Happy Weekend
Around this time last year when I was prego, I read Pamela Druckerman’s Bringing Up Bébé. While I did take issue with some of the author’s thoughts as I thought them a bit lofty and unrealistic, I largely found it to be a good read and pretty useful. The main theme and lesson I took from the book is the idea that by teaching your children the art of patience, you are ultimately helping them in their life’s journey. It does make sense. ‘Tis a virtue, that patience- it sure is.
In any case, one of the chapters focused on the French yogurt cake, gâteau au yaourt. This is supposedly the first thing a French child learns to bake by his or herself due to the simple ingredients and easy instructions. I thought it might be fun to take a crack at it seeing as I am usually altogether oven-challenged myself. If a 3 year old French kid can do this, surely so can I. We’ll see. We are off to NY on a mini road trip to see family and play with cousins. This would be a fun recipe to tackle with my nieces. In the meantime, here is the recipe via Clotilde Dusoulier’s Chocolate and Zucchini. I’ve always been a fan of her blog and she’s a Frenchie, so it must be authentic.
What are your plans for the weekend? As always, Cin Cin and Enjoy!
Gâteau au Yaourt
recipe: Chocolate and Zucchini
- 2 eggs
- 250ml (1 cup) whole milk plain unsweetened yogurt (if you use two 125ml or 4oz tubs, you can use them to measure out the rest of the ingredients)
- 200g (1 cup) sugar (you can use an empty tub of yogurt and measure the equivalent of 2 yogurt tubs if you used the 125ml or 4oz kind)
- 80ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil (or a bit less than 1 yogurt tub)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (or 4 yogurt tubs)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- a good pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla paste/extract
- 1 tablespoon light rum
Preheat the oven to 180° C (350° F), line the bottom of a round 25-cm (10-inch) cake pan with parchment paper and grease the sides. In a large mixing-bowl, gently combine the yogurt, eggs, sugar, vanilla, oil, and rum. In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture into the yogurt mixture, and blend together — don’t overwork the dough. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean. Let stand for ten minutes, and transfer onto a rack to cool.
{Image Credit: Penny Klett at Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen}
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