YOGURT LEMON LOAF

Sarabeth Levine, chef and owner of Sarabeth’s bakeries and creator of her eponymous line of jams, makes a delicious lemon pound cake. If sales are any indication, thousands of her customers from New York to Japan agree. I was lucky enough to collaborate with her on her brunch cookbook, and I’m happy to call her a friend. When we were working on her lemon cake recipe, I mentioned that I always skip the final step in recipes that call for soaking the cake with lemon syrup, since it seems unnecessary and adds too much sugar besides. She spun toward me and scolded, “You can’t skip that! That’s the most important part!” To summarize: The soak infuses the cake with fresh lemon flavor and keeps the crumb moist. The bright citrus intensity of Sarabeth’s soaked cake made me wonder if it couldn’t work with a heartier lemon loaf too. This quick bread is already moist because it’s made with oil and yogurt instead of butter. Although it has a higher proportion of whole wheat flour than white, the lemony soak eliminates any risk of a dry crumb. Ground flax seeds turn the loaf golden and give it richness too.

makes one 8½-by-4¼-inch loaf

no nuts

• ⅓ cup (75 g) grapeseed or other neutral oil
• 3 large lemons
• 1 cup (144 g) white whole wheat flour
• ¼ cup (36 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons ground golden flax seeds
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1⅓ cups (277 g) sugar
• 1 cup (261 g) plain low-fat yogurt, at room temperature
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Coat an 8½-by-4¼-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line the bottom with parchment paper and spray the parchment.

2. Put the oil in a large bowl and zest the lemons into the oil; set the lemons aside. Whisk both flours, the ground flax, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Add 1 cup of the sugar to the oil mixture and whisk well, then whisk in the yogurt until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition, then whisk in the vanilla. While whisking, gradually add the flour mixture. Stop as soon as the mixture is smooth. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.

3. Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. If the top starts to brown too much, tent lightly with foil.

4. Meanwhile, squeeze ⅓ cup juice from the lemons and pour into a small saucepan. Add the remaining ⅓ cup sugar and cook, stirring, over medium heat just until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat.

5. Cool the loaf in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Brush half of the lemon syrup evenly over the top of the loaf. Slide a thin-bladed knife around the edges of the pan. Carefully invert the loaf onto the rack and discard the parchment. Brush the remaining syrup evenly over the bottom and sides of the loaf, letting each addition be absorbed before brushing on more. Cool completely right side up on the rack.

MAKE AHEAD

The loaf will keep for up to 2 days at room temperature or 2 weeks in the freezer.