Whole Wheat Lemon Cake - One Bowl Recipe
Sometimes the simplest recipes become the ones we treasure the most. That’s exactly how I feel about this Whole Wheat Lemon Cake. It’s made in just one bowl with simple pantry ingredients, yet it bakes into a wonderfully moist, tender cake bursting with fresh lemon flavor.
Prep Time15 minutes mins
Cook Time45 minutes mins
Total Time1 hour hr
Servings: 8 slices
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (hard red wheat) or white whole wheat flour
- 3 1/2 tsps baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp fine-ground sea salt
- 1 egg
- 1 cup unrefined whole cane sugar or granulated sugar (white table sugar)
- 8 tbsps butter, melted and cooled (1 “stick” of butter)
- 6 Zest and juice of 6 large lemons
- Enough milk added to the lemon juice to create 1 1/4 cups of liquid
Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and prepare your loaf pan by greasing only the bottom of the pan.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl, and whisk to combine.
Mix the lemon juice and milk together and stir well. It will thicken. Set aside.
Add all the remaining ingredients to the bowl, including the lemon juice milk mixture.
Mix just until everything is just incorporated and all the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not overmix.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 55 to 65 minutes, or until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Remove the cake from the loaf pan and allow the cake to cool on a cooling rack before serving.
Garnish as desired.
To make a lemon glaze to pour over the cake, simply mix 1 cup of powdered (icing) sugar with the juice of one large lemon. You can also add the zest of the lemon to the glaze for even more lemony flavor.
Find this recipe and video at https://marysnest.com/whole-wheat-lemon-cake/
If you’re building a traditional foods kitchen or stocking a real foods pantry, be sure to get all the books in Mary’s Modern Pioneer cookbook series, published by Penguin Random House: https://marysnest.com/modern-pioneer-cookbook-series/
For free and comprehensive lesson plans to teach traditional food recipes and kitchen techniques to students K-12, download The Modern Pioneer Cookbook Curriculum at https://marysnest.com/cookbook-curriculum/
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