This recipe is a childhood, in fact all time favourite of mine. no idea where this specific recipe originates from, my mum sent me a sparse version, all in cups, which i have metric-ified. it’s a simple, classic, crowd-pleaser, and i requested it as my birthday cake for as many years as I had a voice and a mum willing to make me a birthday cake!
Lemon poppy seed cake
Makes one large Bundt cake
Ingredients:
250g softened unsalted butter
330g caster sugar
4 large eggs separated
Zest of 2 lemons
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp vanilla extract
330g plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
75g poppy seeds
80ml milk
Icing:
Icing sugar and juice of one lemon
Preheat oven to 170°C/160°C fan. Grease a Bundt tin and dust with flour all over, tapping out the excess.
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light, pale and fluffy.
Add the egg yolks, vanilla and lemon zest and juice, and mix well.
Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder and mix into the wet mixture gradually along with the poppy seeds, alternating each addition of dry ingredients with the milk.
Once all the dry ingredients and milk have been incorporated, whisk the egg whites to medium-stiff peaks and just fold into the batter.
Pour into the prepared Bundt tin and bake for 35-45 minutes, a skewer inserted will come out clean.
Remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. Once almost cool, turn the cake out onto a wire rack.
Meanwhile, make the icing. Place the juice of one lemon into a bowl and mix in just enough sieved icing sugar to make the icing. It should be quite thin and flowing, not super thick.
Once the cake has cooled completely, pour the icing all around the top of the cake and allow it to drizzle down the sides.
