olive oil meyer lemon cake

adapted from THIS recipe, by Ina Garten...I substituted meyer lemons* for the regular lemons in her recipe...also where she used whole milk yogurt, I used fat free greek style, which is considerably thicker (more like sour cream) with a fraction of the calories...

I had already committed to making the cake when I realized I had no vegetable oil!! :/ ...instead I wound up using olive oil..which in my opinion, if anything only adds to the awesomeness...

because you pour a simple syrup (made with lemon juice instead of water) over the warm cake and let it soak in..this cake is soooooooo moist..even if you accidentally over baked it a smidge I seriously doubt if anyone would ever notice!

if you like lemony dessert, I highly recommend you try this one...it's totally easy with a BIG lemon punch!

ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

for the glaze:

combine 1 cup confectioners' sugar with 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice...set aside

directions:

preheat oven to 350º

grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan

sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl
in another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs and lemon zest
slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients...then, with a rubber spatula, fold the oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated.
pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean

meanwhile, heat the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear...set aside

when the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. while the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the top and let it soak in...let the cake cool

once cooled..remove cake to a wire rack (set over a sheet pan to catch the drips) and pour glaze over the top

note: the original recipe calls for vanilla..I didn't have any so I skipped it and having had it both ways..I really don't think it makes a difference

* meyer lemons are said to be a cross between a regular lemon and a mandarin orange..their skin is so thin they can be used whole (like a kumquat) which means NO waste! they are sweeter and less acidic than regular lemons..so if you're substituting them in a regular lemon recipe..ya might wanna consider tweaking the sugar accordingly
they're more of a specialty item so you're not likely to find them in your regular supermarket...but if you're lucky enough to have access to them..grab 'em!