Citrus Poppy Seed Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
- Yield: 10
Description
Despite using over half a dozen eggs, this cake is not at all dense but rather light and almost sponge-like.
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (160 ml) sugar
- 8 egg yolks
- 1 whole egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Zest of 2 lemons
- Zest of 1/2 an orange
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) cornstarch
- Pinch of salt
- 2 sticks (225 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) poppy seeds
- {Optional} Confectioners' sugar, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter or spray a bundt pan liberally to ensure your cake doesn’t stick.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together sugar, egg yolks, and egg until the mixture turns very pale and fluffy {about 5-6 minutes}.
- Mix in the vanilla extract, lemon zest, and orange zest.
- In a separate bowl sift together the flour, cornstarch, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry mixture to the wet until well-incorporated. Pour in melted {cooled} butter and poppy seeds and mix until the batter is uniform.
- Pour the batter into your well-greased bundt or tube pan. Spray a piece of foil large enough to cover the pan with non-stick cooking spray {or grease with butter}, and cover the pan tightly with it.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until the cake starts to slightly pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and uncover. Let cool for about 15-20 minutes, then carefully invert onto a plate or serving dish. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar before serving, if desired.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 45 mins
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 340
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Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe uses 8 egg yolks and 1 whole egg — won’t that make the cake dense?
Surprisingly, no. Beat the yolks with the sugar for 5–6 minutes until the mixture turns very pale and fluffy — that aerates the batter. Despite using over half a dozen eggs, this cake comes out light and almost sponge-like rather than dense.
Why is the pan covered with foil during baking?
Spray a piece of foil with nonstick spray and cover the bundt pan tightly during the 45-minute bake at 325°F. This traps steam and ensures the moist interior sets evenly without the top crust over-browning or drying out before the center is cooked through.
Why does the recipe use both flour and cornstarch in equal amounts?
Using ½ cup of all-purpose flour and ½ cup of cornstarch instead of 1 full cup of flour is a classic technique: cornstarch has no gluten, so it lowers the overall protein content of the dry mix and produces a finer, more tender crumb — consistent with the sponge-like texture described for this cake.
