A tangy and ultra soft cake: the Lemon poppy seed cake ! A lemon-flavoured cake with a crunchy touch thanks to poppy seeds. Served plain or with its lemon glaze, a real pleasure to enjoy for breakfast or as a snack.
What you will like with this recipe
flavors : this cake is tangy and fresh, a real pleasure to taste. Poppy seeds add a nutty flavor that pairs perfectly with lemon.
Texture : this lemon poppy seed cake is very moist, the poppy seeds add a pleasant light crunch to the taste. The icing added on top is creamy, it hardens as it cools.
Difficulty level : very easy to prepare! It can be done easily with a pastry robot or with a hand mixer.
Choose your ingredients wisely
- lemons : I advise you to use freshly squeezed lemons for the lemon juice (especially not the bottled one). To harvest the zest, I recommend organic lemons instead.
- cream : this is what will add softness to this lemon poppy seed cake. I use liquid cream at 30% mg (do not take light).
- butter : here we need soft softened butter. To soften it, leave it for about 1 hour at room temperature.
NB: the detailed quantities are given to you in the recipe at the bottom of the page.
How to make this lemon poppy seed cake?
- Sift the dry ingredients to ensure a uniform mixture.
- We cream the butter and the sugar: we want to have a very creamy mixture.
- Add the eggs and then the lemon (zest and juice).
- Then add the dry ingredients and the liquid cream.
- Finally we finish with the poppy seeds.
For the icing, simply mix the 3 ingredients together until you have the ideal consistency to coat it on the lemon poppy seed cake.
My tips for a successful lemon cake
- place all your ingredients at room temperature 1 hour before to start your recipe: this allows you to have a very soft result.
- do not cook more than necessary lemon poppy seed cake: otherwise it will become dry, that would be a shame. The wooden pick test is always a good tip to check the cooking.
- wait for the cake to cool completely before frosting it : it will freeze quickly on the sides of the cake.
How to store your lemon poppy seed cake?
This lemon poppy seed cake can be kept for about 2 days at room temperature (it's better to keep all its softness) or up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
It can also be frozen (before frosting): to do this, wrap it already sliced in cling film then place it in an airtight container. All you have to do is reheat the slices as needed!
Other recipes to try
If you like lemon desserts, then take a look at these other recipes from the blog:
- Lemon poppyseed madeleines
- Lemon ginger meringue tarts
- No-bake lemon cheesecakes
- Lemon meringue log
- Lemon raspberry whipped cream cake
If you make this poppy lemon cake, don't hesitate to rate the recipe and tag @liliebakery on Instagram so I can see your pretty cakes!
Very Soft Lemon Poppyseed Cake
Ingredients:
Lemon poppy seed cake
- 240 g all-purpose flour
- 0,5 tsp salt
- 0,25 tsp baking soda
- 0,25 tsp baking powder
- 130 g softened butter at room temperature
- 195 g granulated sugar
- 3 eggs at room temperature
- 2 tbsp shaved lemon zest or about 2 lemons
- 2 tbsp squeezed lemon juice
- 150 g heavy whipping cream 30% at room temperature
- 1,75 tbsp poppy seeds
Creamy Lemon Frosting
- 120 g icing sugar
- 1 tbsp squeezed lemon juice
- 3 tbsp heavy whipping cream 30%
Instructions:
Lemon poppy seed cake
- Preheat the oven to 175° traditional heat. Grease a 27x10cm cake tin. Line it with a sheet of baking paper to facilitate unmolding.
- Sift the dry ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Put aside.
- In a food processor or hand mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar until the mixture thickens and is very creamy.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between each and scraping the edges.
- Add the lemon zest and lemon juice then mix to homogenize.
- Add the dry ingredients alternately with the liquid cream. Finish with the dry ingredients (mix just enough, without overdoing it).
- Add the poppy seeds last with a spatula without mixing too much.
- Pour the batter into the mold and bake for 1 hour. Test for doneness with a wooden pick that should come out clean or with a few crumbs. If necessary, add aluminum foil to prevent the top from browning too much.
- Leave to cool in the mold for 10 minutes, then unmold on a wire rack. Then let cool completely.
Creamy Lemon Frosting
- Whisk the icing sugar and lemon juice. Add the cream little by little until you have the right consistency (neither too thick nor too runny).
- Spoon this frosting over the cooled cake. It will harden as it cools.
LadyMilonguera
This cake is so beautiful!
Lilie bakery
Thank you Lady :)
Marie
Delicious this poppy lemon cake, I loved it!! And super easy to make, congratulations Aurélie
Lilie bakery
Thank you very much Mary! Goodbye :)
Marie
Hello
Excellent cake, thank you for this recipe :) next time I will add more candied lemon cubes
Lilie bakery
Thank you Mary! Very good idea the candied lemon cubes, see you soon :)
Sophie
Hello,
I just tried it after three other recipes blah blah .. a killer !!
Merci!
Lilie bakery
Thank you Sophie! Glad you like it, see you soon :)
Sophie
Small variation, I prepared a lemon basil cake...to die for! Thank you for this beautiful gourmet site, I love it
Lilie bakery
Thank you Sophie!
ruili
Hello,
Could I replace the cream with milk? to make it lighter? Thanks for the recipe
Lilie bakery
Hello Ruili, I advise you to keep the cream because it is partly thanks to it that the cake is soft. However, if you absolutely want milk, take whole milk. See you soon :)
Isis
Just tested and adopted!!! Well, didn't have time to make the icing, they liked it anyway
On the other hand I reduced the sugar, I put 150g and I think that the next time I will even put 130g.. 2nd recipe that I test on your site (I made the super charlotte with raspberries) and I must say What killings!!! Many thanks ❤️
Lilie bakery
Thank you Isis for your feedback! Glad that this cake enjoyed your loved ones, See you soon :)
Alexa
Hello,
I don't have a cake mold of this size, would it be possible to bake it in a 20x10cm sme mold? It will have the shape of a cake but not awkward for me (the amount of icing will surely have to be adapted?)
If so, what would be the ideal cooking time?
Thank you in advance,
Alexa
Lilie bakery
Hello Alexa, there would be a mathematical calculation of volume to do… My cake is a rectangle and not a round one, I still advise you to stay on a cake format, for cooking it is better (because it is calculated for ), including leavening agents. See you soon :)
Quentin
Best lemon cake of my life!
I chopped the zest with a knife, it adds a little texture, it's wonderful.
Thanks for the recipe !
Lilie bakery
Thanks Quentin for your feedback! See you soon :)
Astrid
A treat, as always with your recipes! I made without the poppy (to respect the tastes of some guests) so I can't judge the initial taste of the recipe but we loved it! A very soft and well flavored cake, it didn't last long!
Lilie bakery
Thank you Astrid for your feedback! See you soon :)
Mathilde
It's the 2nd time I make this cake, it's a treat!
I actually mix lemon and lime (zest and juice) :)
Gonna try other recipes on your blog, it's very inspiring, thank you.
Lilie bakery
Thank you Mathilde for your comment!
Patrice
Hello, would it be possible to know what weight corresponds to 0,25cc for yeast and bicarbonate.
Do we also have to add baking soda?
Thank you in advance for your suggestions.
Patrice
Lilie bakery
Hello Patrice, 0,25 cc = it's 1/4 of a teaspoon. You absolutely need baking soda because it is the most important leavening agent in my recipe. Don't do without. See you soon :)
Hoang-mai
A delight! Just perfect ! Thanks for sharing your recipe
Lilie bakery
Thank you very much Hoang-Mai! See you soon :)
Josiane
Can you replace baking soda with yeast?
Lilie bakery
Hello Josiane, no, I don't recommend it, here the baking soda reacts with the lemon juice to make the cake rise properly. See you soon :)