MY PERFECT LEMON POPPY SEED CAKE + CAKE CRUMBLE LEMON CREAM POPSICLE
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INSIDE EACH GOLDEN SLICES OF THIS SPIRIT-LIFTING CAKE, IS A PIECE OF MY OWN HEAVEN.
AND IF I MUST BE NITPICKING FOR A FAULT, WELL, TO THAT I HAVE A SOLUTION, TOO.
I wasn’t really contemplating on a cake recipe. I always feel a little self-doubt every time I throw one out there, after all, I have about as much credentials on cakes and baking as a dog on dating advice. But over the last week, I wanted to bake a lemon poppy seed cake for a couple of friends coming over for coffee, and to my surprise as well, I couldn’t seem to find a satisfactory answer in the worldwide web with all its might. OK, given that I didn’t really look past beyond page-3 on a Google search, but as far as I’m concerned, if it’s not on page-1, it might as well not exist in this world, and I went to page-3! Page 3! Can’t say my research wasn’t thorough.
There’s of course, lots of lemon poppy seed cake recipes out there. And they probably all possess certain qualities that satisfy each maker’s niche, but for me, each and every one seem to have one or two imperfections. Either it requires the separation of eggs and whipping of egg whites (and if you bake you’ll know a lotta complications come with that), which is a task I prefer just a bit more than laying asphalt for free on a hot summer day; Or, it uses a cake-mix, to which I ask why not just buy a damn cake: Or, it uses a staggering amount of egg yolks for rich flavours and colors, but entirely forgets the part where nobody, nobody, look forward to leftover egg whites; And as for the rest of them, perhaps the most irritating fault is that they all carry the saddest, palest, borderline-white crumbs that I consider an assault on the integrity of a lemon poppy seed cake. The name itself expects, if not demands a halo of golden yellow glow, the color that transcribes all the good-feelings this cake has to bring to the subconscious… summer, happiness, light.
So it is what it is, that if I want my perfect lemon poppy seed cake – one that is easy, fast, golden and moist with the fragrance of citrus and plentiful of nutty pops – I will have to make my own. With a flavor-wise untraceable dash of ground turmeric, and an easy step to aerating the eggs (I consider it an all-in-one alternative to the separation/whipping of egg whites), there I have it all, inside each golden slices of this spirit-lifting cake, a piece of my own heaven. And I hope, if not predict, that it would be yours, too.
But, if I must be nitpicking… this cake, as all other cakes, does lose its prime in moisture and texture after a couple days of sitting inside the fridge. To that, well, I have a solution, too.
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The recipe is adapted from many combined.
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cup (245 grams) granulated sugar
- zest of 2 lemons
- 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
- 4 large eggs + 1 egg yolk
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup (180 grams) whole milk
- 2 cups (245 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (70 grams) cornstarch
- 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 heaping tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup (36 grams) poppy seeds
- 2/3 cup (160 grams) canola oil (see note)
- 2 tbsp (27 grams) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tbsp (30 grams) lemon juice
- 1 cup (120 grams) powdered sugar
- 2/3 cup (161 grams/about 4 lemons) lemon juice
- zest of 1 lemon
- 13.2 oz (375 grams/1 can) sweetened condensed milk
- 1//2 cup (120 grams) whole milk
- 1/2 cup (104 grams) heavy cream
Instructions
- BAKE THE CAKE: Preheat the oven on 350 F/175 C. In a stand-mixer or hand-held mixer, mix granulated sugar, lemon zest and ground turmeric together until it resembles yellow wet sand. On medium speed, add the eggs, one by one, and mix until even, then turn to high speed to mix until the mixture is thick and airy, almost doubled in size. Add lemon juice and vanilla extract, mix until even, then add whole milk and mix until even. From now on, switch to a hand-held whisk.
- In another bowl, whisk together ap-flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt and poppy seeds until even, then add to the wet ingredient. Gently fold the mixture together with the whisk until there are only tiny lumps remain. Add the canola oil and gently fold again until even (the oil tends to settle on the bottom so make sure you scoop the bottom of the bowl several times). Butter the inside of a 8"~9" (22 cm) bundt cake pan, then coat evenly with flour. Tap the pan upside-down over the sink to rid any excess flour, then transfer the batter into the pan.
- Bake in the oven for 30~35 min until an inserted wooden skewer comes out clean from the center. Let the cake cool completely over a cooling-rack. Meanwhile, whisk together melted butter, lemon juice and powdered sugar until even. Drizzle the icing over the cake.
- MAKE POPSICLE: In an easy-to-pour jar, whisk together lemon juice, lemon zest, sweetened condensed milk, whole milk and heavy cream until even. Crumble leftover cake into small chunks that will fit through your popsicle molds, then loosely stuff them into the molds until about 80% full. Insert the wooden popsicle handles into the molds in a swift and decisive motion (so it pierces through the cakes instead of pressing them down, or you can clear a pathway with a small knife first). Pour the milk-mixture into the molds all the way to the top. The liquid will quickly seep down and fill the empty spaces below, so come back and re-fill it to the top. Freeze until hard inside the freezer, at least 6 hours or overnight. Rinse the mold under water for a few seconds before removing the popsicle.
Notes
If you want to have a more buttery flavour in the cake, you can use 1/3 cup melted unsalted butter and 1/3 cup canola oil. But the cake may be less moist.
Dora
June 26, 2017 at 11:16 PMThat’s what i call foooodporn!
Alex
June 26, 2017 at 11:59 PMAhh, cake in popsicles – genius. Cookies in ice cream are the best thing ever, so this makes perfect sense. My only question is, how did none of us think of it sooner??!
Cheyenne
June 27, 2017 at 12:01 AMI love anything lemony and sweet! Do you think I could substitute in a bit of whole spelt flour, or would other ingredients have to be adjusted? I’d like to make it a little more breakfast suitable
mandy@ladyandpups
June 27, 2017 at 12:15 AMCheyenne, I can’t see why not! Though I’ve never worked with spelt flower before so I can’t tell you how much to substitute. I’d start with replacing it with 1/2 of the ap flour? Let me know how it works out!
Diana
June 27, 2017 at 2:55 AMI think I read somewhere that starches “age” faster in the fridge, this is why breads, potatoes etc are typically not stored in the fridge. Though I think any cake looses moisture in two days, whether in the fridge or out. Yours looks fantastic!
And a question, Mandy: can you share where you bought the beautiful white speckled bowl you use to plate this cake?
mandy@ladyandpups
June 27, 2017 at 11:27 AMDiana, I bought it in China :)
Diana
June 27, 2017 at 12:07 PM? Was afraid you’d say “in a store.” The search for the perfect bowl continues! :)
Sophia
June 27, 2017 at 9:08 AMI so love lemon poppy seed cake, I have been making different versions of it, as well as scones, both filled with lemon curd, and love very version I have made, so I look forward to trying yours, I have a few lemons ripening on the tree, I will save them for this cake. Thank you!
Leah Sprague
June 27, 2017 at 11:41 AMLemon anything is my favorite! I especially love not having 6 extra egg whites in the fridge… no one needs that.
That’s so interesting that turmeric helps aerates the eggs! Is that a common practice?
mandy@ladyandpups
June 27, 2017 at 1:24 PMLeah, no the turmeric just gives it a beautiful golden color, and has nothing to do with aerating the eggs :)
Dulcistella
June 27, 2017 at 7:40 PMHi! My favorite lemon and poppy seed cake is made only with….. egg whites! That’s why I think it is the best! :-D Well, not only for this, of course… I don’t think you would love it, though, because it requires to a) whip the whites to stiff peaks, b) make a syrup to soak it, c) the glaze and d) it is very pale.
But oh boy, it is very lemony and stays moist forever thanks to the syrup. I also like its paleness. It is from the Hummingbird bakery cookbook (the first).
Also: did you know that you can freeze egg whites? I always freeze them in small yogurt vases and then I use them for meringues, amaretti (yum), financiers, this cake and yolkless (I just invented this word right now) crepes. I am actually running out of egg whites, should go making some pastry cream…
Sabrina
June 27, 2017 at 8:56 PMLove both of these recipes! It’s such a good idea to use the leftover cake in the popsicles! Also, your photos are stunning, as always.
Alison
June 29, 2017 at 11:04 AMThanks Mandy~ thought for sure there would be a pic of the pups, resting their noses ever so gently on the edge of the table, loving eyeing the cake! Or helping you eat a cakesicle?
Nicole
June 29, 2017 at 4:05 PMThis looks amazing. I’m going to try the recipe
Diego Lopes
June 30, 2017 at 5:18 AMWhat an interesting recipe! I’ve never tried making cakes before, but after reading this, I’m going to have to try. It sounds delicious. Thank you for posting it!
kimithy
June 30, 2017 at 6:01 AMOh wow, that looks amazing. There’s an ice cream place in my city that had a lemon poppyseed flavor with actual cake bits in it, and it was incredible – never thought to try in a popsicle!!
Sabrina B.
July 1, 2017 at 6:17 AMyep, agree that the cake better be yellow since we at least somewhat taste with the eyes! I’ve always loved the idea and taste of lemon cake so much more than it’s paler and much more commonly served cousin. Thank you for this lovely recipe and this extremely creative use of leftovers into a popsicle!
Kelly Mahan
July 18, 2017 at 10:37 PMTwo in one, awesome, love it! I’m looking forward to taste this cake and popsicle (cake more than popsicle, actually)! From the photos I can almost do that, but let’s see how it turns out over the weekend =)
angie
July 19, 2017 at 9:07 PMjaysus thats a delivish popsicle right there. i’ll have to try this in muffin form one day. also: turmeric? good god yes. thanks for venturing into the deep dark depths of goo to craft this beauty :~)
Erika Kwee
July 21, 2017 at 1:45 AMU my hero, as always, saving me from the pit of despair that is me browsing pages 1-3 of Google every single time I want lemon poppyseed cake and never finding The One. Can’t wait to try!
Lay
November 9, 2017 at 2:33 PMHi Mandy, can these be made in an angel cake pan? or just regular cake pan ? (basically a non-stick)
mandy@ladyandpups
November 9, 2017 at 11:36 PMLay, I’m not a cake master but I don’t see why not :)
Ele
December 2, 2017 at 5:01 PMThis was a lovely recipe thank you! I realized too late I don’t have a bundt pan so I made muffins and just reduced cooking time. Tasted beautiful thanks.
Manu
April 10, 2018 at 3:01 AMStunning cake pictures! Could you let me know the brand name of the pan you used?
Thank you
mandy@ladyandpups
April 10, 2018 at 12:30 PMManu, I don’t think there’s a “brand”. Just a random pan I bought somewhere in Europe :)
Athena
April 15, 2021 at 4:21 AMI just feed leftover egg whites to our dog lol