Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
This gorgeous Lemon Poppy Seed Cake is the perfect understated, yet elegant cake that is moist with lots of vibrant flavor from all the fresh lemon zest. It comes complete with a sweet lemony glaze resulting in an incredibly delicious cake. Perfect for any occasion.
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe
This lemon poppy seed cake with this killer lemon glaze is simply fabulous. A slice of this cake in the morning with my coffee is what I’m all about. So here’s a nice lemon poppy seed bundt cake that’s to die for. When I feel like eating something sweet I pretty much always turn to bundt cakes because they are so easy to make and so good.
I say this cake is understated because it’s so delicious and lemony, but yet so simple to make. Not to mention they’re perfect for any occasion. It’s such a classic cake with ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, it’s a no brainer.
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Highlights
- A Classic. This is such a classic cake with lots of lemon flavor that’s been around forever, so if you love lemony desserts then this cake is perfect for you.
- Simple Pantry Staple Ingredients. Nothing fancy in this recipe, you probably already have everything you need in your pantry right now.
- Perfect For Any Occasion. Whether it’s to celebrate a birthday, your mother, a holiday, or just because you have a sweet tooth, this lemon poppy seed cake is perfect.
- The Basics – This recipe has your typical cake ingredients; flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, butter, eggs. Make sure you eggs and butter are at room temperature. You’ll also want to use unsalted butter since we already add salt to the cake batter.
- Lemon Zest – I used a full half cup of lemon zest in place of lemon juice. Trust me here! The zest adds a world of bright flavor without adding any extra liquid. It took me two big lemons to get a ½ cup of zest, but it may take more or less for you depending on the size of your lemons.
- Buttermilk – The buttermilk will help us create a nice fluffy, and moist cake.
- Poppy Seeds – Hemp seeds, flax seeds, and chia seeds are great nutty substitutes for this cake if you need. You can leave this ingredient out as well, the cake will still taste amazing.
Lemon Glaze
The glaze is nice and simple. Powdered sugar, vanilla, fresh lemon juice, and a touch of milk are all you need to make this awesome glaze. You can always adjust the amount of milk called for to create your perfect consistency!
Which Lemons Are Best
Let’s talk about lemons! Regular lemons from the store will taste incredible, but if you happen to find some Meyer lemons then scoop them up and never look back. They are a hybrid between an orange and a lemon. The flavor is just unbeatable! You can thank me later.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and generously spray your bundt cake pan. I’m serious here, generously spray that pan! There are so many nooks and crannies for cake to become stuck. From personal experience, you don’t want a cake getting stuck in a bundt pan! Do you think it’s got enough spray? Nope, give it another coat. For safe measure, of course.
- Okay, now the heavy lifting is out of the way. Phew! Now you can mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and poppyseeds together in a large bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment (or using a separate bowl and a hand mixer), mix the sugar and lemon zest for a few minutes until well combined. Add the butter, and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy over medium speed.
- Add the eggs and mix them in until well incorporated then pour in the buttermilk. Let everything mix together until smooth. Add half the dry ingredients, and mix well. Add the rest of the flour mixture and give everything one last mix until fully incorporated. Do not over-mix!
- Pour the batter into your, ahem, generously greased bundt pan and bake for 55-65 minutes. While the cake is baking, make the lemon glaze by whisking the powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract. This glaze needs to be quite runny, so add milk as needed, about a tbsp at a time until the desired consistency is achieved.
- Take the cake out of the oven and let it sit in the bundt pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife along the sides of the cake if necessary, then flip the cake over onto a cake tray, it should come out easily if you generously greased the pan. Let the cake cool for a bit, about 10 to 20 minutes, then drizzle the cake with the lemon glaze, cut into slices and serve.
How To Tell When My Cake Is Done Baking
Every oven is different, and what works perfectly for me might not be the case for you. Have no fear, toothpicks are here! Use a clean toothpick and poke as deep as you can into the thickest part of the cake. If it comes out clean, then your cake is all done. If there’s some batter stuck to it, add 5-10 extra minutes until the cake is fully baked.
Expert Tips
- Don’t over mix your batter.
- I recommend against using a silicone mold, I’ve never been successful with them and always have a hard time getting my bundt cake out of it. Use nonstick metal pans if possible, they conduct heat well.
- Make sure your bundt pan is properly sprayed with cooking spray, baking spray or greased with butter. Even if it’s a nonstick bundt pan, it doesn’t hurt to grease the pan. You might even want to use a pastry brush to grease the pan, it makes it a lot easier.
- A good bundt cake recipe should only fill about ⅔ of the pan. Any more and you’ll end up with rounded tops, which might not be a bad thing, but your bundt cake won’t sit flat on the serving platter.
- Give your cake sufficient time to cool before getting it out of the pan. Keep in mind that as the cake cools, it will slowly release itself from the sides of the pan, so resist the urge to pull it out immediately. Wait a good 10 minutes before trying to get it out of the pan. Flip it over onto your cake platter, and let it sit like that, it will slowly start to pull away from the pan and down onto the platter. Patience is key.
How To Store Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
One question I get asked often is “Do I need to refrigerate bundt cakes?”. My answer is no, you don’t. All you need is a covered cake plate and the bundt cake will keep quite well at room temperature. Besides, refrigerating a bundt cake might dry it out, plus the cold can dull the flavor. So if you have a covered cake plate, your cake will keep just fine for several days.
If you don’t have a covered cake plate, use a bowl, such as the bowl from your salad spinner to cover the cake.
Can I Freeze This Cake?
You can absolutely freeze this bundt cake, however I would freeze it without the icing and simply drizzle it with icing when serving.
Let the cake cool completely. Cut it in individual slices, wrap each one in plastic wrap then place them in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 1 month.
If You Love This Lemon Cake Recipe Try These
- Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Loaf
- Starbucks Lemon Loaf (Copycat)
- Lemon Orange Cake
- Limoncello Lemon Cake
- Lemon Chiffon Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Scones
- Old Fashioned Lemon Bread
- Lemon Yogurt Cake
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
Video
Ingredients
Poppy Seed Lemon Cake
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup lemon zest
- 1 cup butter (unsalted, room temperature)
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 4 large eggs
For Lemon Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
- 1 to 2 tablespoon milk (or as much as needed)
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Prepare oven and bundt cake pan: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a bundt cake pan generously with cooking spray and set aside.
- Combine dry ingredients: In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds together. Set aside.
- Mix wet ingredients: In the bowl of your mixer add the sugar and lemon zest. Using the whisk attachment whisk for a couple minutes until the lemon zest and sugar are well blended. Add the butter and beat until mixture is light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
- Add the buttermilk and eggs to the mixer and mix well for about 2 to 3 minutes until smooth.
- Combine wet and dry: Add half the flour mixture to the mixer and mix until well incorporated. Add the remaining flour and continue mixing until well incorporated. Pour batter into the prepared baking pan.
- Bake: Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until an inserted toothpick in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Make glaze: While the cake is baking, make the lemon glaze by whisking the powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract. This glaze needs to be quite runny, so add milk as needed, about a tbsp at a time until the desired consistency is achieved.
- Wait before taking the cake out of the pan: Take the cake out of the oven and let it sit in the bundt pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife along the sides of the cake if necessary, then flip the cake over onto a cake tray. Let the cake cool for a bit for about 10 to 20 minutes.
- Drizzle with lemon glaze and serve: Drizzle the cake with the lemon glaze, cut into slices and serve.
Equipment
Notes
- Don’t worry if your glaze comes out translucent. As it dries, the colour will become more white. It will also be mostly absorbed by the cake.
- I used about 3 large lemons to get ½ cup of zest. I did not press the zest down, so it it is a very light ½ cup. The number of lemons you’ll need varies on the size that you buy.
- Don’t over mix your batter.
- I recommend against using a silicone mold, I’ve never been successful with them and always have a hard time getting my bundt cake out of it. Use nonstick metal pans if possible, they conduct heat well.
- Make sure your bundt pan is properly sprayed with cooking spray, baking spray or greased with butter. Even if it’s a nonstick bundt pan, it doesn’t hurt to grease the pan. You might even want to use a pastry brush to grease the pan, it makes it a lot easier.
- A good bundt cake recipe should only fill about ⅔ of the pan. Any more and you’ll end up with rounded tops, which might not be a bad thing, but your bundt cake won’t sit flat on the serving platter.
- Give your cake sufficient time to cool before getting it out of the pan. Keep in mind that as the cake cools, it will slowly release itself from the sides of the pan, so resist the urge to pull it out immediately. Wait a good 10 minutes before trying to get it out of the pan. Flip it over onto your cake platter, and let it sit like that, it will slowly start to pull away from the pan and down onto the platter. Patience is key.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
