Triple Lemon and Poppy Seed Sheet Cake

Triple Lemon and Poppy Seed Sheet CakeLast Sunday I felt an overwhelming urge to bake a lemon and poppy seed cake, but it was supposed to be a Bundt cake so that the final drizzle can drip down nicely on all the rounded sides making for some nice pictures… the problem was I do not own a Bundt cake tin… It was a nice day so I took the car for a drive in the hope of finding my much needed baking tin. No luck, as it ended up Bundt tins aren’t as popular as I thought they would be. I even knocked on a few neighbours doors in the hope of borrowing the baking tin I needed but no luck there either.

I was sad and my desire for a lemon and poppy seed cake had kind of gone away… until the next day… although I still didn’t have a Bundt tin it didn’t matter as I decided to make it as a simple sheet cake.

It didn’t come out as pretty as a Bundt cake would have done but more importantly it was a very yummy cake despite its flat looks 🙂

Ingredients:

For the cake:

  • 150g self-raising flour
  • 150g caster sugar
  • 150g unsalted butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 1tsp baking powder
  • Zest of three lemons
  • 25ml of fresh lemon juice
  • 50g poppy seeds

For the lemon drizzle syrup:

  • 50g caster sugar
  • 50ml fresh lemon juice

For the lemon drizzle icing:

  • 200g icing sugar
  • 5tbsp lemon juice
  • Zest of two lemons
  • Handful of poppy seeds for decoration

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C (160C if fan assisted).

Grease and line (optional) one 9”x11” brownie type tin.

Wash and zest all five lemons; then juice them, pulp included. Separate the pulp from the clear juice but do not discard the pulp as we will need it later on.

In a large bowl sift and mix together flour, sugar and baking powder.

Add 3/5 of your lemon zest.

Melt your butter a little, so it is nice and soft (20sec pulse in a microwave should do the trick) then add the butter, eggs, 25ml of the lemon juice plus all the pulp to your mixing bowl and stir all the ingredients until smooth.

Gentry stir in the poppy seeds and pour the mixture into your earlier prepared baking tin.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 30-35min or until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and allow it to cool for a few minutes.

Triple Lemon and Poppy Seed Sheet Cake in the makingWith a toothpick or a wooden skewer poke the cake in order to make a lot of small holes.

Mix 50ml of lemon juice with 50g of sugar to create drizzle syrup; then spread it slowly all over your still warm cake.

Leave to cool almost completely.

After 15-20 minutes you should be ready for the final step – the lemon icing.

In a large bowl mix the icing sugar, remaining lemon zest and lemon juice. Remember to incorporate the juice into the sugar one spoon at the time creating a smooth consistency that’s a bit thicker than cold treacle.

Once your icing drizzle is ready pour it slowly all over your cake.

Sprinkle with poppy seeds to give your cake its final look and put aside somewhere cool so the icing can set.

Triple Lemon & Poppy Seed Sheet CakeThe cake was lovely but next time round I should have a Bundt cake tin to make it visually more appealing 😉

What have you baked lately?

Any special baking plans for the fast approaching Easter holidays?

Yum

26 thoughts on “Triple Lemon and Poppy Seed Sheet Cake

  1. Tsk, what inconsiderate neighbours…you’d have thought one of them would own a bundt tin eh? 🙂 I have recently bought a bundt tin but I’m like a child in a sweet shop…now I own one I just cannot decide what to bake in it!! 😀

  2. aaaah we have no lemons… but I will buy some on monday, this cake screams my name :o) I always use such a potato fortk for the holes it goes a little faster than to use a tothpick :o)

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