On days when my kitchen feels like it's working against me, I take a pause and scroll through my Instagram… I created all that from this tiny counter space! But there is one recipe that I love to bake without the stress of making space, bringing out gadgets, or piling up dishes-A classic French lemon yoghurt cake!
Sounds fancy, right? This cake recipe uses the yoghurt container as the measuring cup, so all you need is a bowl, a whisk, and one container of yoghurt. The result? A super soft, citrusy cake that is ready in under an hour. Perfect for tea time, and with just two of us, it lasted for 3 days!
🔍Quick Look: Lemon Yoghurt Cake Recipe
- ⏱️ Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🍳 Cook Time: 35 to 45 minutes
- 👥 Servings: 26 slices (small pieces)
- 🔥 Cook Method: Oven
- ⭐ Difficulty: Easy
- 😋 Recipe Highlights: This cake uses a proportional measuring method, where one yoghurt container is used to measure all ingredients.
- 🎯 Key to Success: Mix gently once the flour is added to keep the crumb light and tender.
I love the classic gâteau au yaourt cake because it was the FIRST cake I ever baked (after reading about it in a magazine). I read that in France, this is often the first cake children learn to bake, using a yoghurt pot pulled straight from the fridge. Adding lemon zest and lemon juice was my 40+ grown-up thing to do. 🙂 Wouldn't you?
Notes on Ingredients
A very forgiving recipe that you can make even if you have no baking experience! Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this French lemon yoghurt cake:
- Yoghurt: Use a single-serve plain full-fat yoghurt cup. You may use Greek-style flavoured yoghurt too!
- Eggs: You can use medium or large.
- Oil: You can use any neutral vegetable oil, light olive oil or melted butter.
- Sugar: Regular white sugar would be enough.
- Lemon zest and juice
- Vanilla sugar or extract
- Flour: I have used All-purpose plain flour (maida).
- Baking powder
- salt
Refer to the Recipe Card at the bottom of this page for a complete list of ingredients and quantities.
Yoghurt Cup Method
The beauty of this cake recipe is that it relies on proportions rather than fixed weights. So, traditionally, the ingredients are measured using a small single-serve plain yoghurt container.
I have noticed that single-serve yoghurt comes in sizes ranging from 90g to 170g. So, remember that a bigger cup makes more batter, and more batter needs a larger pan.
I made my cake using a 125g yoghurt cup and an 8-inch round pan. But here is a guide I created to help you choose the right pan size.
| Yoghurt Cup Size | Batter Yield | Recommended Pan Size |
| 90–100g yoghurt cup | Small cake | - 7 × 2-inch round pan - 6-inch round pan (taller cake) - Small loaf tin |
| 125g yoghurt cup | Medium cake | - 8 × 2-inch round pan - Standard loaf tin |
| 170g yoghurt cup | Large cake | - 9 × 2-inch round pan - 8 × 3-inch round pan - 9 × 5-inch loaf tin - Bundt pan |
Now, what if you don't have a single-serve yoghurt cup but do have a large tub of yoghurt? You can still make this cake easily. Choose any teacup, small mug, or a ½-cup measuring cup and use the same cup to measure all the ingredients. As long as you stick to one cup size throughout, the proportions will work perfectly.
Pro Tip
- Don't have to bring the ingredients to room temperature!
- Don't stress about the order of ingredients. Just save the flour and baking powder for last and mix lightly.
- You may reduce the sugar and oil a bit and still bake a great cake.
- To slice a round cake into tea cake slices, as you see in the images, I followed the "How to Cut Your Cake" article.
Serving Suggestions
This French lemon yoghurt cake is delicious on its own, but if you want to serve it with something extra, here are some great pairings:
- Whipped cream
- Fresh berries
- Vanilla ice cream
- Honey
- Almond slivers
- Toasted coconut
- A nice coffee or Earl Grey tea
More Related Recipes
If you enjoy fragrant, citrus-forward cakes like this lemon yoghurt cake, you might also love my Persian Love Cake, which layers warm spices and floral notes into a similarly soft bake.
For another simple loaf-style cake that relies on pantry staples and minimal effort, this tahini cake is a great option, with a nutty depth that pairs beautifully with tea or coffee.
If you're building an afternoon tea menu, this cake sits beautifully alongside my cherry almond tea cake.
Storage
I sliced the cake into small rectangular pieces and stored them in an airtight container. They were sitting on my coffee table for 3 to 4 days until we finished every crumb!
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Do you have a similar recipe in your cuisine? I'd love to know it!
📖 Recipe Card
Lemon Yoghurt Cake (Gâteau au Yaourt au Citron)
Ingredients
- 1 container yoghurt, keep the container to measure the rest!
- 2 container white sugar
- 3 eggs, medium or large
- 1 container sunflower oil
- Zest of a lemon
- Juice of a lemon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar, or vanilla extract
- 3 container all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) with top/bottom setting.
- Grease and line a cake pan or a loaf tin with baking paper. Choose the pan size according to the yoghurt container size. See notes.
- Into a large bowl, empty the yoghurt container, then use the same container to measure and add the sugar (2 times) and oil (1 time).1 container yoghurt keep the container to measure the rest!2 container white sugar1 container sunflower oil
- Next, add the eggs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla sugar. Whisk until well combined.3 eggs medium or largeZest of a lemonJuice of a lemon1 teaspoon vanilla sugar or vanilla extract
- Use the same container to measure and add the flour (3 times).3 container all-purpose flour
- Add the baking powder and salt. Stir in and mix until combined.2 teaspoon baking powder1 pinch salt
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake on the centre rack for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Serve with tea or coffee. Optionally, you may add a lemon glaze by mixing equal parts of lemon juice and icing sugar. Spoon over the cake only after it has fully cooled.
Famidha Ashraf says
I am so thrilled to share this foolproof French classic! I love how the yoghurt makes the crumb incredibly moist while the lemon gives it that perfect zesty kick. This is my favourite simple bake for an afternoon treat. I hope you all enjoy this light and airy cake as much as I do!