Lemon Poppyseed Cake

A lemon poppyseed cake where you can actually taste the poppyseeds; it’s moist, lemony, and most importantly, super simple. In this recipe, the poppyseeds are ground down to release their flavor before marbling into the cake batter and the cake is soaked with a lemon syrup right after baking to ensure you get that tart lemony flavor!

Do you need to soak or grind poppyseeds before baking?

Need is a strong word, technically no, the poppyseeds won’t harm you in any way. BUT I recommend grinding the poppyseeds before baking with them as that will help release their flavor into the cake batter. To grind poppyseeds you can use a mortar and pestle, a spice grinder, or an old coffee grinder.

Can you freeze a lemon loaf cake?

Yes! I prefer to cut the slices, wrap them in plastic and then place the wrapped slices into a resealable freezer bag. They will keep for up to 1 month in the freezer and can be defrosted in the fridge or at room temperature.

What does an olive oil cake taste like?

Olive oil, especially if you’re using a milder oil, doesn’t really taste of olive oil – especially when paired with strong flavors such as lemon and poppyseeds. If you decide to drizzle a little on the whipped cream, then you will really taste the olive oil. But if you prefer you could also use vegetable or avocado oil.

What does yogurt do in a cake?

I LOVE using full fat (at least 5% fat) greek yogurt in a cake to keep it moist as well as reduce the amount of fat that needs to be added into the cake. The lemon and yogurt also pair well for the whipped cream because the creamy freshness of the yogurt is balanced nicely by the tart lemon flavor.

Tips for Lemon Poppyseed Loaf Cake

• Grind the poppyseeds. This cake will taste best and give the best poppyseed flavor if you grind them first. I use an old coffee grinder but a spice grinder or mortar and pestle will also do the trick. They should look like wet sand once ground.
• Make sure your oven is preheated! This cake should be baked immediately once mixed and assembled because the baking soda will start to react quickly so you don’t want the air bubbles to burst before it hits the oven.
• Don’t over mix the cake batter. Because of the oil and yogurt, this cake can easily become tough if you over mix it. Simply fold the sifted dry ingredients into the already mixed wet, just until no dry bits are visible – it will still look clumpy but that’s ok.
• Be sure to bake the cake fully, it should have a nice golden brown color and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean when it’s finished baking.
• The lemon syrup soak for the cake can be made on the stove in a pot or in the microwave. I usually choose to use the microwave because I can put the dishes in the dishwasher but be careful, and don’t walk away! The syrup can easily boil over in the microwave and will be very hot. Something can happen in the microwave, where if you go to stir something very hot, the moment the utensil is inserted, it will bubble over so make sure you aren’t holding the container you use for the syrup when you stir it.
• For the lemon yogurt whipped cream and the cake, using full fat, unsweetened greek yogurt will give you the best results!

Additional Cake Recipes to try!

• Blackberry Pecan Cake
• Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake
• Marble Loaf Cake

Ingredients

Cake

• Poppyseeds: This cake uses 50 grams of poppyseeds that are then ground down so I recommend buying them in bulk or ordering them here from amazon. This way tends to be more cost effective than purchasing in a spice jar.
• Sugar: This loaf uses white granulated sugar in the cake batter, for the simple syrup, and a bit more to roll the cake in once it has been soaked.
• Lemons: Lemon zest adds flavor into the cake batter where as the lemon juice is used for the simple syrup that is soaked into the cake and used in the yogurt whipped cream.
• Eggs: I use standard large eggs from the store; they will whip up best if not freezing cold but they don’t have to be room temperature.
• Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds flavor and enhances the lemon.
• Salt: Fine sea salt is used in this recipe.
• Full Fat Greek Yogurt: As mentioned above, using 5% fat greek yogurt keeps this cake moist but sour cream or quark will work as well.
• Olive Oil: I love the pairing of olive oil and lemon in a cake but vegetable or avocado oil will work too.
• All Purpose Flour: Any all purpose flour will work for this loaf cake! I have not yet tried any other flours with this recipe.
• Baking Soda & Baking Powder: These both help make the cake rise – make sure to check the expiration date! If they are expired, they won’t be very effective.
• Heavy Cream: *not pictured* Heavy whipping cream or heavy cream is used for the lemon yogurt whipped cream that I have topped the cake with.

How to make a Lemon Poppyseed Cake?

• Preheat the oven to 350 F and place a rack in the center of the oven.

Lemon Poppyseed Cake batter

• Grind the poppyseeds and place in a small mixing bowl.
• In a large bowl, add in the 200 grams of granulated sugar and the zest of two lemons. Rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers until fully incorporated. The sugar will begin to clump from the oils.
• Whisk in the salt.
• Crack all three eggs into the bowl and whisk for about two minutes until light and fluffy.
• Add in the yogurt and whisk again.
• Finally pour in the olive oil and vanilla extract and whisk once more until fully combined.
• Sift the flour, baking soda, and baking powder into the wet ingredients. Use a flat rubber spatula to fold the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined. It will still look clumpy from the bubbles.
• Pour 400 grams of the batter into the bowl with the poppyseeds and carefully fold the poppyseeds into the batter.
• Grease a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan with a baking spray that uses flour or parchment paper. *If using this USA loaf pan that I love, you don’t need to line the pan.
• Alternate pouring half of the plain lemon batter and half of the poppyseed batter into the prepared loaf pan. Continue until all of the batter is used.

Bake

• Flatten out the batters with the rubber spatula and then bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes have passed, rotate the pan 180 degrees and bake for another 20-25 minutes.
• Check to see if the cake is done by inserting a toothpick into the center and seeing if it comes out clean. If batter is stuck to the toothpick, bake for another 5 minutes.
• Once baked, take the pan out of the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool.

Soak and Sugar Coat

• Make the lemon syrup while the cake cools. Squeeze the juice of three lemons into a large microwave safe bowl or measuring cup. Add in 2/3 the weight of the lemon juice in granulated sugar. For me it was about 180 grams of lemon juice so I did 120 grams of granulated sugar.
• Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring the mixture in between until all of the sugar has dissolved.
• Pour 150 grams of the syrup into a separate cup to reserve for the lemon yogurt whipped cream.
• Once the cake has cooled for 15 minutes, take it out of the pan. Place it directly on a wire rack with a baking sheet underneath. Flip the cake upside down and brush the bottom with about 1/4 of the simple syrup.
• Brush both sides of the cake with about 1/4 of the syrup as well.
• Flip the cake back right side up and poke about 25 holes in the top with a toothpick or skewer. Pour/brush the remaining lemon syrup onto the top of the cake. Poking holes is semi-optional because you will see them after the fact. But it allows more of the lemon to go into the cake and once sliced, no one will see the holes.
• Leave the cake to sit for about 10 minutes to let it cool further and the syrup to become tacky.
• Pour 50 grams of sugar onto a large plate or additional baking sheet. Roll the bottom and long sides of the loaf cake in the sugar so they are fully coated.
• Transfer the cake back onto the wire rack and pour about 50 more grams of sugar over the top of the cake.
• Leave it to cool completely before slicing and serving with the whipped cream.

Lemon Yogurt Whipped Cream

• In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, add in the cold heavy cream. Whip on medium high speed until soft peaks form.
• Add in the greek yogurt, and whip until stiff. It should firm up quickly if using full fat greek yogurt.
• Finally, pour in about 2/3 of the lemon syrup that was set aside. Whisk to combine and then taste to see if you want to add in the rest of the syrup.
• Serve immediately with the cake or place in an airtight container in the fridge to firm up slightly. If left to sit in the fridge for a few days, some of the water from the yogurt will separate and sink to the bottom which is totally fine. You can just scoop the extra creamy, cream off the top and pour off the extra liquid!
• Optionally drizzle the cake slices with olive oil after topping with the lemon and yogurt whipped cream.

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