This grapefruit yogurt cake is so moist and flavorful. It is light, healthy, and delicious – perfect for breakfast or with a cup of tea!
Grapefruit – I always assumed this was a pretty inoffensive fruit. Slightly tart but usually pretty sweet. Pretty to look at. Super healthy. Delicious juice. What’s not to love? And then I met TheBetterHalf. Apparently grapefruit can be a pretty polarizing fruit. He HATES them. Which I find so strange because he eats pretty much anything – he’s a big fan of food. I think that’s why I like him so much. But something about the tartness of grapefruit is just too much for him. It is actually hilarious to watch his face if he tries a bite of my grapefruit or a sip of the juice.
So I figured that this grapefruit yogurt cake would have to be eaten solely by me. Which I was totally ok with. Well it turns out that when you mix grapefruit zest into a yogurt cake and top it with a sugary grapefruit juice, he likes the stuff! Phew – I really didn’t need to eat a whole cake by myself.
So let’s talk about this cake. I never know if I should call these things cake / loaf / bread / quickbread. Whatever you call this, it is delicious!! And, actually pretty healthy. There is only ⅓ cup of oil in the whole loaf. A cup of yogurt and a little bit of applesauce keep it nice and moist without adding any fat! Grapefruit zest is added to the batter to give this a nice light citrusy flavor.
But the star of the show is what you do after it bakes. You mix fresh squeezed grapefruit juice with sugar and pour it over the warm cake. The cake soaks in all that delicious liquid and it makes it so moist, so sweet, so grapefruit-y. It is great! And it stays moist for days.
Dr. Oz says, “Grapefruit acts as a digestive assistant that breaks down proteins so that they are ready to be used more quickly. Grapefruit can also accelerate your body’s ability to break down fat.” Um, awesome!
I wonder if it still has that affect when it is baked into a yogurt cake? I’m going with yes! So if the flavor and amazing texture alone aren’t enough to convince you to make this, then the fact that it will help your body break down fat should definitely motivate you to make this!
That slightly underbaked center is my absolute favorite part of the whole cake!
This grapefruit yogurt cake is so moist and flavorful. It is light, healthy, and delicious - perfect for breakfast or with a cup of tea!
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour (4 ¼ oz)
- ½ cup whole wheat flour (2 oz)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 2 Tablespoons applesauce
- 1 cup sugar (7 oz)
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 1 cup Greek yogurt (8 oz)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 teaspoons grapefruit zest
- 1/3 cup fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice mixed with 3 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 ½ x 4 ½ inch pan with nonstick cooking spray. Line with two strips of parchment paper, and spray again. This helps with easy removal of the cake.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, applesauce, and sugar until well combined. Add eggs one at a a time, beating well after each addition. Whisk in the yogurt until smooth. Stir in the vanilla.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and and stir until just combined - do not over mix. Fold in the zest.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 - 45 minutes, until the bread is light golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. If the bread appears to be browning too quickly, tent with foil. The center might be slightly under baked - that is ok. It will set up as it cools (and those will be the best bites!)
- Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. While still warm, pour the grapefruit juice/sugar mixture over the bread and allow it to soak in. If it does not appear to be soaking in, poke some holes in the bread with toothpicks. Let the bread sit for 10 minutes, then remove it to a wire rack to cool completely.
I absolutely love baking yogurt cakes / loafs / breads! Here are some of my favorites:
Healthy Blackberry Coconut Yogurt Bread
What? How could anyone hate grapefruits? The BetterHalf and I need to talk lol! This cake looks so prettty!!! And of course delicious. I like how delicate it looks. I just want to dig in and enjoy with a cup of tea!!!
Holy moly this sounds delicious! I am kind of obsessed with grapefruits lately. Greyhounds are one my favorite cocktails right now (vodka + grapefruit juice). I could eat so many slices of this : )
Beautiful cake! I love baking with grapefruit!
I’ve tried the pouring juice with sugar thing over a lemon cake before and it was amazing … this is such a great twist on that! I had actually totally forgotten that grapefruits existed until just now because I’m pretty sure you can’t get them over here in Greece (yet another thing I can’t get!) Now you’ve got me thinking … grapefruit curd might be pretty cool! You could swirl a bit into this cake batter … mmmm!
This grapefruit yogurt cake sounds incredible!! I’m sort of new to grapefruit, but when I first tried it like a month ago, I LOVED it. So obviously I need to make this cake. 🙂 Pouring the glaze over it while it’s still warm sounds amazing!
Gorgeous cake/loaf/bread, Cate! I love the idea of pouring the grapefruit simple syrup on top. Pinning!
Mmm I love yogurt cakes! They’re seriously the best 🙂 what a great flavor! Grapefruit is definitely polarizing but I love it!
beautiful cake.. looks so yum!
This sounds so good- I love grapefruit!
Hmmm, now you have me intrigued. I’m just like your better half… grapefruit and I aren’t friends. But the fact that he likes this cake gives me hope for grapefruit reconciliation!
When I was a kid I HATED grapefruit. I seriously don’t know what I was thinking, but thank goodness I outgrew that! LOL. I love this cake! Grapefruit and yogurt sound like such a great combo and I’ll bet the yogurt keeps this cake incredibly moist too! Beautiful photos! Pinned as always! 😉
I’ve had major grapefruit cravings lately…but I love grapefruit anyway. I can’t believe someone wouldn’t like it! My hubby is the opposite- he can’t get enough. I may just have to make this yummy cake for him 😉
That grapefruit infused glaze puts this over the top! What a fantastic and creative loaf, Cate! Haha, I can relate with your husband – I put, like, 1/4 cup sugar on my grapefruit because I think it is so sour! 🙂 This is a probably a healthier way to enjoy grapefruit!
I love grapefruit and this cake looks deeeeelicious! 🙂
So I know I am super weird but I actually don’t like plain grapefruit but LOVE when it is in something! Like this cake – definitely need to try it out! And my husband who is obsessed with grapefruit will love it too! Pinned 🙂
I’m so glad you posted this because I never make yogurt cakes. Why?? They’re so easy, moist and flavorful. And I LOVE grapefruit! I’m going to pin this to make soon!
Oh my god, this is suchhhhh a genius idea! I have never thought of putting grapefruit in a cake and a yogurt cake at that?! My girl, you have thought of everything. Pinned!
This looks delicious, Cate! Also, looks like the perfect breakfast recipe!
This cake looks delicious – I love grapefruit but my husband isn’t a big fan either. This cake sounds like a great way to get him to eat more too – pouring the grapefruit simple syrup on top is such a great idea!
This is too funny, Cate — I think your husband and I have similar experiences with grapefruit. But with a gorgeous, moist yogurt cake like this, I think I could be converted! It looks sublime.