Chef Dimitra
Greek Macedonian Myrmigkato (Μυρμηγκάτο Μακεδονίας)
Myrmigkato from Greek Macedonia is the home cook's ant cake: a lemon-syrup sponge scattered with dark chocolate, plain on purpose and generous enough for coffee or a crowded table.
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Macedonian Yiaourtopita (Γιαουρτόπιτα)
Created by
Northern Greece's everyday yogurt cake is tender, lemony, and soaked just enough, with strained sheep's-milk yogurt giving the crumb its quiet tang.
Desserts
Greek
Weeknight
Budget Friendly
Comfort Food
20 min
Active Time
45 min cook•1 hr 5 min total
Yield12 squares
Macedonian yiaourtopita is the yogurt cake of the northern home table: pale, soft-crumbed, lemon-scented, and soaked with syrup while it is still warm. It isn't a show cake. It is the square you cut on a Tuesday, with coffee, after the pot has been cleared.
What makes it itself is the yogurt, preferably thick strained sheep's-milk yogurt, which gives the cake its little tang and keeps the crumb tender. The one method that decides it is beating the eggs and sugar until they turn pale and thick before the yogurt goes in. That trapped air is what lifts the cake, because the batter is rich and the syrup will weigh it down if you begin heavy.
Bake it until the top is deep gold and the center springs back, then pour over cooled lemon syrup in stages. Let each pour disappear before adding the next. Your grandmother cooked by eye because she'd made it a thousand times. Here are the numbers until you have.
Yiaourtopita belongs especially to the dairy-rich kitchens of northern Greece, where sheep and goat yogurt were everyday ingredients long before commercial cow's-milk yogurt became standard. The cake sits in the same family as Greek syrup sweets but is plainer than festival pastries, a home cake that uses yogurt for tenderness rather than butter alone. Its name keeps the old Greek habit of calling many baked tray sweets pita, even when the result is closer to cake than pie.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
granulated sugar
Quantity
200g
large eggs
Quantity
4
at room temperature
thick strained sheep's-milk Greek yogurt
Quantity
200g
mild extra virgin olive oil or unsalted butter
Quantity
120ml oil or 120g butter
butter melted and cooled, if using
lemon
Quantity
1
finely zested
vanilla extract
Quantity
1 teaspoon
plain flour
Quantity
250g
baking powder
Quantity
10g
fine sea salt
Quantity
1g
semolina or flour
Quantity
20g
for dusting the pan
granulated sugar, for the syrup
Quantity
300g
water, for the syrup
Quantity
240ml
fresh lemon juice
Quantity
45ml
lemon peel
Quantity
1 strip
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| granulated sugar | 200g |
| large eggsat room temperature | 4 |
| thick strained sheep's-milk Greek yogurt | 200g |
| mild extra virgin olive oil or unsalted butterbutter melted and cooled, if using | 120ml oil or 120g butter |
| lemonfinely zested | 1 |
| vanilla extract | 1 teaspoon |
| plain flour | 250g |
| baking powder | 10g |
| fine sea salt | 1g |
| semolina or flourfor dusting the pan | 20g |
| granulated sugar, for the syrup | 300g |
| water, for the syrup | 240ml |
| fresh lemon juice | 45ml |
| lemon peel | 1 strip |
Equipment Needed
- •23 by 33cm metal baking pan
- •electric hand mixer or stand mixer
- •small saucepan for syrup
Instructions
- 1
Make the syrup
Put 300g sugar, 240ml water, the lemon juice, and the lemon peel in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, simmer for 5 minutes, then take it off the heat and let it cool. The syrup should be cool when it meets the warm cake, so the crumb drinks without turning pasty.
- 2
Prepare the pan
Heat the oven to 175C. Oil or butter a 23 by 33cm baking pan, then dust it with semolina or flour and tap out the excess. This gives the bottom a little grip and keeps the slices clean.
- 3
Beat the eggs
Beat the eggs and 200g sugar for 5 to 7 minutes, until the mixture is pale, thick, and falls from the whisk in a ribbon. Don't rush this. This is the lift of the cake, and it matters more than any fancy hand.
- 4
Add the yogurt
Beat in the yogurt, olive oil or cooled butter, lemon zest, and vanilla just until smooth. Scrape the bowl once. If the yogurt is very cold, the batter tightens, so let it stand on the counter while you prepare the syrup.
- 5
Fold the flour
Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together, then fold them into the batter with a spatula. Stop as soon as no dry flour shows. A few gentle turns keep the crumb soft.
- 6
Bake the cake
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 38 to 45 minutes, until the top is deep gold, the edges pull slightly from the pan, and a skewer comes out clean.
- 7
Soak and rest
Let the cake stand for 10 minutes, then cut it into squares while still in the pan. Pour the cool syrup over slowly, in three passes, waiting a minute between each one. Leave it at least 1 hour before serving, so the syrup settles evenly instead of sitting at the bottom.
Chef Tips
- •Use thick strained yogurt with real tang. Sheep's-milk yogurt is the northern taste here, but a good full-fat strained Greek yogurt will still give you a proper cake.
- •Olive oil gives a softer, more everyday crumb; butter gives a rounder sweet-shop flavor. Both live in Greek kitchens. Pick one and don't make a fuss.
- •Yiaourtopita keeps well covered at room temperature for 2 days. After that, refrigerate it, but bring it back toward room temperature before serving so the crumb loosens again.
Advance Preparation
- •Make the syrup up to 1 day ahead and keep it covered at room temperature.
- •Bake and soak the cake 4 to 6 hours before serving; it cuts better once the syrup has settled.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 120g)
Calories
370 calories
Total Fat
12 g
Saturated Fat
7 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
5 g
Cholesterol
90 mg
Sodium
150 mg
Total Carbohydrates
60 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
43 g
Protein
6 g
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