This Pop of Lemon Poppy Cake gets me every time!!! I was actually craving it because my mother-in-law makes a cake just like it and I hoover at least 2 down when I visit Israel, but since we aren’t traveling there anytime soon, I played around in the kitchen and came up with my own version. The bright citrus glaze makes this cake extremely addictive, which also makes this cake dangerous…I CRAVE IT ON THE REGS. Ido and I ate this cake in 1 day….1 day!
It’s the perfect summer cake and I love serving it with coffee in the afternoon or I cut myself a nice piece for breakfast. Heating the poppy seeds in the milk is KEY. It really opens up the flavor of the seeds which lend such a gorgeous flavor to the cake.
note- If you can’t find poppy seeds or just don’t like them, ignore the step to infuse the milk and just don’t add them. This recipe makes the most ridiculous lemon loaf.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 1/3 cups ap flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup poppy seeds
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup sour cream room temp – you can also use full fat plain yogurt
- Grated zest of 2 lemons-around 1 tablespoon
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 cup neutral oil like grapeseed, sunflower or avocado oil – OR you can also totally scratch this idea and use extra virgin olive oil for a little extra fruitiness (so good)
- 2 eggs
Glaze
- 1/3 cup lemon juice -around 2 lemons juiced
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
DIRECTIONS
1. Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees F
2. Butter a 9X5 loaf tin and line it with parchment paper.
3. Place the milk and the poppy seeds in a small pot on the stove and place on a low heat. Bring to a gentle simmer and then turn off the heat. Remove from the stove and let cool completely.
4. In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and kosher salt, using a whisk, mix together and place to the side.
5. In a large bowl place the eggs and the sugar. Using a whisk, cream together. Add in the lemon zest, vanilla, sour cream, grape seed oil and cooled milk with poppy seeds. Using a whisk, pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two stages. Making sure to mix until incorporated but once it is all incorporated stop mixing. You don’t want to over mix. Place the cake in the oven in the middle rack for 45-55 min. If it is getting too dark, loosely tent with tin foil. You want the batter to just set.
6. While the cake is baking, prepare the glaze. Place the lemon juice and the sugar in a small pot. Bring to a simmer, once the sugar dissolves remove from the heat and keep to the side until the cake is ready. Right when the cake is done remove from the oven and evenly pour the glaze right over…all over. Keep to the side and let cool. ENJOY!
