It’s citrus season which calls for one of my favourite cirtus combos, blueberry-lemon! It may not be blueberry season but the best thing about this cake is you can just use frozen blueberries and it is just as awesome, so you get the blueberry deliciousness hit alll year round!
I am a bit obsessed with yoghurt and cake combo so made an easy strained yoghurt aka labneh frosting for this loaf. I find it a great light alternative to putting regular frosting or glaze on cake, but you can really choose your own adventure here, I’ve added an alternative glaze recipe and this loaf cake is super delicious all by itself, no glaze obligatory.
Notes
Labneh – labneh is strained yoghurt so helps to thicken yoghurt to a creamy frosting consistency for delicious light alternative to frosting. It’s really easy to make, but you do have to pre-prepare the night before. I have also added an alternative glaze for the loaf if you wanted to stick to a regular glaze. This loaf cake is also great all on it’s own.
Storage – if you add the labneh frosting you will need to store this loaf in the fridge. I wrap in foil with a loose top to help keep the loaf moist.
Substitutions
Sour cream: you can substitute the sour cream with any thick yoghurt.
Blueberry and Lemon Loaf Cake
Ingredients
240g (2 cups) all purpose flour + 1 tbsp flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
170g butter (3/4 cups), room temperature
250g (1 1/4 cups) granulated sugar
3 eggs
180g (3/4 cup) sour cream
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice + zest of one lemon
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups (240g) blueberries
Strained Yoghurt (Labneh) Frosting
4 cups yoghurt
1/2 tsp vanilla
Alternative Glaze
240g (2 cups) powdered sugar
60g (1/4 cup) heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
Labneh Frosting
The night before: Line a large sieve with cheesecloth and set over a bowl so that it rests at least an inch off the bottom. Place the yogurt in the cheesecloth. Cover and put in the fridge to let drain overnight. The next day take the strained yoghurt from the fridge and discard the whey. Spoon the labneh into a bowl, add the vanilla and whisk together, set aside.
Loaf
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and line a 9×4 inch loaf pan with baking paper.
Toss the blueberries in the tbsp of flour.
In a bowl or stand mixer cream the butter and sugar together with an electric whisk until light and fluffy, about 2 mins. Add the eggs one at a time, beating in till fully combined. Add the sour cream, lemon zest, juice and vanilla and mix till fully combined. In a bowl whisk all the dry ingredients together. Add to the wet ingredients and mix till just combined. Add the blueberries and fold into the batter carefully, do not overmix.
Spoon the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 60mins or until a toothpick into the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool for 10mins and then transfer to a cooling rack. Let cool completely.
Spoon the frosting over the top of the loaf, using a palette knife to swirl it all over.
