Instant Pot Lemon Yogurt Cake

I am so excited to share this success. I have been attempting some sort of cake-type dessert since I got my Instant Pot® with zero success.  With the exception of the occasional rice pudding or cheesecake, I don't make dessert in my Instant Pot®. I have tried a few things and failed, so I mainly stick with more savory applications.  The idea of making a small, easy weeknight cake in the Instant Pot® sounds appealing. Almost everyone in my family has their birthday during the first 6 months of the year, mostly in March and April. We end up eating a lot of cake and it gets a little redundant and excessive. What if I could make each person a small little cake for their actual birthday and we can instead splurge on big cakes for friend and larger family parties. My kids might not agree to this, but I think it is a great idea. This little Lemon Yogurt Cake will be perfect for my almost 3 year old. Now that I have had success, I plan to try a couple of chocolate versions to make my boys happy.

I do not have a lot of space in my kitchen for unnecessary gadgets, so I used my 7 inch spring form pan to make this cake. I buttered and floured it, for an easy release. Do not go out and buy a special pan, if you only have a spring form. You can certainly use a7 inch cake pan or bundt pan. Some professional bakers might frown on my one bowl method, but this is not a fancy cake.  Save yourself some work and mix the batter in one bowl. Since this cake bakes in a moist environment, the texture will be a little denser than a fluffy oven-baked cake. Once cooled, drizzle the cake with lemon glaze for a lemony delicious treat.

Instant Pot Lemon Yogurt Cake
Serves 8

​Ingredients:
Cake:
1 cup sugar
​1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
​1/4 cup plain yogurt
​1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
​1 - 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
​1 teaspoon vanilla extract
​1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest (zest before juicing your lemons)

Lemon Glaze:
1 cup confectioners sugar
​2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1/2 a lemon)

​Directions:

​1. Zest lemons and juice lemons.  Set aside. Butter and flour your pan.

​​2. Melt butter and add to a large mixing bowl. Add sugar and whisk until well incorporated.  Add eggs, again whisking to incorporate.  Stir in reserved lemon juice and yogurt.

​3. Add flour, baking powder, and salt, gently mixing everything together.  Stir in vanilla and reserved lemon zest. Add mixture to your prepared pan.

​4. Place 1 cup of water and trivet in the Instant Pot®. Prepare a foil sling***and lower the cake onto the trivet. Lock the lid making sure the valve is in the sealing position. Set the Instant Pot® to Manual - High Pressure for 28 minutes.  When finished, switch the valve to venting for a quick pressure release.  When safe to open, gently remove the cake using the foil sling. Place on rack to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the pan to fully cool on a rack.

​5. While the cake is cooling, prepare the glaze by whisking together the powdered sugar and lemon juice.  Drizzle over cooled cake and serve.


***How to make a foil sling:
Make a foil sling by tearing off a 15 inch sheet of aluminum foil and folding it in half two times.  This is going to be used to lift the cake in and out of the ​​​Instant Pot®. 

Enjoy, 

​Julie