different sweeteners in the buttercream, and I find that powdered sugar and this monkfruit powdered sweetener give the best results.
I use raw can sugar in the cake, there is only 1/2 cup in the whole cake. Regular granulated sugar is an easy swap here if that’s what you have.

As always, please let me know if you try this cake because I love to hear your feedback. Happy Easter, my friends!

Lemon Yogurt Cake with Lemon Buttercream (Gluten free, Oil Free + Butter Free Option)

This healthy lemon cake is moist, delicious, and phenomenal when laced with either the lemon buttercream or lemon glaze recipes.l

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 9 inch round cakee

Equipment

1 9 inch round cake pan

Ingredients

1 cup blanched almond flour
1 cup GF flour blend or all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/2 cup raw cane sugar or regular granulated sugar
2 large lemons
1 cup full fat plain yogurt of choice
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract

Option 1 - Lemon Buttercream

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup powdered sugar
1 lemon, zested

Option 2 - Lemon Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tbsp lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spray a round cake pan with nonstick spray and cover the bottom with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, or with a hand mixer, whisk together the eggs and sugar for 30 seconds.
Add the vanilla, yogurt, zest from 2 lemons, juice from 1 lemon, and mix to combine.
In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, ginger, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until just combined and there are no traces of flour left.
Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan and bake for 26-32 minutes until just cooked. You want to be mindful not to over-bake since it will dry out without oil or butter in the recipe.
When baked, transfer to a baking rack, remove and let cool. While the cake is cooling, make the buttercream frosting or lemon glaze you've chosen as a topping.

Option 1 - Lemon Buttercream

In the bowl of a standing mixer or with a hand mixer, blend the butter, powdered sugar, and lemon zest for a couple of minutes until light and fluffy.
Frost the top of the cooled cake with the buttercream and top with a bit of extra lemon zest.

Option 2 - Lemon Glaze

Whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice together until you've reached your desired consistency. Pour on the cake and let harden.

Keyword birthday cake, lemon, lemon cake, spring

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Lemon Yogurt Cake (Gluten free, Oil Free + Butter Free Option)