Kirsten Hansen, UC Master Food Preserver Online Delivery Program Volunteer  

The Master Food Preserve Online Delivery Program volunteers loved making preserved lemons this winter! Our Citrus 1: Citrus Without Canning class and Garden to Glass: Winter Mocktails classes featured two different methods for making preserved lemons, and many of us made preserved lemons for our own use. If you missed either class, the recordings for all Online Delivery Programs classes are available on the UC Master Food Preserver website. 

If you made a jar of preserved lemons this winter, you may be wondering how to use them. Traditionally, salt-preserved lemons are used in Moroccan cuisine and other food traditions across the Mediterranean, perhaps most famously as an essential part of tagines—Moroccan stews served with couscous. But preserved lemons are powerhouse ingredients that are useful far beyond traditional tagines. In the Citrus I class, we suggested using them in grain salads and pilafs, soups and stews, and dips. The Garden to Glass: Winter Mocktails class featured a delicious “dirty mocktini” that uses preserved lemon brine. 

Preserved lemon cake slices (photo K. Hansen, used with permission)

One of my favorite ways to use preserved lemons is in a simple Preserved Lemon Tea Cake. As sunny in looks as it is in taste, it was originally published by recipe developer Zaynab Issa in the March 2022 issue of Bon Appétit magazine. Here, the preserved lemon packs lots of citrus flavor in a small package and helps create a not-too-sweet anytime treat. As a bonus, this recipe uses the whole lemon, whereas many other recipes use just the skin and discard the flesh - zero waste! I’ve made a few adjustments to the original recipe, swapping an equal amount yogurt for the original sour cream because I always have yogurt in the refrigerator but only sometimes have sour cream. I decreased the number of dishes I have to wash by chopping the lemon into a paste by hand rather than using a food processor and mixing the batter in a bowl rather than a stand mixer. But really, the original recipe is basically perfect as written.

Preserved Lemon Tea Cake Recipe

Yield: Makes one 8½ x 4½" loaf

Ingredients

Cake Batter

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for parchment
• 1 preserved lemon (about 55 g)
• 1½ cups (188 g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. ground turmeric
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. (225 g) granulated sugar
• ½ cup yogurt OR sour cream
• 1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
• 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Glaze

• ¾ cup (83 g) powdered sugar
• 1 Tbsp. whole milk
• Flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line an 8½ x 4½" loaf pan, preferably metal, with parchment paper, leaving generous overhang on the long sides, and brush with oil. Cut preserved lemon into quarters; remove any seeds. Chop and smash the lemon with your knife until it forms a rough paste.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and turmeric in a medium bowl to combine. Beat eggs, granulated sugar, and remaining ½ cup oil in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until smooth and incorporated, about 1 minute. Add yogurt or sour cream and mix to combine. Add preserved-lemon paste, lemon zest, and lemon juice and mix to combine. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients, and mix until just combined, about 15 seconds. (Batter can also be mixed in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer or whisk.) Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth the top.
3. Bake cake until top is golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50–60 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cake cool for 15 minutes. Run a knife around sides of pan to loosen and, using parchment paper overhang, lift cake out of pan and onto rack. Peel away parchment paper and discard. Let cake cool completely.
4. While cake is cooling, whisk powdered sugar and milk in a medium bowl until smooth.
5. Transfer cake to a platter or large plate. Using a rubber spatula to help guide glaze, spoon glaze over cake, letting it drip down the sides (you should have a fairly thick coating). Sprinkle sea salt over glaze and let cake sit until glaze is set, about 30 minutes.

Do ahead: Cake can be made 3 days ahead. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.