Dorie Greenspan's Mediterranean Yogurt Cake (with Whole Wheat Flour)

There are a lot of times that I want to eat a cake. Yes I know! It is easy to buy one without much of an effort. But the store bought pound cake or dessert cake soaking in butter and sugar is not what I am looking for. The pound cake while an easy option to make, has the very same problems!!. When I saw this recipe by Dorie Greenspan on Washington Post it was just the right one in terms of fat and sweet.

Made with yogurt and olive oil, the cake is a lot lighter and just perfect for an occasional treat during the day. Dorie Greenspan has a regular column in the Washington Post Food section but most recipes are beyond my baking skills but this one had no complexity associated with it. Simple.

While the cake has all the ingredients in a regular cake it is not as sweet and without the butter it is fairly light. My favorite flavor these days in sweet dishes in orange and this one is flavored with orange. I did not have orange oil or extract so decided to use the juice from clementines to mix with the batter. I skipped getting the clementine segments and blotting them between paper towels to be put on the cake.

Whole Wheat Flour
I usually only have white whole wheat flour at home and used that instead of all purpose flour. I have baked quite a few cakes with whole wheat flour and they are not all that dense. They can be light and moist. So if you are trying to move away from all purpose flour get a small bag of whole wheat flour and give a few cakes a try.

The texture will be slightly more denser than all purpose flour for sure but over time you get used to it. As you start baking more and more with whole wheat flour you also start to realize that adding a bit more yogurt or oil will make the cake slightly more airy and lighter.

Recipe in pictures,

In a mixing bowl whisk together the flour. Take the sugar in another bowl and rub the zest into it and add the yogurt.
Once the yogurt is whisked in, add the eggs and beat till the mixture is smooth. Add in the clementine juice.
Add the egg mixture into the flour and mix it in so there are no dry ingredients.
Once the batter is smooth add in the olive oil in batches and mix to form a shiny batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake in a 350F preheated oven for 55 - 60 minutes till golden brown. Cool on wire racks.
Gently heat the honey and glaze the cake.

Recipe Source:Dorie Greenspan's Mediterranean Yogurt Cake

Mediterranean Yogurt Cake
Preparation Time:15 minutes
Cooking Time:55-60 minutes
Ingredients

1. 1 3/4 cups of white whole wheat flour
2. 2 tsp baking powder
3. 1/4 tsp fine sea salt (I did not use it)
4. 1/2 cup of Greek Yogurt
5. 3 eggs
6. 1 cup sugar (i used raw sugar)
7. 2 clementines (zested the clementines and extracted the juice)
8. 1/2 cup olive oil (mild flavored)
9. 1/4 tsp orange oil or extract (optional, did not use it)
10. 2 tsp vanilla extract (did not use it)
11. butter for greasing the loaf pan (I used a 9 * 3 loaf pan)
12. 1 tbsp honey for glazing (purely optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare the loaf pan by greasing it with butter and set it aside.
2. Whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder.
3. Take the sugar in a bowl and zest the clementines into the sugar and using the finger tips rub the zest into the sugar.
4. Using a sharp knife segment the clementine slices removing the pith and membranes and place them between paper towels to blot dry while the batter is getting prepared. (I did not do this).
5. Add the yogurt into the sugar and with a egg beater gently mix it together. Add in the eggs and beat on medium speed to form a smooth batter. Mix the vanilla and orange oil if using or in my case I added the clementine juice.
6. Add the liquid to the flour and gently mix in so there are no dry ingredients left.
7. Once all the dry ingredients are mixed in, add the oil in batches and blend it into the batter so it looks smooth and shiny.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. If you had blotted the clementine segments now is the time to add it on top of the batter.
9. Bake in the middle rack of the oven for 55-60 minutes till the top is golden brown on top and the cake is pulling away from the sides of the pan.
10. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then invert it to remove from the pan and cool on a rack.
11. If glazing the cake, heat the honey in the microwave for 10 seconds or so on low and brush the honey on top of the cake.
Cool and slice the cake and store in air tight containers.

Like what you are reading? Subscribe!

Kale Saag with Potatoes

This dish is not about to get any awards for being good looking or photogenic but in the taste department it will beat palak saag hands down. What exactly is Saag you ask? Saag is a dish made of mushed up greens like spinach, mustard greens or other kinds of greens common in India. Saag like its more popular palak paneer is a dish common in Punjab and mostly in North India eaten with wheat based breads. While in the South the mushed up greens are slightly more spicy and no cream is added and eaten with rice and also millet.

For those of us who will easily find kale compared to other kinds of greens, why not make saag with kale? While mature kale is probably not very suitable for this dish, if you have tender leaves this is a perfect dish to make as will be this recipe with kale and moong dal.

While paneer will be a great addition to this dish, potatoes or even kidney beans will be great combinations. I parboiled the potatoes because I was in a rush but if you have some time, you can pan roast the potatoes and then add them.

Kale has another benefit compared to spinach, it is not as slimy and watery, so the next day the texture is still pretty good. I like my greens to be pretty spicy, so adjust heat according to your preference. I also love the aroma of methi leaves (vendhaya keerai) so added a bunch of those as well. This is purely optional.

I am not a saag person but every time I try it I am always more than happy. This time the urge was brought on by a colleague who brought palak chicken which was cooked by his FIL who is a chef. He had added methi for sure in the recipe which was what made me go home and try it right away. Lucky me I had kale leaves on hand and that helped.

Kale Saag with Potatoes
Preparation Time:20minutes
Cooking Time:25 minutes
Ingredients

1. About 1/2 - 1 lb of kale leaves washed and thick stems removed
2. 1 bunch of methi leaves (about a cup) - optional
3. 1/2 red onion chopped
4. 3-4 garlic cloves
5. 1 inch piece of ginger peeled and chopped
6. 8-10 green chilies (adjust to taste and also heat of the chilies)
7. 2 tomatoes chopped
8. 3-4 medium sized potatoes cubed
9. 2-3 tsp of oil (more if you are sauteing the potatoes in oil)
10. cumin seeds for seasoning

Method

1. In a saute pan heat oil and roast the potatoes so they get browned on the outside or you can parboil the potatoes. (I parboiled them).
2. In a saute pan heat a tsp of oil and when hot saute the onions, garlic, ginger and green chilies. When the onions start to brown add the tomatoes and let them get mushy. Let cool and blend to a smooth paste.
3. In the meantime blanch the kale and methi leaves and either using a hand blender or in a blender, blend to a slightly coarse or smooth paste. I left them slightly coarse.
4. In a wide mouthed pan add the rest of the oil and season with cumin seeds. Add in the blended onion paste and saute for 2. Now add in the blended kale greens and saute for 4-5 minutes.
5. Add in potatoes and cook for another 4-5 minutes or longer depending on how thick you want the sauce to be.

Like what you are reading? Subscribe!