Bizcocho de Yogur 1, 2, 3
(beeth-KO-cho de yo-GOOR)
Mañanas y Meriendas: The Rhythms of Morning and Afternoon
One part olive oil, two parts sugar, three parts flour. Decades ago, Spanish cooks figured out a brilliant trick to capture the taste of coming home from school for la merienda at four in the afternoon: empty a little glass pot of yogurt into a bowl, then use that unwashed pot to measure everything else. Because American yogurt cups come in wildly different sizes that will wreck the hydration ratio of your batter, we’ve locked that golden ratio to a standard American half-cup measure—so treat that measure like a 125-gram plastic yogurt tub, scrape out the last of the dairy, and start counting to get the caramelized edge of the crumb.
Before you start
Bring the eggs to room temperature.
Cold eggs will not whip into the pale, voluminous froth required to naturally aerate this cake.
Ingredients
- plain whole-milk or lemon yogurt1/2 cup
- mild cooking oil1/2 cup
- granulated white sugar1 cup
- all-purpose flour1 1/2 cup
- large eggs3 large
- baking powder3 1/2 tsp
- lemon1 large
- salt1 pinch
- unsalted butter1 tbsp
- powdered sugar1 tbsp
Method
- 01
Preheat the oven and prep your pan.
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Generously grease an 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pan with butter and dust it lightly with flour, tapping out the excess so the bizcocho releases flawlessly later.
- 02
Whip the eggs and sugar until pale and frothy.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar together with a hand mixer for 3 to 5 minutes. Do not skip this step. The mixture must double in volume and turn pale yellow to trap the air that guarantees a fluffy crumb.
- 03
Mix in the wet ingredients.
Add the yogurt, oil, and lemon zest. Mix gently for just a few seconds until smoothly incorporated.
- 04
Sift the dry ingredients directly over the batter.
Set a fine-mesh strainer over your bowl. Pour in the flour, baking powder, and salt, tapping the strainer so they fall like snow into the wet mix. This removes lumps and prevents bitter, metallic pockets of baking powder.
- 05
Fold, don't beat.
Using a rubber spatula, sweep under and over the batter gently. Stop mixing the exact second you no longer see streaks of dry flour. Overmixing activates the gluten and turns a tender sponge into tough bread.
- 06
Bake the cake without opening the oven door.
Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake on the middle rack for 35 to 45 minutes. Do not open the oven door for the first 30 minutes, or a draft of cold air will instantly collapse the rising cake. It's done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- 07
Let the cake cool slowly to avoid temperature shock.
Turn off the oven, crack the door slightly, and leave the cake inside for 10 minutes. Remove and let it cool completely on a wire rack before dusting generously with powdered sugar.
Notes
Choosing the right oil.
Skip the robust extra-virgin olive oil here; it will overpower the delicate lemon and yogurt flavors. Stick to a mild sunflower, avocado, or light-tasting olive oil.
The American 'vasito' adaptation.
We use a 1/2 cup measure for the 1-2-3 ratio because it perfectly mimics the traditional 125-gram Spanish yogurt pot. If you were to use a modern 5.3-ounce American yogurt cup as your base measure, the hydration balance with the three eggs would fail.
From Cook Spanish in America.