Balancing perfectly between sweet and tart, this Lemon curd and poppy seed Bundt cake is the quintessential teatime treat. The buttery taste and bright, lemony textured crumb make it a favourite baker’s classic. It taste of nostalgia, like the cakes my grandmother used to make. Nothing too fancy, just honestly good cake.
I’ve used lemon curd in both the batter and mixed into the whipped cream to serve alongside the cake. If you need a reliable, easy lemon curd recipe, this one is my go to recipe 4-minute lemon curd. A store-bought lemon curd will do if you’re time-strapped, although the flavour of homemade is so worth while.
The glaze is a classic royal icing, which can be a bit sweet. It does however do a good job of sealing the cake and helps to keep it moist. Water icing is lighter but quite transparent and won’t yield a clean white gloss. I add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to the icing to counter the sweetness. Failing that, a light lemon syrup will be my next option.
Lemon curd poppy seed Bundt cake
Serves 12
125g butter, room temperature
220g castor sugar
4 eggs
zest of 1 lemon
30ml lemon juice
2 tablespoons lemon curd
2 tablespoons poppy seeds
180g self raising flour
40g ground almonds
pinch of salt
120g (1/2 cup) sour cream, room temperature
Royal icing
1 egg white
200g (1 1/2 cups) confectioner’s sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Preheat the oven to 180º C. Grease a Bundt tin with butter or non-stick baking spray. Place the butter and castor sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Add the lemon zest, juice, curd and poppy seeds, giving the mixture a quick pulse to incorporate. At this point, the butter will tend to curdle, but it’ll come together when the dry ingredients are added.
Sift the flour, ground almonds and salt together. Add the sifted flour and sour cream alternately in two stages. Mix to combine without over-beating. Spoon into the Bundt tin, smooth over and bake for approximately 40 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Remember that the size of your tin will determine the baking time. If the Bundt tin is x-large, the batter will be spread out thinner and possibly only require 30-35 minutes.
Allow the Bundt to cool completely before turning out. This is one of the secrets to achieving an intact and well shaped Bundt. If you turn the cake out while it’s still hot, it will stick to the base and crumble!
For the royal icing, mix the egg white, sifted sugar and lemon juice together until the glaze is smooth and glossy. The consistency should be quite thick to prevent it running off the cake. Drizzle over the cooled Bundt and decorate with lemon curd, fresh flowers and sugar dragees. Serve with whipped cream and an extra dollop of lemon curd.
You might like to try these citrus and lemon-inspired recipes too:
Vanilla and orange cake with grapefruit curd
Lemon curd yoghurt creams with syrupy summer berries
Blueberry semolina tea loaf with lemony drizzle
13 Comments. Leave new
What a gorgeous cake! Love the flowers and such you used for decoration, makes it very elegant 🙂
Thank you June! It’s quite a dainty little cake, but with some punchy lemon flavours. Quite stuck on Bundt cakes at the moment, they’re just simpler and more relaxed.
This cake is so beautiful, I will definitely try it! I love how you decorated the cake! Congratulations! Can you tell me what is the name of the flower?
This cake is simply stunning Di. I love the white icing dripping down the sides and the delicate pops of color that crown the top. A true beauty that is perfect for any tea party.
Thanks so much Lyn! A Bundt is just the simplest and least stressful way around baking. It does make a rather cheerful addition to a girly tea.
That’s so kind of you. Lemon and poppy is one of my favourite flavour combinations and the texture of the cake is really light and buttery. I’m going to check on the name of the little flowers for you.
Hi Di,
Happy New Year!
May I please check, Whats your take on using lime instead of lemon for this cake,
Thanks
You can easily substitute with lime juice. The taste of limes are slightly less tart than lemons, but it’s a great alternative. Make sure to use the lime zest as all the citrusy oils are in the skin and will add punchy flavour.
Hi Di,
What size bundt pan does the recipe use?
Thank you
Hello Di
I would like some advice. I followed the recipe and everything was fine until the end. The cake was burnt on one side and raw as well! Disaster. I used a silicone bundt pan. Could you hazard a guess as to what went wrong. I was very sad but will try again.
Thanks
Elizabeth
Hello Thandi
I use a bundt tin with a 18-20cm base diameter.
Hello Elizabeth. Sorry to hear that! There are several points to consider. If the loaf is burnt on one side, it could be that your oven temperature is hotter at the back than front. Also check that it’s set on conventional and not fan assist. Often the oven thermostat is hotter than what it’s set at. I only bake with conventional baking tins, so perhaps the silicone pan reacts differently. Maybe try turning the temp down 10 degrees and cover the top with foil for the last 10 minutes. The size of the tin is also important and will affect the baking time. Hope this helps.
Thank you, Di. I will try again keeping your advice in mind.