Happy Endings

I love lemon! So, when I found that I had married a man that's got lemon poppy seed cake on the top of his favorites list, I was in heaven. This month, I'm sharing one of our favorite ways to make just that. It's a simple cake that gets a double dose of lemon flavor by including lemon juice and zest in the cake and then even more lemony flavor by infusing it with a special lemon glaze. First, you brush the glaze over the outside of the cake and then you pop it back in the pan, poke some holes in it and pour the glaze on to allow it to soak into the cake. It's like a lemon-blasted sponge cake!

As always, I encourage you to share your recipe ideas and comments. You can always post comments in the discussion board using the forms provided in the articles or email me directly at . Enjoy!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

  • 1 1/4 c. sugar
  • 1/3 c. oil
  • 1 1/4 c. milk
  • 1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 T. grated lemon rind
  • 3 c. flour
  • 2 T. powdered egg whites
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 1/2 T. poppy seeds
For the glaze:
  • 2 c. sifted confectioners sugar
  • 2/3 c. fresh lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Combine the sugar, oil, milk, lemon juice, and lemon rind in a medium bowl. Mix them well with a whisk. In a large bowl, combine all of the remaining cake ingredients. Whisk them together lightly. Add the sugar mixture to the dry ingredients. Mix them well. Pour the batter into a 12-cup greased bundt cake pan. Bake the cake for 35-40 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and cool in its pan for 10 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan and cool it for an additional 5 minutes. Combine the glaze ingredients in a bowl and whisk them to make a smooth glaze. Pour about 1/3 of the glaze over the top of the cake. Carefully put the cake back into the bundt pan. Poke several wooden skewer holes into the cake. Pour the remaining glaze over the cake and let it sit until the glaze is absorbed. Turn the cake onto a cake dish. Serve with whipped cream or, better yet, a sweet blueberry sauce!

  • Yields:
  • Preparation Time: 1 hour