Lemon Poppyseed Cake

One of the easiest recipes to make a delicious and moist lemon cake 🍋. A light, fluffy and tender cake with a good kick of lemon and a little crunch from the poppyseeds. Absolutely delish! Finish it with a simple zingy lemon icing and you’re in literal lemon heaven.

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Ingredients for a lemon poppyseed cake

I absolutely love a quick cake recipe and this recipe only requires a few simple ingredients. It can be made in 1 bowl, no mixer required and takes literally less than 10 mintues to whip up (baking excluded ofc.)

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Here’s what you’ll need:

• Poppyseed - Because well, duhh. However! If you want to keep this a simple lemon cake you can totally omit the poppyseeds
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• Sugar - This recipe calls for just granulated sugar
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• All-purpose flour & almond flour - Flour is what holds together your cake and gives it that delicate crumb. The addition of almond flour adds immensely to the texture and tenderness of this cake. Feel free to swap it out 1-1 with regular flour if you’re allergic
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• Lemon zest & juice - This is non-negotiable in this recipe! It will brighten up the cake and give it a little zing. And because well duh.. It’s a lemon loaf!
   
• Eggs - Ensure that your eggs are at room temperature so they easily incorporate into your batter
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• Sugar - This recipe calls for just granulated sugar and gives it just enough sweetness that it can purpose for both a dessert or a quick midday snack
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• Baking powder & soda - These will help the cake to get a perfect rise
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• Full-fat Greek Yoghurt - The Greek yoghurt is here to provide acidity which will help the raising and levelling agents to do their job
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• Natural oil - I prefer using a non-flavoured oil to add the fat but not mess with the delicate flavour of this cake
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• Icing sugar - Finish of your cake with a simple lemon and icing sugar glaze

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How to get that perfect crack in the middle of your loaf cake

I’ve got a sneaky little (optional) trick if you want your loaf cake to be perfectly split in the middle. 

You can do this in 2 ways, I find that the easiest way is to dip something straight and thin (like a knife or a bench scraper) in some oil and dip that in the middle of your wet batter (in the pan). The other option is to fill a piping bag with the tiniest bit of softened butter and to pipe a straight line in the middle of your batter. The fat of the line will make sure that the batter splits while baking! 

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What are poppy seeds?

Poppy seeds is an oilseed that comes from the poppy plant. The tiny seeds are harvested from the dried poppy heads and used in various cuisines. They are rich in nutrients like manganese! But that unfortunately does not make this recipe healthy lol. It does make it taste so good and gives it a nice bitter and nutty crunch! 

How long can I store this cake?

You can store this cake at room temperature for up to 3 days. Just make sure to wrap it well or store it in an airtight container so the cake does not dry out

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Baking time and oven temperature

Baking time and oven temperature may vary depending on the oven you are using.  All oven temperatures in my recipes are based on a conventional oven. If you bake with a fan-assisted oven, turn down the temperature slightly as these ovens tend to become hotter than a conventional oven at that temperature setting. Ovens have the tendency to deviate from the temperature you set the oven to. I would highly recommend using an oven thermometer to ensure the inside of your oven is at the right temperature. My oven for example only goes up to 160C even though I turn it up to 230C 

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An oven that is too hot may result in an overbaked or burnt bake, an oven that is too cold may result in underbaked and soggy bakes. Having the thermometer will not only help in getting the right temperature but it also helps in determining the right baking time. 

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Other factors that may affect baking time

The size of your baking dish may also highly affect your baking time. A wider pan means that the batter spreads out more, resulting in it baking faster than in a smaller pan where the batter is thicker in height. 

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Enjoy loves!