And finally, a gift for your collective patience. I know you love to read about desserts the most, because this site’s statistics function gives me the God-like power to tell. Frankly, I love eating desserts the most, so it only seems logical that I would be able to match your demand for sweets with a robust supply. If only I hadn’t been busy baking the most demoralizing disasters in my oven, cakes and cookies which I could not in good conscience share with you all and your discerning palettes.
In the spirit of honesty, I’ll let you in on a secret- this cake is perfect, but I almost wrecked it. I was just minutes away from a hard, crumbly cake destined for the trash can like those that came before it. Luckily the lemon scent that filled my apartment was so enticing that I practically walked to the oven in a fugue state and opened the door to admire my masterpiece- just in time. I’ve made a note on the cooking time to reflect my experience- this cake is just too good to burn.
For me this cake is extra special because there is a distinct lobe in my brain that stores Entenmann’s nostalgia. It would really be impossible to explain to you why, as a lucky child who grew up on homemade desserts (though very much in moderation) that other people only dream of, I have always had a longing for baked goods that come in packages. The ones in which you can actually taste the preservatives. I think it has something to do with that moist, dense texture that never changes. So even though when I saw this recipe my heart skipped a beat, I was a little worried that it wasn’t going to live up to my memory of lemon poppy seed pound cake with lemon glaze, from a box.
But, of course, it did. Soaking the cake in lemon syrup gives it that exact same dense texture, which I’m thrilled to announce gets even better after sitting around for a day. Consider me converted- just don’t ask me to give up my truly inexplicable appreciation for the Entenmann’s coffee cake just yet.
Note: I made this in a 9 1/2-inch round pan (vs. a 9-inch) because that's what I have. Perhaps as a result of that, my cake was done (and I mean done) after 45 minutes, not an hour. Regardless, I'd encourage you to start checking your cake at the 40 minute mark to avoid burning.
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 1/3 cup poppy seeds
- 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- Grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into cup and leveled off
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2/3 cup lemon juice
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch round pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom with parchment or waxed paper. Coat the paper with cooking spray.
- In a small skillet, toast the poppy seeds over low heat for 3 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the butter and heat until melted. Stir in the lemon zest. Let cool to room temperature. Whisk in the yogurt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the sugar and eggs until light in color. Alternately beat in the flour mixture and the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
- Scrape the batter into the pan and bake for 1 hour, or until the cake starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out with some moist crumbs attached (start checking for this after 40 minutes).
- While the cake bakes, make the syrup. In a small saucepan, combine the lemon juice and sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
- Run a metal spatula around the sides of the warm cake and invert it onto a wire rack. Pull off the parchment or waxed paper. Place it right side up onto a cake platter. Using a fork or paring knife, poke several holes in the top. Spoon half the syrup over the cake. Let stand until the syrup has been absorbed, then spoon on the remaining syrup. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature.
Notes
https://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2014/05/09/lemon-toasted-poppy-seed-cake/
May 10, 2014 at 1:27 am
I haven’t had a lemon poppyseed muffin since our summer trips down to Florida as unaccompanied minors. This looks amazing- can’t wait to try it!