Trying to summon spring with this bright bundt – it didn’t work but the cake is delicious and worth making at least twice.
Made this cake on a Sunday and the cake lasted through the week and was just as good on Friday as it was on the first day. I might even say it was better since the flavors got to hang out together for a whole 5 days in the fridge together or maybe I just needed some cake to cap off the week.
Below is the recipe with some guidance photos for reference – I hope you have as much fun making this as my coworkers did eating it!
Lemon Poppyseed Bundt Cake
Ingredients
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
2 cups sugar
zest of 4-5 lemons
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 tbsp vanille extract
1 tsp kosher salt
3 large eggs, room temp
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup poppy seeds
Lemon Simple Syrup
½ cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1 lemon, sliced
Cream Cheese Frosting
8oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
pinch kosher salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon
1+ tbsp heavy cream
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the lemon zest and sugar with your hands until fragrant and like wet sand.Then add the butter, vanilla and salt. Beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed, this will take around 5-6 minutes with the paddle mixer on a medium high speed.
Add the eggs, one at a time, with the mixer on low. Scrape down the sides as needed to get everything incorporated.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix well so everything is distributed. Add the flour to the stand mixer bowl and pulse to prevent the flour dust cloud and then turn on low to mix together. Slowly pour in the buttermilk. Once combined, add in the poppy seeds and mix just to combine.
Use a baking spray or butter and flour to generously coat the inside of a 12-cup bundt pan. Pour the batter in the pan and even off the top. Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
While the cake is baking make the simple syrup and frosting:
In a small saucepan, add the sugar, water, and lemons and cook over medium until the sugar dissolves, making sure to not burn the sugar. Let the simple syrup cool, strain out the lemons, and set aside.
In the bowl of the stand mixer that you cleaned out, add in the cream cheese and beat on medium speed until light and airy – 2-3 minutes. Add in the powdered sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and lemon zest. Mix to combine and increase the speed to help add air to it. If needed, add in the heavy cream to help thin out the frosting. It should be easily pipeable but also keep it’s shape. Once at your desired consistency, add to a pastry bag or plastic resealable bag. Place in the fridge until the cake is done and cooled.
When a the cake is done, remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Next, invert it onto a plate or cooling rack. Place the cooling rack on a baking sheet to help contain the next few steps.
Using a pastry brush, take the simply syrup and stamp the syrup into the crust of the cake – you can use the cake tester to poke tiny holes if you’d like but it’s unnecessary. Once the upward facing parts of the cake have been covered with simple syrup, let it cool to room temperature before frosting.
Take the frosting bag and cut the end off and pipe onto the cake as desired. Serve immediately or cut and keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Happy Eating!
Kelly
