When granadillas (or passion fruit, as they are more commonly known) are in season in South Africa, I buy them religiously. I love how their floral fragrance fills the house and their tart, juicy flesh always makes my mouth water. My grandmother used to have a passion fruit tree in her garden and whenever we would visit in Summer, the scent of the fruit would hang in the air. I would pick more than I was allowed to and would sneakily slice them open and scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon. To this day they are still one of my favorite fruits. When I bought a giant box of passion fruit a while ago, I knew I would eat them with a teaspoon but I also wanted to do something a little different with them. I love passion fruit cake and decided to use my favorite yogurt cake recipe from my first book, but adapted it to use passion fruit instead of lemons. This cake turned out better than I could’ve wished for. The crumb is moist and tender and it’s the type of recipe that can be turned into cupcakes, mini loaves or a layered round cake. It also helps that it can be whipped up in a few minutes because there’s no creaming of butter and sugar, etc. to worry about. The white chocolate glaze finishes the cake off perfectly making it the ultimate tea time treat.
Why is yogurt used in baking?
Yogurt is used in baking because it adds a good amount of moisture and fat into the batter. This results in a more delicate and moist crumb once the cake is baked.
How to make passion fruit yogurt cake
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F and line a loaf pan with parchment paper. Sift flour, salt and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, sugar, oil and passion fruit pulp. If you don’t want seeds in your cake, strain the pulp through a fine mesh sieve before adding to the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place in the preheated oven. Allow to bake for 30-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. To make the white chocolate glaze, melt white chocolate, strained passion fruit pulp and a tablespoon of water together over a double boiler and allow to cool to room temperature. Pour over the cake and allow to set for 10 minutes before serving.
Can you freeze yogurt cake?
Yes, you can. Wrap the cooled, un-glazed cake in a layer of parchment paper followed by foil. Freeze for up to 3 moths and allow to thaw completely before serving.
Can yogurt be substituted in cake recipes?
Yogurt can be substituted with sour cream or buttermilk in most baked goods.
Yogurt cake recipes
