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This Lemon Poppyseed Cake is a tender, moist cake that’s full of lemon flavor and poppy seeds! It’s covered in a light lemon cream cheese frosting for a cake that’s perfect for lemon lovers!
It’s no secret around here that I love a tasty lemon dessert. I have quite a variety of lemon flavored cakes and this is my latest. Believe it or not – it might just be my favorite!
LEMON POPPYSEED CAKE RECIPE
What I love so much about this cake is the lemon flavor. It’s perfection. There’s a large variety when it comes to lemon cake flavor, but I really love a strong flavor in pretty much anything I eat. That can be tough with lemon, but this cake is just right.
To make this amazing cake, start with both butter and oil. The butter lends that wonderful flavor, while the oil helps with keeping the cake moist. Beat them with some sugar and vanilla extract on medium speed until the mixture lightens in color and gets a fluffier texture, about two minutes.
Next, you’ll add the eggs, then alternate adding the dry ingredients with the milk and fresh lemon juice. For our leavener, we’ve got both baking powder and baking soda in order to properly balance the acid in the lemon juice.
Finally, you’ll add some lemon zest and poppy seeds.
WHY ADD POPPY SEEDS?
Poppy seeds add both flavor and a little crunch. They also contain a good bit of fiber, calcium, copper, phosphorus and magnesium. All are good and healthy things. Clearly that means this cake is healthy too! 😉
That said, this cake could also be made without them.
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
This Lemon Poppyseed Cake is finished off with my favorite Cream Cheese Frosting, with a little bit of lemon juice and lemon zest added. It adds a subtle lemon flavor, which goes great with the cake.
The final cake is nothing short of delicious! The combination of the full flavored, moist lemon cake with the light flavor of the poppy seeds and cream cheese frosting is heavenly. It’s a wonderful combination of sweet and tangy and such a wonderful citrusy cake for spring and summer. I seriously wanted to sit down with a fork and just eat it one sitting. I hope you love it too!
MORE LEMON DESSERTS TO TRY
Lemon Cake with Lemon Bavarian Cream
Lemon Mascarpone Layer Cake
No Bake Lemon Cheesecake
Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake
Lemon Meringue Cheesecake
Triple Lemon Cake
Lemon Poppyseed Cake
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 12-14 slices
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Lemon Poppyseed Cake is a tender, moist cake that’s full of lemon flavor and poppy seeds! It’s covered in a light lemon cream cheese frosting for a cake that’s perfect for lemon lovers!
Ingredients
Lemon Poppyseed Cake
- 2 1/2 cups (325g) all purpose flour
- 1 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (112g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 cups (310g) sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
- 1/2 cup (120ml) fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon zest
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 16 oz (452g) cream cheese, room temperature
- 3/4 cup (172g) butter, room temperature
- 10 cups (1150g) powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon zest
Instructions
1. Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom and grease the sides. Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C).
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
3. Add the butter, oil, sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixer bowl and beat together until light in color and fluffy, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Do not skimp on the creaming time.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until mostly combined after each. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated.
5. Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until mostly combined.
6. Combine the milk and lemon juice, then slowly add the mixture to the batter and mix until well combined.
7. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until well combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Do not over mix the batter.
8. Add the lemon zest and poppy seeds and gently stir to combine.
9. Divide the batter evenly between the cakes pans and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
10. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool for about 2-3 minutes, then remove to cooling racks to cool completely.
11. To make the frosting, add the cream cheese and butter to a large mixer bowl and beat until well combined and smooth.
12. Add about half of the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
13. Add the lemon juice and zest and mix until well combined.
14. Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth. Add more or less powdered sugar, as desired for consistency purposes.
15. To put the cake together, use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the top of the cakes so that they’re flat, if needed.
16. Place the first cake on a serving plate or a cardboard cake round.
17. Spread about 1 cup of frosting evenly on top of the cake.
18. Add the second layer of cake and another cup of frosting.
19. Top the cake with the remaining layer and frost the outside of the cake. Refer to my tutorial for frosting a smooth cake, if needed. To make the line pattern in the side of the cake, I used one of the decorative sides on this icing smoother.
20. Finish off the cake as you like. I added rosettes around the top outer edge and sprinkled on some poppy seeds. I also added some lemon slices.
21. Refrigerate the cake until ready to serve. Cake is best served cool, but not necessarily cold.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 715
- Sugar: 94.3 g
- Sodium: 263.6 mg
- Fat: 26.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 115 g
- Protein: 7.5 g
- Cholesterol: 89.4 mg
Categories
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How long will this last for in the fridge?
Should be fine for 3-4 days.
I can’t wait to try this!! I wanted to do 4 layers in a 6″ cake tin instead would I bake for the same time and do you recommend doubling up on measurements or keeping it the same?
I definitely wouldn’t double it. And keeping it the same will give you quite a large cake. I cut it in half for a 6 inch cake with 3 layers.
I have a question for you. By the way I love your recipes!!!!
Every time I make a lemon cake it doesn’t rise or not very high. They end up about only an inch, what am I doing wrong😫
Are you referring to this cake or another? It’s hard for me to say about other recipes, and even sometimes about my own since I’m not there to see what happens. That said, my layers are typically an inch or so tall when I do 3 layers.
I just made this cake, used new baking powder and soda, tried not to over mix but used a sugar substitute. My layers are only slightly over a half inch. Could it be caused by the sugar substitute. I use it in my other cake recipes and it’s fine.
It’s hard for me to say for sure, since I don’t work with sugar substitutes. But I’d imagine that it could be the reason. The butter and sugar in this cake are creamed, which adds air and rise to the cake. If the properties of the sugar substitute don’t really mirror real sugar, then you may not get the same results.
I’ve never used poppyseeds before but am making this for my grandmas birthday. Do the poppy seeds need to be soaked or anything before use?
No, they don’t.
Hi, Is it possible to make the cakes a day before without losing quality?
Yes, I most often make my cakes the day before I frost them.
I was wondering what adjustments would I have to make if I used one 9-inch pan only. My daughter wants a single layer for her birthday cake and is not a lover of frosting. Do you have any glaze recipes? The cake sounds so delicious. I cant wait to try it :).
If you are using one pan, I might cut the recipe in half. As for a glaze, you could try one like on this bundt cake that has a little more substance to it or something more simple like on this coffee cake.
Thank you so much for your response and the suggestions from the other recipes. Upon looking at them, I’m going to give those a try, too!
Great recipe! I only used half the icing sugar called for in the icing recipe
Does this cake have to be refrigerated?
Yes, because of the cream cheese frosting.
Hi, does this sponge freeze well pre icing considering it’s a nice moist one? Doubling up for my daughters birthday and ideally will make one batch a week in advance as short on time!
I don’t freeze my cakes, so I can’t say from experience. But I’d think it’d be fine.
Hi, can this be frozen once it’s been baked and frosted?
I don’t typically recommend freezing full cakes, but you could try it.
hey does anyone know if i can use chia seeds as a substitute for poppy seeds ? or maybe black sesame seeds ? thank you in advance
I just finished baking this cake and making the frosting and can’t wait to try it. Silly question though….the cakes cool in the pan correct? And if its too late to let them cool tonight…can i put my frosting in the fridge and do it tomorrow after it warms up a little? Thank you for this awesome recipe!
No, typically the cakes would be turned out onto cooling racks to cool. If you cooled them in the pan, they should still be fine though. And yes, you can refrigerate the frosting overnight, let it come to room temperature the next day and then frost the cake. I hope you enjoy it!
Tasty, but didn’t rise well.
I really love this cake, I’ve made it several times. Would it be possible to make it with oranges instead?
I’m so glad you enjoy it! Yes, you can use oranges instead. I did that in my Orange Layer Cake.
I love this cake!!! It’s the perfect amount of sweet without being too much! I’ve made it twice in the month of April hah!
I made this for my husband’s office and got a text saying “this cake is phenomenal!” Thanks for boosting my reputation as a baker 🙂 It was easy to put together and worked beautifully.
I just made this recipe and loved it! I doubled the recipe to make two bundt cakes. They were light, fluffy, moist, almost like a sponge cake without all the work. It was easy to make and yummy! I did it dairy free using margarine instead of butter and it was great. Would definitely definitely make again!
Is that salted or unsalted butter in the frosting section of the recipe?
You could really use either.
What do you think about using buttermilk instead of regular milk?
I wouldn’t recommend it. The additional acidity of the buttermilk could throw off the results.
Thank you for the prompt response. I can’t wait to try this recipe!