Lemon Poppy Seed Cake is soft, moist, simple to make and loaded with fresh lemon flavor. The lemon buttercream had me licking the spatula, the bowl, the piping bag…
Our love of poppy seed desserts is obvious, from our Poppy Seed Cake to Mom’s Poppy Seed Roll. And the fresh flavor of lemon really amps up desserts, like these lemon-glazed blueberry muffins. The combination of poppy seeds and lemon is pure bliss.
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Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe:
Lemon cakes are challenging because they tend to be dry. We made cake after cake until we landed on this combination which produced a moist cake with a soft crumb studded with poppy seeds and subtle and lovely lemon flavor. The softened butter and buttermilk were the key to adding moisture and great flavor to the cake.
Can I Substitute the Fresh Lemon Juice?
Fresh lemon juice is critical in this lemon cake and all you need is a total of 2 large lemons for the cake and frosting. Using both the zest and the juice will give you the best lemon flavor. Lemon juice from concentrate just won’t be the same. We haven’t tried lime but it’s worth experimenting for a lime flavored cake.
Can I Make this Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Ahead?
This Lemon Poppy Seed Cake refrigerates well and we actually prefer it chilled for an hour or so for easier slicing. The little bit of cream cheese in the frosting keeps it from firming up too much in the fridge so you can serve it chilled or at room temperature.
How to Store A Cake:
- Plain cake layers – cool completely to room temperature then wrap fully in several layers of plastic wrap and keep at room temperature up to 2 days, refrigerate up to 5 days, or freeze up to 3 months.
- Frosted cakes – cover with a cake keeper (here’s ours) or use a large overturned bowl or even pot (just be sure it has enough clearance for the width and height of the cake. Refrigerate cakes covered to keep them from drying out or absorbing refrigerator odors.
- Sliced Cake – once a cake has been cut, it starts to lose moisture. To keep it fresh, lay a piece of plastic wrap against the cut side then cover as you would whole frosted cakes (see above).
How to Make Lemon Buttercream:
The secret to the best lemon buttercream frosting is adding just a little bit of softened cream cheese. It balances the flavor, enhances the lemon and makes the texture luxuriously whipped, velvety smooth and perfect for piping onto cakes. A pop of fresh lemon flavor cuts the sweetness and makes it irresistible. This lemon frosting couldn’t get any easier:
- Cream butter then beat in cream cheese until smooth
- Add powdered sugar, vanilla and fresh lemon juice
- Beat 5 minutes on high speed until whipped and fluffy
Pro Cake Baking Tips:
- Have all of your moist ingredients at room temperature. Butter, eggs, lemons and buttermilk should be at room temperature before using. Room temperature ingredients incorporate much easier for an even-textured batter and improved rise. When to take ingredients out? Timing depends on your room temperature so take ingredients out at least 1 hour before or 2 hours before to be sure.
- Read through the recipe before starting so you know what tools are needed for a recipe and aren’t frantically looking for that whisk when you need it.
- Pre-measure everything so it’s ready to add as you follow the recipe.
- Measure ingredients correctly – use the correct measuring cups and spoons for wet or dry ingredients. The way you fill matters, i.e. for flour, use the spoon and scrape method instead of plunging your measuring cup into a bin which can give you 25% more flour, resulting in a dense cake.
- Keep the oven door closed, opening it only to test for doneness at the end.
More Lip-Smacking Good Lemon Desserts:
- Fruit Salad with the best Lemon Syrup
- Blackberry Lemon Cake Roll – beautiful and delicious
- Blueberry Lemon Cake – our most popular cake
- Baklava – lemon is the secret for the best baklava!
- Canned Lemon Slices – great way to preserve lemons
Watch Natasha Make Lemon Poppy Seed Cake:
This lemon poppy seed cake recipe is simple to make and satisfies that craving for tangy sweetness and poppy seeds. I hope this becomes a new favorite for you!
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Lemon Poppy Seed Cake:
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, (12 Tbsp), softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 Tbsp poppy seeds, sifted to remove any debris
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest, (from 2 large lemons)
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature
For the Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, 2 sticks, softened
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
How to Make Lemon Poppy Seed Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350˚F with a rack in the center of the oven. Butter the sides and base of two 9" cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a ring parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream together 12 Tbsp softened butter and 1 cup sugar for 2 minutes on high speed. Add eggs one at a time mixing just until incorporated.
- In a small bowl, whisk together 2 cups flour, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder and 2 Tbsp poppy seeds. Add half of the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.
- Add 1 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp lemon zest and 1 tsp vanilla, mixing just to combine. With mixer on low speed, add 1/2 cup buttermilk then mix in remaining half of the flour mixture, mixing until no lumps remain. Divide between 2 prepared pans and spread evenly.
- Bake at 350˚F for 20-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cake cook in pans 10 minutes then transfer to wire racks, remove backing and and cool to room temperature.
To Assemble and Frost the Cake:
- Once completely cooled, place the first cake layer on a cake platter and spread a generous 1/3 of the buttercream frosting over the top. Place the second layer of the top (flat-side-up) and spread 1/3 of the frosting over the top and sides.
- Sprinkle the edges of the cake with poppy seeds if desired. Pipe remaining 1/3 of the frosting as desired over the top and place a slice of fresh lemon over each puff of frosting.
How to Make Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer, beat 1 cup butter on high speed until smooth and creamy (2 min). Add 4 oz softened cream cheese and beat until completely smooth. Add 4 cups powdered sugar, 3 Tbsp lemon juice and 1 tsp vanilla and beat on high speed until whipped and fluffy (5 min).
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
The lemon cake base was adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction lemon cake. Sally is an incredibly talented baker and great resource on all things baking!
Must-Try Poppy Seed Recipes:
- Poppy Seed Sour Cream Cake with Custard – take a peek inside!
- Poppy Seed Filling – our go-to recipe for filling baked goods (like these Poppy Seed Buns!)
- Fruit Salad with Orange Poppy Seed Syrup
- Poppy Seed Cake Roll with Ganache and Pistachios
Made this yesterday and cake was thin and dense. Didn’t bother with the frosting.
Hi Kathleen! I’m sorry to hear that. It has not been my experience when making this cake. Did you use a larger pan by chance? That would cause the cake to be thinner. A few other things to help troubleshoot, make sure your baking powder is fresh not expired or old. A dense cake is often caused by using too much flour or overmixing the batter. I have a tutorial on how to measure ingredients. Lastly, be sure to let the oven fully preheat before you start baking the cake. I hope that helps.
Update from yesterday: I’m removing the cakes from the pans and getting ready to assemble and spread my crumb frosting layer. My cakes look extremely moist – yayy. And they weren’t flat. I did add 1/4 tsp. salt to the cake batter because I wasn’t sure if salt was an accidental omission or not. But for 2 C flour, 1/4 – 1/2 tsp. is recommended. Not having made this cake before I didn’t know whether all the zest and juice satisfied the need for salt. As far as the frosting, I am a little concerned about the consistency. I’m using 10x powered sugar too. It’s a bit runny and I’ll need it stiffer for my class later, as we’ll be making roses, etc. May have to make another batch and omit the lemon juice, which would be disappointing since lemon is my favorite. I make so many of your recipes – something of yours at least once a week! I look forward to any suggestions or tips you may have. Thanks for sharing all your amazing creations with the world! 💛
Thanks for the update and for sharing that with us! Great to hear that they were moist and it turned out so good!
I made this cake for my niece’s birthday. I won’t use this cake recipe again, although the lemon frosting recipe is absolutely delicious. Watched the video a few times before I made it. Making sure not to pack my flour. All my ingredients were at room temp, and my baking powder is not expired. I expected a thinner cake, because that’s what I noticed about it in the video. I used 9″ pans. Also was careful not to over mix. My cake was moist, but the density and texture was where it failed. Was also disappointed with the flavor. Wont be making it again, but that frosting is definitely a keeper.
Hi Kathy, I’m glad you enjoyed the frosting but I’m sorry to hear the cake didn’t meet your standards. I’m not sure what could have gone wrong since I don’t know what was going on with the texture.
My oven must run hot. The perfect bake time for me was 16 minutes. The cake turned out beautifully and moist!
Hi Leslie, that’s possible. Elevation, weather, and calibrated vs. non-calibrated ovens may impact the outcome! I’m so glad it all worked out for you!
Have made a few of your recipes but this one is not what I hoped for. Followed recipe to the letter, used all fresh ingredients. Whereas the cake and buttercream frosting are both tasty, the cake is thin.
I’m guessing the recipe should read 2, 8″ cake pans versus 2, 9″ cake pans. Dissapointed as this was for a family birthday
Please review your posted recipe for size of cake pans
Thank you,
Hi Mary, I’m sorry it didn’t work out as expected. I did make it for 2, 9″ pans which is how I photographed it. Did you make sure your leavening wasn’t expired? That could be a culprit if the cake didn’t rise enough.
Hello ! First, I love your recipes. I use your tres leches and vanilla cupcake recipes regularly ! I plan to make this lemon cake as well. However, can I leave the poppy seeds out of the recipe? Thank you !
Hi Janeli! So glad to hear you enjoy my recipes. It would be fine to leave the poppy seeds out of this cake if you prefer.
The cake is every dense. Not soft at all. If you make cakes On the regular do not make this. Even if everything is room temperature and you follow the recipe, this cake is not good. Don’t waste your time or ingredients on this. Instead make a regular sponge cake.
Hi Angelina, I have not had this experience. The softened butter and buttermilk were the key to adding moisture and great flavor to the cake. Did you make any substitutions? It is often dense if the ingredients aren’t measured correctly, specifically the flour. I recommended watching these tips to accurately measure your ingredients. The softened butter and buttermilk were the key to adding moisture and great flavor to the cake.
I just realized there is no salt in this recipe. Could this be the reason my cake was so flat. Each layer was somewhere between 1/2 “to 3/4 ” by memory. I also had to cream the butter and sugar over 10 minutes with my hand beaters to achieve a smooth fluffy and nongrainy batter. Please help!
Thank you
Hi Melinda. Did you make any substitutions or a larger pan? I used 2 pans that were 9”. Also, make sure your baking powder is not expired or old. I would look over the recipe again and make sure you did not miss anything. Be sure to use room temperature ingredients as this will help them incorporate well. Please visit my notes on “Pro Cake Baking Tips.” I hope this helps.
Thank you for response Natasha. Yes i used 2 – 9 inch pans and the baking powder was well before the use by date. Should i just cream for 2 to 3 minutes and stop even though the product is still grainy? Does it really have no salt? Waiting for buttermilk to become room temp then here I go. Thanks so wonderful that I found this site and to get feedback.
Hi natasha, love your recipies, but I was wondering whether the butter in the cake can be replaced with oil? thanks a lot 🙂
Hi Alice, there is no butter in the cake itself, but there is butter in the frosting and that will not work substituted with oil.
Hi Natasha, is it ok to replace lemon with orange? Also we don’t eat butter, can buttermilk be substituted with whipped cream with orange juice in it? Thanks.
Hi Donna, are you asking about the butter in the frosting or buttermilk in the cake? I assume you are referring to the frosting. I have not tested this, you’ll need to experiment. Buttercream is a stable frosting, whipped cream is not stable but if you try, orange juice would only make it runnier. You might try adding orange extract and/or orange zest, it may be a better option. Good luck.
I was referring to frosting. Your black forest cake with whipping cream frosting was very good and I was just wondering if can be the substitute. You mentioned orange juice would make it runnier so is it ok if little bit of zest added. Thanks.
Natasha, I don’t understand what happened with the link, I replied twice to your comments but it’s not showing on the web. I was referring to the frosting whether it’s ok to use whipped cream. Ok to add zest in it?
Hi Donna, sorry about the technical difficulty. I see your previous comments. If you wanted to use the whipped cream frosting from the black forest cake that you mentioned, that would be ok. Orange zest would work well and so would orange extract. I hope that helps.
Like some of the other comments my cakes were very flat and dry. I followed the recipe exactly, had all my ingredients at room temperature and stirred my flour prior to measuring. I gave this 2 stars as the frosting was delicious.
Hi Amy, Without being there, it is difficult to say what could have gone wrong. I highly recommend watching the video to see where thing may have started looking different. Also, make sure not to make any ingredient substitutions.
I followed the recipe and the cake was very dry. Luckily I had put lemoncello on each layer and the frosting. It was still very dry. Looks like that complaint is not just me.
I just made this cake and it was really flat. i double checked my ingredients and the only thing that was not at room temp was the buttermilk. Do you think that is why it turned out flat? I am making it again in the morning. fingers crossed.
I hope it all works out for you, Ali! It is so important to bring those ingredients to room temperature.
This cake is unique. I like that lemon kick. The best baking time for my oven is 20 minutes. The cake is not dry. It is very tasty. Every bite worth its calories🙂
I’m so glad you loved it! I love the lemon kick also! Thank you for sharing your excellent review with me, Aleksandra!
Unfortunately the cakes are very flat, although I followed the recipe. I wonder why. Also there are inconsistences when it comes to the exact measurements of the ingredients which is confusing
Hi Aneta, I see what you mean in the metric measurements. I’m not sure why it showed up that way. I have it fixed now to be standard to both measurement types. I’m sorry about that.
May i ask if i can omit the poppy seeds?
Or are there any substitute for them? In korea they don’t have poppy seeds and i can not order it from abroad!
Hi Ramla, I think chia would work. Please share with us how it goes if you give that a try!
I wonder why I have so much frosting left, as I followed the instructions?
Hi Isabelle, I used every bit left, so I’m curious also. Make sure you put a thicker layer of frosting. I recommend looking at the images in the recipe post for reference on frosting thickness.
Could not get to recipe. Too many Ads , pop ups, never ending video’s popping up. Like watching a tv program with 1 minute program and 59 minutes of advertising.
Hi Ron, having ads on our site is how we are able to continue to provide free content to our readers without charging readers for a subscription service. If you click “jump to recipe” you will go directly to the print-friendly recipe card.
My cake turned out dry as well.. did I read somewhere in these comments that I was supposed to brush it with something after baking? I didn’t see that in the recipe…
Hi Dottie, you can add a simple syrup for a more moist cake but it is not necessary in this recipe. If you are careful not to overbake the cake, it should have enough moisture in the crumb
I baked this cake for the first day of school. It was super delicious!
Thank you so much for the recipe 💐💐💐
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review, Karine!
I baked this cake for the first day of school. It was super delicious!
Thank you so much for the recipe!
The perfect treat for the first day back! That’s so great!
hi!! Can I make this in cupcake form?and is the baking temperature and minutes is the same?
Hi Xtina, I haven’t tried these as cupcakes but cupcakes normally bake faster so test them at 15 minutes. Bake time is probably 15-18 minutes (my best guess)