Strawberry Shortcake
Nancy Harmon Jenkins, "Jane Grigson's Fruit Book"
5050 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars
5,050
About 45 minutes
Lemony Turmeric Tea Cake
- Total Time
- 1½ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:One 9-inch loaf
- Nonstick cooking spray or butter, for greasing the pan
- 1½cups/215 grams all-purpose flour
- 2teaspoons baking powder
- 1teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2lemons
- 1cup/200 grams granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for sprinkling
- ¾cup/180 milliliters sour cream or full-fat Greek yogurt, plus more for serving (optional)
- 2large eggs
- ½cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
- Whipped cream (optional)
Preparation
- Step 1
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 4-by-9-inch loaf pan (see Tip) with nonstick cooking spray or butter, and line it with parchment, leaving some overhang on both of the longer sides so you’re able to easily lift the cake out after baking.
- Step 2
Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and turmeric in a large bowl.
- Step 3
Grate 2 tablespoons zest from 1 lemon into a medium bowl. Halve the zested lemon and squeeze 2 tablespoons juice into a small bowl. Cut half the remaining whole lemon into thin rounds, discarding seeds (save the other half for another use).
- Step 4
Add 1 cup sugar to the lemon zest in the medium bowl; rub together with your fingertips until the sugar is fragrant and tinted yellow. Whisk in the sour cream, eggs and the 2 tablespoons lemon juice until well blended.
- Step 5
Using a spatula, add the wet mixture to the flour mixture, stirring just to blend. Fold in the melted butter. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Scatter the top with the lemon slices and 2 tablespoons sugar.
- Step 6
Bake until the top of the cake is golden brown, the edges pull away from the sides of the pan, and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. (If the lemons are getting too dark, lay a piece of foil on top to prevent burning.) Let cool before slicing. (Cake can be baked up to 5 days ahead, wrapped tightly, and stored at room temperature.) Serve with whipped cream, if desired.
Tip
- For some reason, finding a standard-size loaf pan is nearly impossible, so get as close to these dimensions as you can. While you could use either a metal or a glass pan, metal conducts heat more evenly.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Ruth
How do you get 2 tablespoons of zest out of one lemon?
Linda Two Terriers
I haven't made this yet but I've learned about baking with whole lemon slices from making shaker lemon pies. 1) Use thin-skinned lemons. Meyer lemons work well. 2) Partially freeze the lemons before slicing in order to get them as thin as possible.
Gonzalo
I don't think the lemon slices are nice at all. I found them quite bitter and rubbery, but they were really pretty. Maybe blanching and/or candying them first would help to make them more palatable.
Chris S.
Thank you, Alison Roman, for this marvelous recipe. The idea of keeping a simple, refreshing and not-too-sweet cake on hand for ordinary use (unexpected or planned drop-by visits, a needed post-challenge pick-me-up, or whatever) brings back the notion of simpler village life when we could all expect unannounced visitors to whom it would be polite to offer a hospitable bite and a cup of coffee or tea. The idea of a similarly nourishing ceremony just for ourselves when needed is uplifting.
cesaera
You could also simmer the sliced lemons( as thick as you made them) in equal parts sugar and water just to cover them. These ’candied’ lemon slices are yummy
Jason K
I really like this cake. It stores well and definitely didn't last more than two days in my house. A couple of notes: 1. Use the full 2TBSP of sugar on the top which takes away the bitterness of the lemon slices and adds some needed sweetness. 2. At 60 min. bake time, the cake was still quite moist inside (and a toothpick did not come out clean). I pulled it anyway and it was baked perfectly. (My oven is calibrated) 3. You need more than two lemons to produce 2TBSP of zest
Cequirk
Favorite cake! To make it more lemony, I put very thin lemon slices on the bottom of the pan before adding the batter. They melt into the cake. Agree that the slices have to be super thin (mandoline). I let the slices for top and bottom sit in a bowl with sugar for a while before putting them on. I've added grated fresh ginger. I've added a Tsp of cardamon which gives the cake a slight spicy savory flavor. Next time I do that, I'll reduce the sugar a bit. More turmeric is nice too
Brandon
Love this recipe and have made it a couple times already! It’s really great to bring to parties or small, casual gatherings and everyone’s been impressed. The only issue I’ve had is that the lemon slices on top need to be VERY thin or they’re hard to cut through when slicing the cake and the rind can be pretty chewy to eat if it’s not paper thin. Otherwise, the lemon is a lovely crystallized, caramelized texture on top.
Gladys
Quarter the lemons after thinly slicing and arrange in a pretty pattern on top to make slicing (and chewing) easier.
Elisabeth Gern
Saffron instead of turmeric. It works wonderfully well.
Elle C.
This is a nice simple & tasty recipe. Not too sweet & a light lemon taste. I wanted more of the crispy edges, so I baked them in a Madeleine pan about 18-20 min, made 2 doz. (Omitted the sliced lemon). If you want them a little sweeter, I think a light lemon glaze would be perfect.
Audrey
Using 9x5 loaf pan worked fine, just watch the cooking time. Lemons on top need to be very thin, otherwise the rind can be difficult to slice/eat thru. Someone suggested using a mandolin, which could work well. Cake becomes more moist, when wrapped/bagged and stored at room temp for 1-5 days after preparing.
Cake baker
Agree with a recent commenter--the lemon slices become rubbery and are impossible to cut nicely. Cake is pretty when comes out of oven, but a mess when serving. If I make it again, I'll sprinkle the top with zest and sugar instead using the slices. So, I just signed on to NYT Cooking. Did you test this recipe? Is this the level of user-friendliness I can expect from NYT recipes?
jocelyn
Delicious. Will reduce the sugar by 1 or 2 TBS next time, as we don't like sweet. Did the lemons very thinly on the mandolin and they were perfect.
Mimi S.
This tea cake is incredible! I’m gluten intolerant, so substituted Cup4Cup flour. I used the mandolin to slice the lemons for the top- but they were weird, and frankly not necessary, so I pulled them off after cooking. Note- with the Cup4Cup flour- I had to cook for about 65-70 minutes total- which is normal for me when baking Gluten Free (always about 10 minutes longer). Next tim I’ll simply sprinkle the top with sugar before baking!
Mere
My coworkers (a varied and international group) praise this recipe for not being too sweet and demanded the recipe. I used my European 3.5x10 inch loaf pans and it baked beautifully.
adjustments
Lemon on top is strong - maybe do a lemon glaze instead
doctoring
Ricotta in place of the sour cream/yogurt takes this over the top
Sarah N.
This turned out lovely, moist and flavorful, with a good balance of sweet and tart. A not-too-sweet whipped cream goes perfect. I sliced the lemons on top very thin with a mandolin. My only question: How to keep them from sinking fully into the batter?? Was my batter too wet? Would it work next time (I will probably make this again!) to bake for 20 min or so, then place lemon slices/sugar on top in the hope they won't just vanish?
Shawn
Absolutely delicious. The lemons are pretty on top but not practical or tasty for serving. Next time I’ll leave the lemon slices off. But the combination of turmeric and lemon is fantastic.
Arden
Don’t skip the sliced lemons. They turned jammy and sweet in the oven and are the best part. I was short on time and used an already thoroughly zested lemon, trimming the pith a little if it was thick. No issues there I made this in a wide, shallow pan - more room for lemon slices and takes less time to cook I subbed vegan yogurt and it didn’t rise much but was sturdy enough to eat with hands without being too heavy Will make again
Chase
I only had vanilla Greek yoghurt, so I cut back on the sugar slightly. Also used the zest of 2 lemons and candied the lemon slices per others’ notes. Fantastic recipe! Tip: Save the syrup from candying the lemon slices for cocktails/mocktails. I made Lillet spritzes.
Bina Corkery
Just made this cake. Very easy for a very inexperienced baker. Absolutely delicious. About to make a second one to give as a gift!
Gijs
Amp up the lemon and turmeric if you want. Will be making this again and going to try adding some other warm spices in the mix.
Kathy Fletcher
I would peel the lemon before slicing and putting on top. Too tough to cut through. Otherwise delicious!!
Meg
Good taste, but a bit dry and dense for a cake. Tastes more like a sweet bread. It took me 6 lemons to get 2 tbsp of zest… that part of the recipe really needs to be updated.
TCookie
Made this for the first time today. Added about a half tablespoon of freshly microplaned turmeric and a half teaspoon of cardamom per others’ suggestions. Baked in 2 12-portion madeleine pans at 400 for 9 minutes. They were delicious! Didn’t need anything else. I’ll be making them again.
Erica
has anyone made this with Meyer Lemons? And if so did you cut the sugar?
Larry W
Turned out great! I had to bake it for 70 mins. I cut the lemon slices very thin so I didn't have any trouble slicing the cake. I also only sprinkled 2 tsp of sugar on the top.
Natalie
The texture is nice but it’s not sweet at all and hardly tastes of lemon.
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