Lemon Cottage Cheese Cake with Lavender Glaze
This lemon cottage cheese cake is light, fluffy, and incredibly moist, with a perfect balance of bright citrus and subtle creaminess from the cottage cheese. Finished with a delicate lavender glaze, it's a zesty, floral treat that's sure to be your new favorite springtime bake.
Servings: 10 slices
Equipment
- Loaf pan
- Zester
- Stand mixer
- Blender
Ingredients
Lemon Cottage Cheese Loaf Cake
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup cottage cheese (blended smooth)
- ⅓ cup milk (room temperature)
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest (~1 lemon)
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice (~½-1 lemon)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
Lavender Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ½-1 teaspoon ground dried lavender (culinary grade)
- 2 Tablespoons milk
- 1 drop purple gel icing coloring (optional)
Instructions
For the Lemon Cottage Cheese Loaf Cake
- Mise en place. Measure and prepare all ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 1 pound (8.5 x 4.5 x 2.75 inch) loaf pan with parchment paper. Measure and prepare all ingredients.
- Prepare the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a small bowl, whisk together the blended cottage cheese, milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. I typically do this in a 2 cup glass measuring cup for easy pouring later.
- Cream the butter and sugar. In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy (4-6 minutes). This helps give the loaf cake its fluffy texture.
- Add the eggs. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and mix again to incorporate.
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and wet mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture. With the mixer running on low, start with ⅓ of the dry mix and stir gently. Add ½ the wet mixture and stir gently. Repeat, ending with the dry mix until it's just incorporated.Scrape down the bowl to ensure everything is incorporated, being careful not to overmix. The batter will be thick.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool. Let the loaf cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before adding the glaze.
For the Lavender Glaze
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and ground dried lavender. I recommend starting with ½ teaspoon of the lavender.
- Add the milk. Gradually add the milk, whisking until the glaze reaches your desired consistency. You want it to be thicker than you think so that it doesn't run right off the cake.If it's too thick, add a bit more milk. If it's too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar.
- Add purple food coloring. Optionally, use a bit of purple or violet food coloring to hint at the lavender flavor. I use Wilton Violet Gel Food Coloring. You only need a little! Start very small and add more to reach your desired shade.
- Drizzle. Drizzle the glaze over you loaf cake and allow it to set before serving.
Notes
Cottage cheese: I used lowfat 1% milkfat cottage cheese in this recipe.
Lemon zest: If you prefer a very strong lemon flavor, use an additional ½ tablespoon of lemon zest.
Blender: I like using this Cuisinart Hand Blender with the chopper grinder attachment to blend the cottage cheese smooth.
To grind the lavender, I prefer putting the dried lavender buds in a zip-top bag and rolling over it with a rolling pin. It's simple and requires minimal cleanup. You could also use a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder.
Lavender: If you prefer a strong lavender flavor, use the full 1 teaspoon of ground dried lavender. Lavender is very potent, and a little goes a long way! I suggest starting with ½ teaspoon and testing the flavor before adding more.