Florida is quietly denying transgender residents updated birth certificates

The rejection comes without public notice or new law — even when all other government-issued identification reflects their current gender identity.

Originally published by The 19th – republished per their instructions.

In the past year, Florida’s health department has declined to amend gender markers on birth certificates for both transgender adults and minors. Although the agency says it is basing denials on pre-existing state statutes, transgender Floridians had previously been able to update their birth certificates for at least a decade. Now, they face an opaque process that seems designed to reject all applicants.

Transgender Floridians have been denied updated birth certificates even when all of their other government-issued identification reflects their current gender identity. When applicants provided paperwork detailing clinical treatment for their gender transition and their legal name change,they were still denied.This is at odds with how the agency has handled this approval process for years — and is the latest example of Florida’s state agencies enacting anti-LGBTQ+ policies even when anti-LGBTQ+ laws fail to pass.

In 2023 and 2024, trans minors and adults who applied for amended birth certificates received denial letters from the state health agency’s Bureau of Vital Statistics. In those letters, reviewed by The 19th, thebureau says the paperwork that has long been accepted to update gender on birth certificates — like proof of clinical treatment and a legal name change — no longer works.

“Specifically, the documentary evidence does not establish that the sex identifier on the birth record contains a misstatement, error, or omission,” one denial letter from March 2024 reads.

The denial letters also offer conflicting requirements. One, from August 2023, states that for trans minors, “documentary evidence established prior to the child’s seventh birthday is required.” In another letter, the bureau says that trans adults trying to update their birth certificates must provide documentation “established prior to the registrant’s 18th birthday.” Many transgender adults did not know they were trans as children, or did not pursue gender-affirming care as children even if they did realize their identities — rendering either requirement difficult, if not impossible, to navigate.

Simone Chriss, an attorney with the Southern Legal Counsel in Florida and the director of the organization’s transgender rights initiative, has worked with around 80 clients who she says have all been denied updated birth certificates since last August. None of their appeals, including an administrative hearing overseen by Florida’s health agency, have worked. As a result, none of them have been able to update their birth certificates.

“Most are just being ignored,” Chriss said. “I’ve filed many. There’s at least five that I have pending at this moment that the department hasn’t responded to.”

The Florida Department of Health and its Bureau of Vital Statistics did not respond to requests for comment.

Republican lawmakers in Florida have repeatedly failed to pass legislation that aims to prevent transgender people from being able to obtain accurate birth certificates. This year, a proposed bill to require that state identification and licenses reflect Floridian’s sex assigned at birth failed to pass. Last year, a bill that would explicitly prohibit gender markers being changed on birth certificates also failed to pass. Despite the lack of legislation, Florida agencies have moved to enforce such restrictions on their own.

In January, the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles told local officials that the state would no longer allow transgender people to update their driver’s license with their correct gender. That move was not prompted by any new law, and was simply based on a new agency policy. LGBTQ+ and legal experts believe the rule likely takes Florida out of compliance with federal law, which the state disputes.

Now, Florida’s Bureau of Vital Statistics within its health agency has reversed course on birth certificate updates, arguing that discrepancies between sex at birth and gender identity do not constitute a paperwork error in need of fixing.

Updating all of the necessary identity documents is costly. The name change fee in Florida is $400 andfingerprinting for the background check as part of that name change is $50. The requirement of a doctor’s letter for updating the gender marker on a birth certificate means paying out of pocket for a doctor’s visit or at least a copay. Then, there’s the $20 application fee to amend the birth certificate; applicants may also pay more if they opt for rush service.

For many transgender Floridians, the entire process appears to have ended on a brick wall, with no public notice that a policy change has taken place and no clear path to access accurate documentation. And the new policy appears to be based on a definition of sex that excludes transgender people — a change from what was put on the books less than a decade ago.

In 2018, Florida relaxed its conditions for updating gender markers on birth certificates following pressure from LGBTQ+ and legal advocacy groups. Until then, the state had required proof of sex reassignment surgery in order to change the gender marker — which at least twelve other states still do, according to the Movement Advancement Project. After 2018, Florida’s health agency began accepting letters from medical providers documenting clinical treatment for gender transition. This broadened the scope of who could apply for new documentation since some transgender people never pursue surgery.

Across the country, only five other states do not update gender markers on birth certificates. Many transgender people pursue this documentation as they legally change their name or update their gender on their driver’s license or Social Security card.

Without accurate personal documents that align with their gender expression and other forms of identification, trans people face harassment or discrimination when going about their daily lives, like when applying for a job or enrolling in a new school. The risk of being “outed” by an incorrect piece of paperwork can have dangerous consequences for trans people, especially in a state considered dangerous for LGBTQ+ people.

“Despite making, I think, very compelling arguments as to why the department is violating the rights of transgender people born in the state of Florida, they have come back with the same rationale over and over for denying it,” Chriss said. “Which is … ‘sex doesn’t change.’”

Right now, the best option for trans Floridians seeking an updated birth certificate is to update all of their other government-issued documents to reflect their gender identity, Chriss said. Passports, a primary identification document, can be used in most cases instead of state identification.

“It’s clear the only avenue or the only route to reversing or striking down this policy is using federal impact litigation, like we have in all the other areas where trans folks’ rights have been eroded in Florida. We are planning to challenge this in federal court as well,” she said.

Don’t obey in advance-

It’s a thing one of the women still active in the Dem party told me back when I was active, and USA PATRIOT got passed. No one really knew where the lines were, and what could make a person be determined to be “against us,” as opposed to “with us,” and what would happen if that determination was made. She told me she learned during McCarthy that while one should be very careful in phrasing, we should never obey in advance. Now doesn’t that make great sense? There is always at least a little time, so far. Here is a snippet of Mary L. Trump’s Substack, where she reiterates this, along with more, because she knows things.

We Can’t Unify around Fascism

Vance and Cannon remind us Donald is not the only danger

MARY L TRUMP

JUL 15, 2024

Like most Americans, I too want the national temperature to be lowered. I want to see the violent rhetoric to stop. And I want to see our nation unified.

But the other side seems to be saying that, in order for that to happen, we’re not allowed to talk about Donal’d’s record of lawlessness, cruelty, and incompetence and we must make concessions to the would-be dictator.

On Monday, while Republicans tried to shame their critics into silence by making false and increasingly incendiary claims that it was Democrats who are responsible for creating the context in which Saturday’s shooting took place, we were reminded just how dangerous things will get if Donald wins this election.

Today, Aileen Cannon, Donald’s personal pocket judge, took the shocking (but not surprising) and illogical step of dismissing the charges against my uncle. Her behavior since acquiring this case has been abysmal and partisan; she has frequently skated across the line of malpractice. Her repeatedly putting her thumb on the scale in favor of the defense (who am I kidding?—she acted like she was lead counsel for the defense) felt even worse, because we know Donald is guilty. We know he stole our national security documents; we know held them in non-secure locations; and we know he refused to return them. We know these things because we witnessed Donald commit the crimes—and he confessed to them over and over again.

here is no way to interpret Cannon’s decision other than as a political favor from a corrupt judge who, along with the illegitimate super-majority of the Supreme Court (especially Clarence Thomas) is determined to put Donald above the law.

Try to imagine an entire federal judiciary made up of Aileen Cannons. Because that’s what’s coming if Donald Trump’s Project 2025 is implemented. One of the chief tenets of the Heritage Foundation’s controversial and comprehensive fascist playbook, that was specifically designed to shape a second Donald administration, is firing dedicated and non-partisan civil servants in order to replace them with people willing to take a loyalty oath not to the Constitution but to Donald. The corruption currently overtaking the federal judiciary will infiltrate absolutely every

aspect of our government.

It’s terrifying, and that’s why I refuse to be quiet—we all should.

In his book essential book On Tyranny,

Tim Snyder writes that the first lesson is,

Do not obey in advance. Much of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repress will want, and then start to do it without being asked. You’ve already done this, haven’t you? Stop. Anticipatory obedience teaches authorities what is possible and accelerates unfreedom.

What happened at Donald’s rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday was deeply wrong and un-American. The same can be said of his plans for this country if he’s put in the Oval Office again. We can’t be quiet. We can’t let the side that continues to traffic in violent political rhetoric blame us shame us or scare us into silence. We must continue to sound the warnings—there will be no pivoting to unity and peace. There will only be Donald and his sycophants and enablers being exactly what we have known them to be.

This morning, while pundits and columnists were, once again, falling for the promise to pivot to unity, Donald simply couldn’t help himself. In response to Cannon’s horrifying ruling, he called for the “dismissal of ALL the Witch Hunts—the January 6th Hoax in Washington, D.C., the Manhattan D.A.’s Zombie Case, the New York A.G. Scam, Fake Claims about a woman I never met (a decades old photo in a line with her then husband does not count), and the Georgia ‘Perfect’ Phone Call charges.”

(Given the state of play, we can’t rule out his getting his way, but let’s take note that in the process of reveling in his seemingly limitless immunity, he once again defamed E. Jean Carroll.) (snip-More)

https://open.substack.com/pub/marytrump/p/we-cant-unify-around-fascism?r=1pk2l&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

Peace and Justice History for 7/15

I’ve received this newsletter since before the US bombed Afghanistan back in 2001. It’s a wealth of nice info, sent out daily with snippets about important bits of history of the date. Here is today’s. There’s a mixed bag today, sorta like the Republican Party platform which is sorta like Project 2025 which is sorta like the Don’s own Agenda 47. We are not doomed to repeat history if we remember it.

=====

A Substack by Charlotte Clymer

Control Guns, Not Girls

It’s that simple.

CHARLOTTE CLYMER

JUL 15, 2024

Last week, at his NATO Summit press conference, President Biden, in the midst of consistently demonstrating a widely-praised command of foreign policy issues, went on a small diatribe about gun violence, which included this memorable phrase:

“Control guns, not girls”

It was immediately resonant, drawing acclaim from many quarters. It’s the kind of simple yet powerful slogan that can propel a campaign into history. I was so taken with it that I launched a t-shirt campaign the following day; we’ve already sold more than 300. (Purchase yours here: https://www.bonfire.com/controlgunsnotgirls/)

Full video of the President’s remarks are below (the gun reform portion starts at 2:20):

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/AAnWbIhXCt8?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0

The President has a history of making prescient remarks; anyone remember the USA Today op-ed he wrote on the threat of COVID in early 2020, just six weeks before the shutdown?

Two days after this presser, a 20 year-old gunman used an AR-15-style rifle purchased by his father to fire eight rounds at Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. One round went through the upper part of Trump’s right ear, while other shots critically wounded two audience members behind him and killed a third: 50 year-old Corey Comperatore, who was shielding his two daughters from the gunfire.

I want to quickly point out that I can’t imagine being the family of Mr. Comperatore and hearing elected officials like Sen. Marco Rubio claim that God saved Donald Trump, the implication being that those wounded and killed in senseless acts of gun violence were forgotten by God.

That’s not faith. That’s warping and exploiting the love of God for cultish ends.

This horrific tragedy should never have happened. No civilian should be able to purchase an AR-15-style rifle, a weapon of war, but moreover, if we treated firearms with respect in this country, there would be comprehensive safety, licensing, and registration regulations similar to those we have for cars.

In the aftermath, every major Democratic leader in the country immediately condemned this act of cowardice. The President—in addition to delivering an immediate on-camera statement—called Trump to offer support, assembled federal resources to investigate the tragedy, and gave a moving national address from the Oval Office demanding a wholesale rejection of political violence.

Meanwhile, a number of Republican elected officials and pundits chose to politicize the tragedy while the victims were still being helped. Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio—Trump’s likely running mate—immediately blamed the assassination attempt on President Biden. Congressman Mike Collins (GA-10) histrionically claimed that Pres. Biden “sent the orders” for Trump to be assassinated.

I find this fascinating given that the only incendiary rhetoric literally calling for political violence has been from the Republican Party, particularly in the past few months.

Like Kevin D. Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation, the conservative think tank behind the unabashedly fascist Project 2025, who said, two weeks ago, that the country “is in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be.”

“Bloodless.”

That same week, North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor who’s been endorsed by Trump, told a church congregation that “some folks need killing” and that “Some liberal somewhere is gonna say that sounds awful. Too bad. Get mad at me if you want to. Some folks need killing. It’s time for someday to say it. It’s not a matter of vengeance. It’s not a matter of being mean or spiteful. It’s a matter of necessity.”

Or how about last year when numerous Republican Members of Congress started wearing AR-15 pins on their suits while at the Capitol, handed out by Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia, who owns a stake in the company that sells them.

The AR-15 and its variants are responsible for most of the mass shootings that have become some of the most tragic markers on the American psyche in recent memory: Sandy Hook, Uvalde, Route 91 Harvest Festival, among others, and, of course, this past weekend’s assassination attempt on Trump and the murder of Mr. Comperatore.

There is only one major political party using and condoning and enabling violent rhetoric. Just one. It’s the Republican Party.

Don’t let any political journalist or outlet opine about politicization while they fail to hold accountable the GOP’s horrific rhetoric. Don’t let them shame you into ignoring this appalling double standard.

Control guns, not girls.

https://charlotteclymer.substack.com/p/control-guns-not-girls?r=1pk2l&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

Seth Abramson: The Order Dismissing Donald Trump’s Stolen Documents Case in Florida Is Exponentially Worse Than You Think

(Once upon a time, I worked for a lawyer, then for judges, so I follow legal blogs and Substacks because I appreciate the writing, and I’m just still interested in the work. This piece is current to news I saw this morning when I got up. After I got home from errand-running, the news was still true. So, here’s some educated commentary. Whether I have any legal experience or not, this decision nauseates me.)

The consequences of the ruling—legal and political—lie well beyond what major-media talking heads are acknowledging, and oddly are ruinous for not just our democracy but certain Trump talking points.

SETH ABRAMSON

JUL 15, 2024

Donald Trump has spent over a year telling the voters he needs to have vote for him in November to stay out of state and/or federal prison for the rest of his natural life that his political rival Joe Biden—and President Biden’s Attorney General, Merrick Garland—are puppeteering the two federal criminal cases remaining against him: one in Florida and one in Washington.

In court, Trump is saying exactly the opposite—meaning that he either doesn’t believe what he’s telling voters or doesn’t believe what he’s been representing to U.S. courts.

The Trump claim, in court, is that Special Counsel Jack Smith isn’t just too independent of the Biden administration and the Biden Department of Justice, but so independent that it’s illegal. In short, what Trump is saying in federal court is a grenade-toss aimed squarely at the center of the rhetoric he’s using to try to get reelected and avoid prison.

Which is why it’s so stunning—if also predictably hypocritical and deceitful—that the man celebrated a judge he appointed tossing out a federal criminal case she’s been delaying and mishandling from the start in a way many attorneys deem corrupt not by acknowledging what the ruling actually said (that Jack Smith is too independent of any Biden appointee or Biden himself), but reiterating his entirely distinct public rhetoric.

It is galling—yet somehow also par for the course—that a man infamous for lying or else invoking the Fifth Amendment under oath in court proceedings is in this post confirming for all America to see that he again lied in court by making claims about Jack Smith he now swears to voters he doesn’t actually believe.

Donald Trump insisting, in his usual, shrieking all-caps-punctuated terms, that “the Democrat Justice Department coordinated ALL” the criminal cases against him—putting aside for the moment that there’s no evidence of this at all, that it doesn’t even make sense given that several of the cases referenced are state cases, or that some of the cases pre-date Jack Smith’s appointment—means, and unambiguously, that he now claims DOJ in fact has precisely the level of control over Smith he was demanding it have (and claiming it didn’t have) in the remote Florida district court where his Stolen Documents Case is being heard.

In short, if what Trump says above is true, it means his case was wrongly dismissed; if it’s not true, he’s lying to voters about major felony charges against him—charges that historically have led to prison time for other defendants—which in itself would seem to suggest a “consciousness of guilt” over his gross misconduct in stealing classified documents from the White House and then publicly claiming he’s entitled to sell them.

But it gets worse.

The order just issued by a Trump appointee who’s rather universally seen as also a Trump partisan wasn’t only timed in such a way that its release kicks off the RNC in Milwaukee with a major Trump victory; wasn’t only timed in such a way that it gives the man who made it possible—the man who appointed its judicial author to her job—a new argument to make, and to have others make, at every speech at the Convention; wasn’t only timed in such a way that the inevitable appeal of it by Jack Smith can’t possibly move through the federal courts in time for this trial to happen pre-election even if Judge Cannon’s ruling is overturned; but was issued on grounds that now likely destroy the only other federal criminal case Mr. Trump has remaining: the one in DC.

Had Judge Cannon found a way to do the bidding of a man she hopes will appoint her to either a federal circuit court (or even the Supreme Court) that only encompassed the proceedings in the case before her—the Stolen Documents Case—it would have been a massive boon to Trump, but not necessarily a career-making one (keeping in mind that Trump has a demonstrated history of rewarding corrupt public officials in Florida, from making the man who protected him from fallout over his friend Jeffery Epstein’s child sex-trafficking, Alexander Acosta, his Secretary of Labor, to hiring as his lawyer Florida’s former corrupt Attorney General, Pam Bondi).

So that’s not what the judge did.

What Judge Cannon did is find a pre-textual basis to end Trump’s Florida case that also now requires that the same question—whether Jack Smith was legally appointed and is legally performing his duties—be presented and dealt with in the D.C. federal criminal case over January 6, which as it happens was the only case Trump still faces that until today had a chance of being heard pre-election.

In short, if Smith is an illegal player in Florida, he’s also an illegal player in D.C. And once Trump raises this newly minted issue in D.C.—which he will once SCOTUS stops artificially holding onto its recent presidential immunity decision for the maximum duration it can (refusing to send the ruling back to Judge Tanya Chutkan in D.C. for further proceedings is another under-reported SCOTUS gift to Trump)—either Judge Chutkan will agree with Judge Cannon and drop Trump’s D.C. criminal case or she will contradict Judge Cannon and create a need for SCOTUS to step in to resolve the divergent holdings in two federal jurisdictions. Either way, Trump wins, as we’ve already seen that SCOTUS will hold up any case of his five to ten times longer than it would for any other litigant, and Election Day is now well under 120 days off.

{Note: While some say this ruling by Cannon could lead to Jack Smith getting his wish that she be replaced on the case, that would be an extraordinary and unlikely remedy by the federal circuit court overseeing her, and in any case still wouldn’t produce a pre-election trial. And if Trump wins in November, he’ll unilaterally and corruptly order his new DOJ to end all cases against him, claiming as he does so that the very voters he’s lying to right now assented to him ending all cases against him simply by voting for him. See how that bait-and-switch works?}

It’s now clear that American voters will be asked to decide on the fitness for office of a man with 54 untried felonies, and because major media persistently wrongly deploys the “innocent until proven guilty” mantra of our justice system—to be clear, a mantra that only applies to jury duty, as voters are allowed to judge a man however they wish—it is likely that few in the media will point out that no responsible voting population can ever vote for a man with 54 untried felonies. To do so is civic malpractice. More likely, what we will hear from American major media is that Trump looked like a real badass in photos taken immediately after his attempted assassination in Butler, Pennsylvania.

And those are some great photos.

They’re great photos of a rapist, fraudster, serial sexual predator, public incest-ideator, serial adulterer, pathological liar, malignant narcississtic sociopath, human trafficker, war criminal, misogynist, homophobe, antisemite, transphobe, Islamophobe, con man and xenophobe with 54 pending felonies and a history of bribing public officials and receiving bribes from others.

Indeed, a recent Supreme Court ruling on Bribery that was made possible by judges Trump rammed through Congress in contravention of all nomination conventions made clear that bribes can be legally given to a politician provided the repayment for them occurs after the fact, so for all we know a newly emboldened Judge Cannon is just honoring that ruling by doing Trump a lawless “in-kind” solid now that she absolutely expects will be well-rewarded down the line.

And who knows? Maybe it will be. In a corrupted democracy with unequal application of the law—which America now is—anything’s possible and everything is permissible.

https://open.substack.com/pub/sethabramson/p/the-order-dismissing-donald-trumps?r=1pk2l&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

Caesar salad turns 100

Along with feeding and organizing mass feeding of weather-and war-ravaged countries and regions, and putting out cookbooks to help fund World Central Kitchen’s missions, Chef Andres writes a Substack.

A celebration in Tijuana honors the 100th anniversary of the Caesar salad

JOSÉ ANDRÉS

JUL 15, 2024

Hola friends! I’m still smiling from all the amazing sports victories for Spain—between my friend, Sergio Garcia, winning the most recent LIV golf event, Spain becoming the Euro 2024 champion, and Carlos Alcaraz taking home his second consecutive Wimbledon trophy, I’m so proud of my home country!

Today, I want to talk about a very interesting anniversary that was just celebrated on July 4th (no, not America’s birthday)! I’m talking about the 100th anniversary of the creation of one of the most famous salads, if not THE most famous salad in the world…the Caesar salad! There is something that is always so satisfying about a pile of ice-cold, crispy romaine leaves coated in a tangy, garlicky, savory, light but also just creamy enough dressing. Maybe you add some croutons for crunch, maybe you add some thickly sliced parmesan. Maybe you “hug” the salad to bring it all together, like my friend Jamie Lee Curtis, or maybe it’s prepared for you tableside at a steakhouse.

However you Caesar, let’s raise a glass to 100 years of this amazing salad, and let’s learn a little more about where it came from.

Like so many things with legendary status, there are still some questions around the origin of Caesar salad. Counter to what some might think, It’s not named for the famous Roman emperor, Julius Caesar. The Caesar in question here is Cesare Cardini, an Italian immigrant who came to the U.S. in 1913 from a small town in Piedmont, in northern Italy. He worked in a few different restaurants in California before moving to San Diego. When he arrived in San Diego, he noticed lots of Americans who were crossing the border for nice dinners with cocktails and wine, which was illegal in the US because of Prohibition. So he saw an opportunity to open a restaurant in Tijuana. (snip-more)

https://open.substack.com/pub/joseandres/p/caesar-salad-turns-100?r=1pk2l&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email

Not turning this into Food Monday, I promise!

But I can vouch for Jennifer’s Greek & French yogurt breads and cakes-they work wonderfully, and are easy and quick. Link in the comments. Also I need to read up on using Categories, as I cannot seem to input them correctly. 🤷‍♀️🙃

4 Ingredient French Yogurt Cake

Servings: 10 slices

Prep Time: 5minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50minutes minutes

Total Time: 55minutes minutes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

This 4-ingredient yogurt cake is a wonderfully simple dessert that’s perfect for any occasion. This cake is moist, fluffy, and full of flavor. The yogurt adds a subtle tang and extra moistness, making each bite melt in your mouth. Whether you’re looking for a quick dessert to whip up or a light, sweet treat to enjoy with your coffee, this yogurt cake is a go-to recipe that you’ll love.

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups (309 g) vanilla whole milk French yogurt
3/4 cup + 2 tbsp (173 g) granulated white sugar
7 tbsp (3.5 fl oz/104 ml) canola oil
2 cups (262 g) self-rising flour (see note before starting)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, add the yogurt, sugar and oil. Use a whisk to mix until you have a smooth and uniform batter.
Add the flour and use a spatula to fold in the flour. Only use a spatula and do not overmix. You want to fold until the flour is completely incorporated and there are no unmixed pockets of flour. However, you do not need to mix until the batter is smooth. It is okay if there are some small lumps.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly. Bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The surface of the cake should also bounce back if you apply light pressure. Allow the cake to cool completely before cutting and serving.

Notes

We recommend using French-style yogurt. It is sold in little glass pots/jars in the supermarket. French yogurt is very creamy, thick and not as tangy as regular yogurt so you won’t really taste any tang in the cake. If you use another type of yogurt, you will taste the tangy yogurt flavor more. If you can’t find French yogurt, you can substitute with other brands of thick-style not strained whole milk vanilla yogurt, such as Noosa brand. Make sure to use a regular whole milk yogurt and not a Greek yogurt.
We used Oui by Yoplait vanilla whole milk French-style yogurt for this recipe.
Self-rising flour: Make sure to use a self-rising flour that has 3 grams of protein per 1/4 cup. There are some brands with lower protein and some with higher protein and they will not work well for this recipe. We used Gold Medal Self-Rising flour.
Homemade self-rising flour: Combine 2 cups of all purpose flour, 1 tbsp baking powder and 1 tsp salt. Whisk to evenly combine. Make sure the all purpose flour you are using contains 3 grams of protein per 1/4 cup.
We don’t recommend substituting canola oil with other oils because you want to use a neutral flavor oil for this cake so that you don’t taste the oil flavor.
This cake is only lightly sweetened. If you prefer a sweeter cake you can add a glaze on top.
The cake does not need a glaze and French yogurt cake is usually left plain or dusted with a little powdered sugar. However if you do want a glaze, here is the one I used in the photos.
Optional Vanilla Glaze: Combine 1 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, and 1 tbsp whole milk. Whisk until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add a splash more of milk. If it’s too thin, add a little more powdered sugar. Drizzle glaze over cake if desired.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice, Calories: 272kcal, Carbohydrates: 39g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 17mg, Sugar: 21g, NET CARBS: 39

The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.