I was looking through a food magazine website for inspiration for a cake that John would eat. He doesn’t like cake as a rule but when you’re celebrating a milestone, sometimes cake is just what you need.
The occasion? Twenty years ago today, I was sitting at home and my daughter was getting ready to go out on a date. She asked me if I would sign on to the local bulletin board she belonged to and win the trivia contest because the prize was free service for a month. She was still in college and poor – but smart enough to win the contest nearly every week. She only needed to win once a month.
I rolled my eyes and said I would if I wasn’t doing anything else. Promptly at 7pm I followed the instructions on the notepad she’d left on how to log on. For you youngsters, the local bulletin board system was what preceded the world wide web. It was filled with geeks and not much else.
After successfully logging in I went to the trivia area and there was a note that the trivia lady would be 20 minutes late. I decided I’d have a look around this newfangled thing and I found photo sharing, games, chat and newsgroups. Newsgroups were online ads that came from all over the world and one of the groups was men seeking women. Yes, before the WWW!
I read the first one and it was from a man seeking a muse to write erotic stories. I flipped past that one. The second one said he was a lonely Australian male seeking a woman to discuss our pedestrian lives. I went to the next ad and it was from a guy looking for a ‘hottie’. I went back to the previous ad and on a whim, I wrote and said, “You’re probably only 12 but I’ve always been curious about Australia.” I figured if he could use the word pedestrian and not cross the street, he could probably hook a few words together that would be interesting to read.
In a few hours he wrote back and said he was well over 12. He was still younger than I was but not embarrassingly so. We continued to correspond to the point where we were waiting for replies to come back. It was then that we realized that maybe we should meet. I needed to prove to myself that he wasn’t perfect. A few months later I arrived in Melbourne and we haven’t looked back. It took a few years to decide to live on the same continent but no regrets.
Life hasn’t always been perfect but he’s exactly who I perceived him to be all those years ago. He’s a good man.
20 years ago today, I answered that ad. Imagine how my life would be different if I hadn’t taken the chance?
So in John’s honor, I made a lemon and yogurt cake and he ate TWO pieces. We celebrated with his parents (I know, big whoop) who also thought the cake was pretty special. I hope you do too. It is the easiest cake I’ve ever made and the only thing I would do differently is make only half as much. It’s WAY too much cake for two people.
I must confess that I made this cake and left it in the tin while I went out to run errands. This is what I found upon my return. I just cut it down into a smaller cake. That way I didn’t have to toss out any of the really good icing.
- 3 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- Juice and finely grated rind of 4 lemons
- 2 cups flavourless oil, eg grapeseed
- 1¾ cups plain unsweetened yoghurt
- 4 cups self-raising flour
- Pinch salt
- 75g soft butter
- 250g cream cheese (not spreadable)
- Juice and finely grated rind of 1 lemon
- 4 cups icing sugar
- Preheat oven to 160C/320F.
- In a mixer or food processor, add the sugar, eggs, lemon juice and zest, oil and yoghurt. Mix well.
- Add flour and salt and mix until just combined.
- Transfer to a greased 28-30cm/12x18" tin and bake 1½ hours or until springy to the touch. (I used baking paper and sprayed it with oil.)
- Cool before turning out and icing.
- Mix icing ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Cool to a spreadable consistency then spread over cake. Decorate with extra lemon rind. Serve with whipped cream.
What a fantastic story! I love learning how couples meet. 🙂 Can’t wait to try this luscious lemon yogurt cake too!
What a sweet story, Maureen! Aww congratulations to you and John…bless you both on such a special day.
Your cake looks scrumptious…and that frosting looks heavenly. Mmmm I want to try this ^_^
xo,
Tammy<3
Dear Maureen, what a touching post. Your cake looks perfect and sounds so simple. Thank you for sharing. Blessings dear, Catherine
aww what lovely story! I love it!!!
And I love this cakes Maureen I love lemon and saved this recipes look delicious:)
Congrats to you both!
xoxo
Great story! This is the 4th time in a month I have heard or read the phrase “does not care for cake”! Almost as shocking as “does not like chocolate”. Lemon for the win!
Thanks for sharing.
I know AND he talks with an Australian accent. To be honest, they all do around here! 🙂
Oh, what a lovely story I happen to stop by and read!! I’m so glad you shared how you and your husband met; it’s so interesting to see out how people find each other! This must be so incredible moist with 2 cups olive oil!! I feel like I’m getting a whiff of the lemony taste!!
I wouldn’t use olive oil – probably an oil without flavor. 🙂 Saved all that butter and sugar creaming.
Aw, what a sweet love story…I remember you mentioning this before. Maybe that your daughter was worried about you meeting up with a stranger??? Happy anniversary to you both…I think you found a fitting cake to celebrate. Bill would have had a second piece and more!
Yes, she thought he was an axe murderer!!
What a romantic story. Congratulations to you both on taking a chance 20 yrs ago. My mom was a couple of years older than my dad, widow with a 3 yr old son, when they married … things worked out. 🙂
I think the cake sounds lovely and I would definitely make a half recipe to cut down on the temptation to eat the whole thing. I just finished baked an Irish Brick cake … most of which will go into the freezer thankfully.
Thanks for sharing a lovely story – Maureen – and a lovely looking recipe.
Oh YUM!!! I could eat this every day. And so easy. I may even try to make this myself. SOON. I can bake. Used to make cream puffs all the time. But hard to have so much cake in house when single. Eat too much.
But the best part of this post is learning the great story of how you met John. What a beautiful story. Serendipity. 🙂
Congratulations on your anniversary and your sticking to it in good and not so good times. That is a tribute to you both. I salute you both!!! 🙂
May you have many, many more years together. 🙂 🙂 🙂
I love easy recipes.. this sounds delicious.
Such a sweet story, happy anniversary! Your cake looks divine (I love that you had to cut it down ;)).
Congratulations on this wonderful milestone, Maureen and John… may the next 20 years (since you answered the ad) be just as you’d hope. Love your cake, laughed to see that someone had thought it was so good they’d cut into it! : )
Funny how life happens sometimes isn’t it? And how your life would have been so completely different if your daughter had not been in a hurry or if you found pedestrian to be too much so. 🙂
Congrats…obviously it WAS meant to be!!
What a great story. How fortunate you answered that ad. Great looking cake too. GG
Such a cute, sweet love story! And such an adorable cake to celebrate 20 awesome years of togetherness!
I always stay away from baking. Cake shops down the street serve the purpose for me 🙂 But looking at your moist, golden, fluffy cake … what the heck, I’d give baking a try this weekend.
Thanks for being an inspiration, Your sweetness!
I love how you always tell a story withe your recipes. This one particularly charmed me as I essentially met my husband online as well. We’d known each other in real life as acquaintances for nearly half our lives, but due to sharing a story by email of a mutual tragedy/loss of a friend….well, we got to talking. And we’ve been solid for 14 years now.
Thanks for sharing your stories and giving us a little glimpse into your life. Cheers!
Thanks heaps, you’re very kind. 14 years is a milestone too. 🙂
I love your love story. One never knows, does one? Did you ever thank your daughter for fixing you up, so to speak? Great cake, but oh do I love love stories!
My daughter thought he would be an axe murderer and begged me not to go to Australia 🙂
What a wonderful story! Congratulations on your anniversary and thanks for sharing this simple and delicious looking cake 🙂
What a wonderful love story Maureen. And we Australians are very happy to have you here! I met my lovely husband through an ad in the newspaper (pre-internet) and we are still very happy 22 years later. Unlike you though, we discovered we had grown up in adjacent suburbs, so there was no cultural or geographic adjustment. The cake looks too tempting!
That made me laugh. When we built our last house one day I’d had enough of the differences and said emphatically, “Okay, do it your way and when you’re done I’ll build MY house.” Compromise was found. The light over our dining room table was found in an antique shop Armadale in Melbourne when I looked up and said, “I don’t hate that,” and he said, “I don’t hate it either.” So we bought it.
That was not a recipe I was expecting. I like surprises. I pinned the recipe not for it, but it honor of your story. I am a romantic. Thank you for sharing. It reminds me a bit of my friend’s story who married a New Zealander. They have been together 25 or 26 yrs now.
It took a bit of adjusting and hearing for the 100th time, “It’s not a grill, it’s a BBQ.” John still translates for me. He buys gas and puts things in the trunk. I buy petrol and put things in the boot. It’s comical sometimes.
What a romantic story, congratulations to you both for making 20 years!
Love the lemon cake!! 🙂
G’day Congrats on the milestone Maureen!
What a lovely story that I am glad you shared as it brightened my day today!
Your cake looks YUMMY!
Cheers! Joanne
The cake looks and sounds like an absolute winner, Maureen. It’s the combination of lemon, yogurt and cream cheese that has my mouth watering right now. Great find!:)
I completely agree. Cakes are invented to mean there is something special. Nice story!
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
I couldn’t wait to read this story! Not just because I love the back story but because you were tempting me on Instagram with this cake and most importantly the icing! 😀
This looks so wonderful and moist. Lemon is my favourite flavour. Mmm … it’s not even lunch time yet.
I love that this cake has a story, makes it even more special and delicious 😀
Such a wonderful milestone!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Very sweet indeed Maureen! I’m so glad the cake was a hit and that your man wasn’t a psycho 🙂 My sister meet her husband on line and traveled across the world to be with him, they live here now and have been married 8 years but we’re still not at all sure he’s ‘normal’ 🙂 Glad you lucked out! xox
What a fun story Maureen. Everything happens for a reason! This cake looks perfectly delicious. If my oven weren’t broken down I might make a mad dash to the kitchen to whip one up 🙂
Your story is so sweet! =)
And, your cake recipe looks delicious!
Your story is so sweet! =)
And, your Cake recipe sounds delicious!
I always wondered how you ended up on the other side of the world! Thanks for sharing part of your love story. This cake looks divine!
You do tell an engaging story, Maureen. I can’t imagine meeting anyone on-line before the WWW! You two were well ahead of your time. Congratulations on 20 years! A great milestone. I love the look of your cake – it looks really moist xx
Love hearing your story Maureen. It’s so amazing how every story is so different and often not what we would have predicted. I believe you that John is a good man but it’s also true that he got a good woman! (… and a good looking cake too!)
What a lovely story…! 20 years and going strong :)! Happy Anniversary and that’s surely a cake fit for such a special occassion! Have a lovely weekend :).
Perfect story, perfect sprinkles!!
Aw, what a lovely story! And I’m sorry, but I just don’t see the problem with that much cake for 2 people. =P OK, maybe if one of the people is not a big fan of cake it might be too much for one person.
I love lemon in my dessert, this cake sounds awesome!
OMG I think I love you. 🙂 Haha!
Maureen, that cake sounds wonderful and so easy. Love your story. Congratulations.
That is a big cake and the icing sounds yummy. Congratulations on the anniversary. You must have been one of the first couples to find each other online.
Thats really simple and nice recipe! That cream cheese icing would match that cake perfectly
Well weren’t you the little budding techy – so early in online dating!!! Congratulations – and your cake looks yummy. Love lemon and the cream cheese frosting is right up my alley
What a great story! I don’t think I would have had the nerve to sign onto a bulletin board like that, but then, luckily, I’ve never had the need to. You sure struck gold with John!! Obviously it was meant to be. You two always seem SO HAPPY!! What a sweet cake to make for the occasion.
Oh my gosh, Maureen! I’ve been a bit out of the loop lately, and was happily scrolling through your blog to catch up on all that I’d missed. You can probably guess why an EASY Lemon YOGURT Cake caught my eye (easy, plus some healthy yogurt worked in, too – perfect! 😀 ). But then I found the most wonderful, sweet story! What a treat to read this morning! Belated congrats on the day that changed everything … and thanks for this fab recipe that I am so, so going to pin because it looks ridiculously good! (Oh, and BTW … “a muse to write erotic stories???” – hilarious!)
Thank for sharing your celebration cake. It was very morrrrrre ish. I all most licked the plate clean.lol
Thanks, Lynette. After reading that I want to make another one. 🙂
Your site looks fabulous! AND this cake looks moist and delicious! Lemon cake is one of my favorite flavors of cake! Yum, Hugs, Terra
But.. did you win the trivia test????
You had to ask?? 🙂 of course!