Gateau au Citron

A delightfully summery little cake, this Gateau au Citron is light, loaded with floral orange and sharp lemon flavors from the Meyer Lemon glaze.  The sweetness of the cake plays beautifully off the slight bitter sweetness of the Candied Meyer Lemons.

It has been just over a year of home ownership, and those of you who have traversed into that adventure can relate to me when I lament  the first true mishap the house has bequeathed upon us.  In this tiny universe of a house, it’s as though the real world Global Warming tragedies have combusted and gifted us with a flooded kitchen the other morning.  In all actuality, our first world problem seemed to be a leaking pipe from the Master Bathroom Shower.  Let us not count the damaged microwave from last October, as that is something that tends to be an easier diagnosis and fix (though truth be told, we still have not repaired it).  A microwave is something that is an easy adaptation to live without - your favorite shower is not.

Planning ahead for first world catastrophes allows you to easily mitigate the rockier bumps of home ownership.  This past year has been ridiculously smooth sailing, in terms of turning the house into a home, although I do admit that reining it in when it comes to wanting to GETALLTHESTUFFTODECORATEEVERYTHINGTHEREEVERWAS tends to crush my soul the tiniest bit while shaping me into a better human being.  Marrying someone who thinks like an accountant/engineer mixed with persuasively adorable charisma also teaches the dreamer to turn into a bit of a practical minded lady.  My impractical side was partially asleep when the hubs alerted me to our flooded little kitchen, and one must forgive me for the initial thought I had was “Okay the cats didn’t destroy anything…&$!*% burst water pipe…$$$$$$$!!!!” flashed through my mind.  And while the mini-meow had indeed, puked up her dinner on the carpet, under closer inspection it did not appear that the pipe had imploded and the world was not collapsing.  

So once we had a better idea of how this was not going to cause the house to crumble into the Ancient Mayan Ruins, the hubs put a call in for a plumber and I ended up FaceTiming with a friend’s father who is quite handy. The advice and troubleshooting was much appreciated, and later on that day the plumber found the actual issue, which was a very easy, non “take out a second mortgage” fix. Even more thrilling was the determination that my little kitchen ceiling was not going to be demolished to expose all that plumbing nonsense!!!

This Gateau au Citron is that perfect balance between sweet and tart, floral and sharp.  Dressing it up to look fancy does not mean it is a complicated process, however.  This technically is a 2 bowl cake, one for the glaze, and one for the cake.

So, in celebration of 1. A non-destroyed kitchen ceiling, 2.  A solution to the plumbing issue that did NOT have us playing “The Money Pit” on repeat, and 3.  The fact that my initial 2 years in my Clinical Trial has come to an end, allowing me to move forward to Open Label (meaning I FOR SURE will receive the trial drug to continue to stabilize my NMO attacks, I shall have a fancy little Gateau au Citron this weekend. 

This splendid little name, Gateau au Citron, already transports your mind to dainty tea services with lush flowers in the dappled summer breeze.  Though the name may seem fairly fancy, it is simply just an everyday yogurt cake flavored with Meyer Lemons.  The process of baking the cake and the glaze is very straightforward, and this recipe is pretty forgiving in adjustments you would like to make in terms of perhaps lowering the amount of sugar a bit, or substituting the flavorings towards other fruits.  I however, wanted to present this little Gateau au Citron in a “little black dress” version of itself, with some gorgeous little Candied Meyer Lemon slices and a dusting of Confectioner’s Sugar on top.

Wait until you are about to serve or present the cake before adding the Confectioner's Sugar dusting.  If it sits too long, the sugar will eventually melt into the cake.  This is the "before glamor shot", right before the finishing serving touches.

When I’ve made this version, of which there are variations upon variations on it out there from all those little ancient French grandmothers, I have started the Candied Meyer Lemons first, then while they are simmering for the hour I am able to bake the cake.  Then, the cake and the Candied Lemons ae cooling at the same time, allowing you to glaze the cake properly once it’s cooled before garnishing with the Candied Lemons and Confectioner’s Sugar.  This is something of a perfect summer dessert, as you can always bake the cake without the Candied Lemon garnish, and is a wonderful alternative to Strawberry Shortcake for those who perhaps may be allergic to berries or just prefer Citrus flavors.  You can aways substitute traditional Eureka Lemons for Meyer Lemons, but I find that the slightly more orange and floral notes transform this cake into something special.  

The crumb of the cake is tight without being dense, and there is a fluffiness that the yogurt helps bring to the forefront of the texture of the cake before you add the glaze.  Once glazed, the cake becomes perfumed with the sweetly tart tang of Meyer Lemon, and it transforms into something that has a lovely, rich, moist texture.  Little things, like perfuming the sugar with the lemon zest before mixing the batter together, add layers and depths of flavor to the finished cake.  With the Candied Meyer Lemon Slices as a garnish, each bite contains different levels of sweet, bitter, tang, and acidity.  It truly is a cake that can be served just after dinner, during a baby shower, a fancy brunch, or, as mentioned before, outside under the tree on a sun-dappled afternoon picnic.

Everyday life can sometimes be overwhelming in its constant flux of change, from plumbing near-disasters, to starting the second stint of a groundbreaking Clinical Trial, or even to something as small as the victory of hanging up some decor that continues to entrench the feeling of “Home” into your home.  It is, for me, adjusting my expectations in how my body is able to perform in intense streaks of scorching heat and still finding ways to incorporate the good, homemade, nutritious food that powers my body best.  It is finding, adapting, and adjusting to those rhythm changes that allow myself to enjoy the fruits of simple, everyday celebrations such as this lovely little cake.

The "after glamor shot", with a light dusting of Confectioner's Sugar to make a delicious little everyday cake into a truly special little cake.

Gateau au Citron

Author:  Iris Anna Gohn

Servings: 8

This cake can be made in two bowls, one for the cake itself and one for the glaze.  It comes together incredibly quickly, and I originally baked this cake with no Candied Meyer Lemons, then with sliced peaches and vanilla, but you can also substitute any number of fruit combinations or extracts to flavor it as you please.  I do think that if you are using fruit slices or chunks you have to be more diligent about checking the bake time - sometimes a more water-heavy fruit slows the baking process.

This cake is best of the first day, but keeps well covered for up to 4.  I have a tendency to like my glazed cakes to be a little light on the glaze, so you can increase the amount of glaze made by adding a couple Tbsp more Lemon Juice and a little more Confectioner’s Sugar.  If you choose to do this, start with the listed amount to see what the viscosity o the liquid is, and add a little Juice then Sugar alternately, taking care to make sure the glaze retains the same amount of viscosity so it will soak into the cake well.

Lastly, for myself, I always measure out my dry ingredients in a separate bowl from my wet as it makes it much easier for me to determine what I have already measured out and makes the process of adding ingredients much smoother.  It is easier for myself with the voice assistive technology that reads back to me to not have to slow the process down in the middle by having “2 Tbsp Meyer Lemon Juice” read 2372 times when trying to find the next ingredient to add.  If you are a confident baker, hate washing extra dishes, then you can absolutely do this recipe in two bowls rather than three, one for the cake and one for the glaze.

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• 1 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour

• 1/4 Tsp Kosher Salt
• 2 Tsp Baking POWDER
• 1 Cup Granulated White Sugar
• 2 Tsp Lemon Zest (Zest of 2 Meyer Lemons)
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Whole Milk Plain Yogurt
• 1/2 Tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 Cup Canola Oil

For the Glaze:

• 1/2 Cup Confectioner’s Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Meyer Lemon Juice (Juice of 2 Meyer Lemons)

To Serve:

• Candied Meyer Lemons
• Confectioner’s Sugar

Directions

For the Cake

1. Preheat Oven to 350 F.  Line a 9 inch Springform pan with parchment on the bottom and sides, and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray.  Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, add the granulated white sugar and using your fingers, gently massage the lemon zest until incorporated.  The sugar will be fragrant and perfumed with the lemon oils.  Add the eggs, vanilla, and yogurt and whisk together until combined well.
3. Add the flour and baking powder and whisk until just barely combined - a few white streaks will be okay.  You do not want to over whisk the batter as it will make the cake tough.  Add the oil and slowly stir to combine.  At first, it will separate and not be cohesive at all, keep stirring until it smooths out, it should take about two minutes by hand.  
4. Using a spatula, evenly spread the batter into the prepared Springform pan.  Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  The top of the cake will feel dry and springy.  Let cool in the pan for about 20 minutes, then gently release it from the pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

For the Glaze:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the Meyer Lemon Juice and Confectioner’s Sugar until thoroughly combined.

To Serve:

1. Once the cake has cooled, place on the cake stand or serving plate you intend to use.  I like to flip my cake upside down as the bottom of the cake has a lovely even browned color, and the edges are clean and even for the garnishes.  It is totally not necessary to do this, however.
2. Gently drizzle the glaze evenly over the top of the cake - it will absorb the glaze easily.  If you like, you can also use a pastry brush to administer the glaze to the top of the cake.
3. Garnish the top of the cake with the Candied Meyer Lemons, and then sift a bit of Confectioner’s Sugar on just before serving.