“This Turkish Yoghurt Cake is like a light, airy, fresh-tasting cheesecake,” writes Claudia Roden in her book Claudia Roden’s Mediterranean: Treasured Recipes from a Lifetime of Travel. 
And she is absolutely correct. It’s a delicious light cheesecake that can be dressed up or down as you please. Delicious as is, you could top it with macerated blueberries or strawberries or add loads more lemon or lime zest for something more citrusy. Or if you like, you can omit the zest completely and add the scraped beans from one vanilla pod for an aromatic cake. But I suggest the first time you make it, keep it plain and simple.
I have to admit I had not heard of Claudia Roden until I heard her on the Table Manners podcast where they had this Turkish Yogurt Cake for dessert and decided then and there to find the recipe and make the cake. I served it to friends and they loved it. The recipe is super easy. Some whisking and mixing, then you pour the batter into a cake tin and bake it with no need for a fussy water bath as you would for a traditional cheesecake. All in all it is a winning cake recipe. And if you love food podcasts and don’t know them yet, do give Table Manners with Jessie and Lennie Ware a listen. It’s a lovely and always fun podcast.
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Claudia Roden's Turkish Yoghurt Cake
Ingredients
- 4 large eggs separated
- 100 g sugar
- 3 tbsp cake flour
- 400 g full fat plain Greek yoghurt
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C
- Grease and line a 23cm springform pan with baking paper
- Use an electric mixer and beat the egg whites until soft peaks form - about 5 minutes - and set aside
- In a separate bowl, using the same mixer, combine the egg yolks and sugar and beat on a medium-high speed until the mixture is pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes
- Mix in the flour, yoghurt, lemon zest and juice, and salt until fully incorporated
- Gently fold in half of the egg whites into the yoghurt
- Then fold in the remaining whites, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl, until the batter is evenly mixed
- Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top
- Bake until the top golden brown, puffed and just firm to the touch, about 45 minutes
- The cake will puff up and fall like a souffle once removed from the oven
- Let the cake cool before removing from the pan and serve at room temperature or cold
Jenny
Jun 27, 2022
I also love the Table Manners podcast! Will be trying this cake for sure.
heinstirred
Jun 28, 2022
So many interesting people and stories! Enjoy the cake Jenny.
Lynne Moncrieff
Jul 9, 2024
Made this cake for a dinner party. Light and not too sweet – I doubled the lemon zest. Everyone raved about it. Great recipe
heinstirred
Jul 18, 2024
Such lovely news – very happy to hear Lynne. It is indeed a great recipe – I made it last week with lime zest and topped it with fresh strawberries