Lemon Yogurt Cake Strawberry Shortcake!

A few weeks back my boyfriend's sister came to town for her birthday. This was the first time I was meeting her, so I definitely wanted to do something a little nice and what better way to a girl's heart than through sweets;) plus a great excuse to make something I have never made before. I found out her two favorite dessert's were lemon yogurt cake and strawberry shortcake. Right away I thought I could totally do that and incorporate both desserts! Perfect idea!
I had a few days before her arrival so I was all over looking for the perfect recipe. As per usual I got onto Foodgawker.com and typed in Lemon Yogurt Cake. A few recipes popped up and it turns out all the recipes came from the Food Network Site through Barefoot Contessa.
I knew that I would be making the whipped cream from scratch as it is super easy and so much better than cool whip or reddi whip hands down. I also lucked out that the strawberries that week at the store looked fabulous! Yay, I knew this was gonna be delish!!! And as it turns out, it was a crowd pleaser! As even after a great birthday dinner and totally stuffed, we all still managed to clear the dessert plates! So overall it was a great day, great food, awesome birthday cake and most of all great company!


Lemon Yogurt Cake- Courtesy of Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
• 3 extra-large eggs
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the glaze:

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Meanwhile, cook 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. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.
For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake

For the whipped cream- courtesy of my momma;)
I could have used a little more to be honest as there were 6 of us, but I scraped the bowl and it was just enough. If I did it again, I would use a larger container of whipping cream.( 1 pint vs. what I used which was the smallest container.) Add in about a teaspoon of vanilla and then sugar to your taste. I really just eyeballed it...but if you look it up most say about a tablespoon per cup of whipping cream.
 And lastly, one carton of fresh strawberries sliced.

Enjoy!