Lemon Yogurt Loaf

As a child, I was rather sneaky.

I was also fascinated with baking. Something about cracking eggs, whirling the mixer around, licking the beaters and awaiting the buzzer and a clean toothpick absolutely enticed me.

It enticed me enough to be a rule breaker--and I was the kind of child who loved rules. When my parents first started leaving my brother and I home alone for a couple hours, I would always bake. This was a big-time crime. Nobody uses the oven or stove without parental supervision. But sometimes, you just gotta have something sweet.

So I would "follow" recipes: baking powder/soda/powdered sugar were synonymous, when it called for 1 t of salt, you could do either the big T or the little t (we have choices) and order doesn't matter. Just put all the things on the list in the big bowl and use the mixer (mom just liked creating more dishes for us to do).

I ended up with some surprisingly good (usually crunchy) treats but more than oft produced hard, nasty rocks. Consequently, Jon and I would either be stuffing our faces or retreat to the woods to bury yet another one of Kate's creations. Completely true. My baked goods were buried right next to Velvet and Chip, our beloved guinea pigs (RIP).

So it's been a while since I've had to bury any food and I'd like to say I've improved my recipe-reading and modifying skills. Below is a recipe I've adapted to more of a breakfast bread then a dense loaf. So don't let the name mislead you. I'm simply a sucker for alliterations.

Lemon Yogurt Loaf
adapted from Ina Garten- Barefoot Contessa


1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup sugar

1 egg
3 tablespoons canola/veg oil
1 cup plain greek yogurt (heaping!)
2 tablespoons lemon juice (divided)
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup powdered sugar




Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a bread pan.

Squeeze and then grate the lemon.





Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder into a bowl. In a larger bowl, mix together the egg, oil, yogurt, one tablespoon of lemon juice, lemon zest and lastly sugar. Once well mixed, slowly stir in the dry ingredients. Once thoroughly mixed, place the batter into the greased pan.

Bake for 45-50 minutes. Check with a toothpick for doneness. When done, allow to cool and remove from pan.

Once the bread has completely cooled, mix together the other tablespoon of lemon juice and powdered sugar until it creates a glaze and poor over loaf.

...this tastes REALLY good with coffee. Just sayn'.