Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe

Lemon Poppy seed cake recipe with step by step pictures. Moist and fluffy lemon flavoured poppyseed cake is a popular dessert recipe all over the world.

Lemon cakes makes great summer baking recipe because of its refreshing and bright taste. Poppy seeds in this cake makes it incredibly moist and juicy. Learn how to make the best soft lemon poppy seed cake with step by step pictures and video.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe

Lemon poppy seed cake is a delicious and flavorful dessert that combines the zesty taste of lemons with the delightful crunch of poppy seeds. It's a popular choice for tea time, brunches, or as a sweet treat any time of the day. 

Jump to:

• About Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
• Video for Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe
• Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Ingredients
• Tips for Best & Moist Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
• How to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Cake (Stepwise Pictures)
• Expert Tips
• 📖 Recipe Card

About Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

Lemon-flavored desserts have been enjoyed for centuries, and poppy seeds have been used in culinary creations throughout Europe and Asia for their unique texture and flavor. Poppy seeds were used in various dishes, including bread and cakes, for their nutty taste and crunchy texture. The combination of lemons and poppy seeds in cakes makes it taste amazing. 

Poppy seed cakes typically have a tender and moist crumb, thanks to ingredients like butter, eggs, and buttermilk. The addition of poppy seeds lends a unique nutty flavor and a slight crunch to the cake. In combination with other flavors like lemon, orange, or almond, poppy seed cakes offer a delightful taste experience.

Similar Recipes,

Lemon Chia Seed Cake

French Lemon Yogurt Cake

Lemon Drizzle Cake

Video for Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe

Why This Recipe Works?

Easy & affordable - the ingredients and equipments used in this cake is easily available. Basic pantry staple ingredients is used.

Moist & Soft - the cake is delicious, because of the poppy seeds and buttermilk, the cake stays soft and moist longer.

Shareable - this recipe makes pretty large cake, it can feed a crowd which makes it a summer recipe.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Ingredients

All Purpose Flour (Maida) - basic plain flour is used in the recipe. Even though you can make this cake with whole wheat flour, it will affect the texture of the cake.

Sugar - regular granulated sugar is used in the batter as well as the syrup.

Unsalted Butter - make sure you use soft unsalted butter so you can control the amount of salt that goes into the cake.

Eggs - this cake needs eggs to make it properly bake and gives the fluffy texture.

Baking Soda (Cooking Soda) - this is the raising agent for this recipe. Along with buttermilk, baking soda makes the cake tender and soft.

Poppy Seeds - poppy seeds makes this cake incredibly soft and tender. You can skip it if you don't have it. You can use chia seed instead of poppy seed, check my lemon chia cake.

Salt - helps enhance the cake taste.

Lemon - makes this cake so lemony, zingy and gives a bright refreshing taste. Both lemon juice and lemon zest is used in the cake.

Buttermilk - buttermilk makes the cake incredibly tender and soft.

Tips for Best & Moist Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

• Zest the Lemons Properly: When zesting lemons, use a microplane or a fine grater to get the zest. Avoid grating too deeply, as the white pith underneath can be bitter.
  
• Room Temperature Ingredients: Ensure that ingredients like eggs and butter are at room temperature before you start mixing the batter. This helps the batter to emulsify better and results in a smoother cake texture.
  
• Don't Overmix: Overmixing can lead to a dense and tough cake. Mix the ingredients until just combined to keep the cake tender and fluffy.
  
• Baking Time: Keep an eye on the baking time, as ovens can vary. Start checking the cake a few minutes before the suggested time to avoid overbaking.
  
• Lemon Glaze or Icing: The lemon glaze or icing is optional but adds an extra burst of lemon flavor and sweetness. If you prefer a less sweet cake, you can skip this step.
  
• Storage: Once the cake has cooled completely, store it in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator, depending on your preference. It should stay fresh for a few days.

How to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Cake (Stepwise Pictures)

Pre-preparation

1)Take all your ingredients. Measure all the ingredients and prepare before baking the cake.

2)Grease a Bundt Cake Pan with Oil and dust generously with flour. Set this aside. You can use regular 9 inch cake pan also.

Dry Ingredients

3)Now let's mix the dry ingredients. Take plain flour in a bowl.

4)Add poppy seeds into the plain flour. This makes the cake incredibly soft and moist.

5)Add salt and baking soda.

7)Mix well, this is your dry ingredients. Set this aside till needed.

Wet Ingredients

8)Now let's mix the wet ingredients. Take buttermilk in a bowl. Buttermilk helps tenderise the cake and makes it soft and moist.

9)Add lemon zest and lemon juice.

11)Mix well and set aside. This is your wet ingredients.

Cake Batter

12)Now let's start making the cake batter. Take soft unsalted butter in a bowl. Add in sugar. I used granulated white sugar, you can use caster sugar as well.

14)Whisk till creamy. I used a hand beater. You can use whisk or stand mixer.

15)Once the mixture gets fluffy and light, lets add in eggs. Add one egg at a time and whisk till creamy.

16)Beat till creamy. The mixture will get fluffy.

17)You can see the batter is thick, fluffy and creamy.

17)Now let's add in the dry ingredients and wet ingredients. Start with ⅓rd of dry ingredients.

18)Add half of buttermilk and beat on low until combined. Now add in the ⅓rd of the dry ingredients and the entire wet ingredients. Mix gently until combined. Now finish with the remaining dry ingredients.

Baking

19)The batter will be smooth and thick. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

20)Pop this into the preheated oven and bake till done. Insert a tooth pick to check whether the cake is baked or not. If the tooth pick comes out clean then the cake is baked.

Lemon syrup

21)Make syrup by heating lemon juice, water and sugar. Bring this to a boil and remove from heat.

22)Once the cake is cooled slightly, Invert cake on a plate.

23)Brush the cake with lemon syrup generously.

24)Let the cake sit for 1 hour before slicing and serving.

Expert Tips

• You can use chia seeds instead of poppy seeds.
• Orange juice and orange zest can be used instead of lemons.
• The cake can be baked in a regular square or round cake pan, baking time will vary. 
• Allow the cake to cool completely before slicing so you get clean slices.

Serving & Storage

Lemon poppy seed cake taste great with a cup of black coffee or tea. Left over cake can be stored at room temperature for 2 days. You can store in fridge in an air tight container upto a week.

More Cake Recipes to Try

📖 Recipe Card

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