Last week we had our good friend over to celebrate his birthday. Josh cooked the creamy lemon chicken dinner by himself, so I offered to make dessert. I baked a cake to keep things traditional.
We love citrus fruits-especially when they come in dessert form:) We usually do lemon or lime cakes, but we had an abundance of pink grapefruit in the refrigerator (it was on sale 8 for $1-score) so this time I created a pink grapefruit cake. I wanted the cake to have a strong grapefruit “punch” so I added a good amount of grapefruit zest into the cake. For the best results, rub the zest with the granulated sugar before adding it to the rest of the ingredients. The grapefruit scent really comes alive when you do this.
I wanted the cake to be really moist-I hate dry cake, so I used homemade Greek yogurt and canola oil. I didn’t even need a mixer for this cake, it was so easy to put together. I poured the batter into a 9 inch round cake pan and baked it for 25 minutes. I am not a big frosting person, but wanted to top the cake off with something special, so I made a grapefruit syrup and glaze to intensify the flavors. The syrup seeped into the cake, locking in the grapefuity goodness! The glaze made the cake shine like the sun on a hot summer day.
I was a little worried this cake would be too “girly” for the guys, but they loved it! The grapefruit flavor wasn’t too tart, it was just right. This grapefruit cake is perfect for any celebration.I think it would be perfect for a baby or bridal shower. I plan on making this cake again and again!
Thanks for all of your concern about my neck. I am feeling much better, not 100%, but better. I was able to run on Saturday, it felt great to be up and moving. Have a great Monday!
Pink Grapefruit Yogurt Cake
3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup granulated sugar
Zest of 1 1/2 pink grapefruits
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup canola oil
Grapefruit Syrup
1/4 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
2 T granulated sugar
Grapefruit Glaze
1/3 cup powdered sugar
2-3 T freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Dust lightly with flour too. Set pan aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a small bowl, add the grapefruit zest to the sugar. Rub together with your fingers until fragrant. In a large bowl, mix together the yogurt, sugar, and zest with large spoon or spatula. Whisk in the eggs-you can do all three at once. Mix until smooth and then add in the vanilla and stir again.
Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix just until flour is incorporated.
Add the oil and mix well. It might take a minute to get the oil mixed in, but it will.
Pour the batter into your prepared cake pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until your cake tester comes out clean and the cake springs back when lightly touched in the center.
Cool on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes and then remove from the pan. While the cake is cooling make the syrup and glaze.
For the syrup, in a small sauce pan add the grapefruit juice and sugar. Whisk over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.
For the glaze, in a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and grapefruit juice. If it is too thick, add more juice, if it is too runny, add more sugar.
Poke little holes into the cake with a toothpick. Spoon the grapefruit syrup over the cake and let it soak in. Let the cake cool to room temperature and then add the glaze. Drizzle over the top of the cake.
If you like this cake, you might also enjoy:
Blueberry Lemon Loaf Cake from Two Peas and Their Pod
Coconut Lime Cake from Two Peas and Their Pod
Three Citrus Bundt Cake from Becks & Posh
Gluten Free Orange Cake from Elana’s Pantry
Lemon Drenched Lemon Cake from Joy the Baker
Subscribe to Two Peas and Their Pod by RSS
Follow Two Peas and Their Pod - Twitter
Get updates via Facebook
Wow. What an interesting cake. I use lemon and lime zest a lot … but never grapefruit zest. I love the fact that you used Greek yogurt and canola oil (so healthy). Did you use lowfat Greek yogurt or full fat? I’d really like to try this recipe!
Liz-we use our homemade Greek Yogurt-recipe is on our blog under breakfast/brunch.
You can use any yogurt though, fat free or full fat, use your favorite.
That looks really good, I never thought of pink grapefruit in cake which is silly since you get so many using orange, lemons and limes. Pink grapefruits rock!
LOVE the pedestal!
We are dish junkies!!! The cake is delicate and lovely.
I love grapefruit cake. I usually make gale gands version but this is so much more lighter great recipe!!
sweetlife
Your pictures are divine! I never think to use grapefruit zest in the fear it will be too bitter. Glad to hear the flavour is right!
Wow Maria, Grapefruit cake! That sounds awesome. I wish I had some for breakfast right now (I so love dessert fo breakfast, and this has citrus!).
I can’t believe how bright and beautiful that grapefruit looks – great shot!
omg I seriously wish I had some of this right now!! Can you please move to LA stat!
another reason to buy more grapefruit
That is a beautiful grapefruit! And a beautiful cake!
This is the recipe I’ve been waiting for. Not disappointing.
Stunning cake! I can only imagine the tart and fresh taste of grapefruit shining through! Really well done, I am looking forward to making this!
I love grapefruit, and this cake looks fantastic! The glaze on top is lovely.
Maria I really like grapefruit but never think to cook with it. Great idea. The cake does look extremely moist and simple. Perfect!
O.M.G. This sounds soooo good. I am having a love affair with grapefruit at the moment and the only thing that would make them better is putting them in a cake.
Must make this weekend.
This cake looks so moist and nice. And a good way to use grapefruit before it is out of season.
Maria, this cake is beautiful. So delicate and light!
I must try it! We have been enjoying grapefruit a lot lately and this looks like just the thing!
Thanks everyone. I am usually a cookie person, but I really, really loved this cake! It’s a keeper!
I love grapefruits and can’t pass a great deal on grapefruits at the store. Great recipe to use some of them (if my children don’t eat them all!).
Such a nice recipe. I love grapefruits and yogurt – it must taste great! And not too much butter/oil. A perfect cake, I add it to my wish list to be tried very soon. Thanks for sharing!
This looks so good. So light and fresh. I love the idea of using grapefruit!
It’s a really gorgeous cake. And you’re right! Perfect for baby shower.
This looks so great and I can’t believe you make your own Greek yogurt! You are my hero!
This looks soo good! I love grapefruit!
Yum — I totally crave grapefruit, so this is right up my alley. One question though — when I’ve made grapefruit cake, it has that sort of tongue numbing bitterness from the grapefruit peel — do you know what I’m talking about? Does this cake embrace that or neutralize it?
Kate-this cake doesn’t have a bitter flavor at all. The cake is sweet and moist.
Grapefruit is not used nearly enough in baked goods! I’ve considered using it in quick bread before, not hadn’t thought of a cake like this. It looks delicious! I will definitely be giving this a try.
So pretty! I’ve never had anything like it.
Oooh! Love this recipe! So creative!
[...] week we bought a ton of grapefruit-it was on sale 8 for $1.00. I made a pink grapefruit yogurt cake, but still had grapefruit to use up. I love eating them plain, I peel grapefruit like an orange-it [...]
Your grapefruit is gorgeous and that cake looks so moist and delicious!
Ooooh! I missed this earlier in the week. It sounds perfect. I actually picked up some pink grapefruit to try your broiled grapefruit recipe and remembered seeing a recipe for grapefruit cake in one of my cookbooks. Thanks for tweeting it.
i can tell from your photo that this is a very tender moist crumb. looks heavenly! my mouth is watering…and puckering from those beautiful grapefruit shots.
I love adding the zest to the sugar called for in a recipe. I think that really makes the dessert! Your cake looks like a tart and tangy winner! You definitely have me wanting grapefruit now.
~ingrid
Btw, glad to hear that you feeling some what better!
This looks and sounds so good!! And absolutely perfect for a nice summery treat, which I’m totally feeling lately
I am a citrus girl, so I’m sure I’d love this!
This does look very good maria! I bet I would love it!
This sounds great! I love experimenting with different citrus fruits.
You did a really great job with this. It looks beautiful, the cake and the pictures!!!! Very nice!
Girl, you speak my language! I love citrus, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE grapefruit! I love how quick and easy this is. Sounds like we’ll be having some pink grapefruit yogurt cake for dessert next week!
I have a lemon yoghurt cake that is a great everyday cake too – this one looks like an interesting change, thanks!
I’m making this Saturday for a baby shower. I was going to do mini-cupcakes, do you think they will work? Thanks, I love your blog!
Heidi-I haven’t tried cupcakes with this recipe, but I am sure they will work. Drizzle the syrup and glaze over them to make sure they stay moist. Let me know how they turn out. I am sure they will be super cute!
Just wanted to let you know that they worked great! I cooked them for 15 minutes and they turned out perfect. Thanks for the great recipes, I just found your blog and I love it!
[...] adapted from two peas and their pod [...]
[...] on recipes, and boy did I get it. Maria from Two Peas in Their Pod sent me the recipe for her Pink Grapefruit Yogurt Cake. Yum. I instantly decided I’d add chocolate chips and set about rounding up the ingredients. [...]
[...] is so easy, I promise. Plus, it is so good with homemade granola and you can make this fabulous pink grapefruit yogurt cake. The uses are endless. [...]
Very good Yogurt Ckae. The above pic Combination of Orrange is awesome. I like this. Superb recipe.
[...] adapted from two peas and their pod [...]
OMG!! This cake is gorgeous & so creative. I am so excited to see it in my Stonyfield recipe Battle
xo