Lemon Butter Cake (REDUCED FAT & 181 Calories)

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I woke up at 8 am Saturday morning because I had to work till 2 pm, life does suck at times. I wasn’t feeling well, but I was craving something sweet and light. My work was on and off so I decided to bake on this cold, windy, and rainy day. I kept thinking what do I need to use up, and I remembered how I had a couple lemons lying around, so I thought, Lemon Cake. I hunted for a recipe and found one that used 1 stick of butter… I knew I had to trim down the fat.

This cake has a very slight butter flavor, it is spongy, light, and lemony. This is the perfect cake for a rainy day or a lovely spring day… I’ll say just about anything for a slice of cake. After I was done working and baking, I woke up from an afternoon nap and had a cup of tea with a slice of cake. My husband was my taster and he really enjoyed this cake, he ate 4 slices in one sitting… SIGH! I hid the rest from him 🙂 I plan on seeing my family tomorrow so I’ll get more feedback, they are a tough crowd to please.

MODIFICATIONS I MADE:

I used 1 cup of All Purpose Flour and 1/2 cup of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour. This adds some fiber to the cake without altering the taste of the cake.
I used 2% milk, and added another 1/4 cup to the recipe.
Instead of 8 tbsp of butter, I used 6 tbsp. Next time, I plan on using 4.5 tbsp.
I used 1 cup of sugar instead of 3/4 cup, YES, you heard me, 1 cup. I skipped the glaze all together.
Lastly, I used 2 eggs and 1 egg white.

APPROXIMATE NUTRITION PER SERVING (yields 12 generous slices)

Calories: 181 cals
Fat: 6.7 g
Saturated Fat: 3.9 g
Carbs: 28 g
Protein: 3 g
Fiber: .67 g

LEMON BUTTER CAKE – REDUCED FAT (inspired by Gourmet)

~ yields 12 slices @ 350 degrees

~ lowered calories by 10%; lowered fat by 24% (using my modifications).

INGREDIENTS for Cake:

All Purpose Flour – 1 cup
Whole Wheat Pastry Flour – 1/2 cup
Baking Powder – 1.5 tsp
Salt – 1/4 tsp
Butter – 6 tbsp (room temperature)
2% Milk – 3/4 cup
Lemon Zest – zest of 1 lemon
Eggs – 2
Egg White – 1
Sugar – 1 cup
Vanilla Extract – 1/2 tsp

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, stir the milk, vanilla, and lemon zest.
4. Beat the butter and sugar for 3 minutes until blended.

5. Add 1 egg at a time and blend well.
6. Add the flour and milk mixture in 3 batches, alternating between the two. Start with the flour and end with the flour. DO NOT OVERMIX.
7. Pour the batter into a cake pan. Place the cake in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees.
8. Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool.
9. Garnish with powdered sugar.

OVERALL RATING: ****/5

This cake was excellent. It looked so pretty and dense. It was very moist and had a slight lemon flavor, a very light cake. I definitely have to try and lower the butter slightly more. The cake goes so well with a cup of afternoon tea, it is perfect for those rainy days, or a warm spring day. I would make this cake again.
Texture: The texture of the cake is light, spongy, crumbly, and soft. The next day I felt as though the texture was a bit tough, this is why I gave this cake 4 stars, instead of 5.

Moistness: This cake was very moist and soft.