Ok so technically this isn't a recipe out of the green cookbook either, but while I was baking the muffins and dreaming up the project, I also had a lemon and poppyseed loaf in the oven.
This loaf has been somewhat of an obsession for a while now. The first time I found a recipe for it, it required me to soak the poppy seeds in milk and, once the cake was cooked and piping hot, stab it multiple times with a skewer, cover it in syrup then wrap it in gladwarp (cling-film) overnight to sweat. I can tell you that from all accounts, this loaf kicked some serious butt. However, not being so smart and expecting that my boxes of recipe books from NZ would be opened at least within a year (haha), I packed the recipe away for safe-keeping, never to be seen again. So, over the past 18 months, I have been searching high and low, all over the internet for that same recipe. Others have come close, but nothing could quite compare...until I found this little gem. It's a bit different, with the addition of yoghurt but equally as scrummy and not too sweet - I'm not much of a sweet tooth. So, as my last practice run, I present to you - lemon and poppy seed loaf (with a few adjustments).
Tips before starting:
The recipe calls for lemon yoghurt. I for one don't particularly enjoy the tang of lemon yoghurt and so substituted plain yoghurt and fresh lemon juice instead. Word to the wise, if you add the yoghurt and then the lemon juice, the yoghurt will curdle. I have to say, it didn't at all affect the taste BUT it is a little hard to look at when you are stirring. I would suggest that you either add lemon essence, or wait until you have mixed the wet with the dry ingredients before adding the lemon juice.
I personally like this loaf quite moist, so my tip is to stab it multiple times whilst still warm and brush or spoon over the syrup. After about 10mins, remove the loaf from the tin and brush the sides and bottom with the rest of the syrup. Then return to the tin and cool. Once cool, wrap the loaf in greaseproof paper and a layer of tinfoil and let it sit, ideally overnight, so that the syrup infuses the cake. YUM!
Another tip - flouring the tin. This is something I have to confess to never doing. However, it is simple and I noticed that the cake came out a lot easier.1. Melt a knob of butter;
2. brush all sides of the inside of the loaf tin with said butter;
3. Add flour into the tin, a desertspoon at a time. Shake the tin to distribute the flour evenly over the bottom and sides of the tin.
4. Voila - a floured tin.
Always grease or flour your tins before you bake as some mixtures (I don't know which ones) really require you to bake them as soon as they are mix.
Lemon and Poppy Seed Loaf
 |
| The inside of the cake - note the crumbly outside and dense middle thanks to the infusion overnight - perfecto! |
Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups flour
2 Tbl poppy seeds (whole or I used gemahlen Mohn - which I think means they are ground)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt (or a big pinch)
3/4 cup white sugar
150g butter, softened
1/3 cup lemon yogurt (or plain yoghurt + essence or fresh juice)
2 large eggs
1 Tbl freshly grated lemon zest (1 - 2 lemons worth)
1 teaspoon vanilla (didn't have any - didn't make a difference)
1/2 cup milk
Glaze:
Mixture of sugar and fresh lemon juice - using a 3-2 ratio of juice to sugar.
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180C / 350F. Grease and flour loaf tin (as above).
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
3. Beat butter and sugar until light yellow and creamy (either with a hand beater or a good old-fashioned fork). Next add yoghurt, eggs, zest and vanilla, and mix well.
4. Alternately add the dry ingredients and the milk, stirring until just combined (on a low speed if using a mixer).
5. Pour mixture into prepared tin and bake for 55 to 60 mins until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Depending on the oven you may need to place a piece of baking paper on the top of the loaf halfway through, if you find that the top is browning too quickly.
6. While the cake is cooling, heat the sugar with the lemon juice, bringing to a boil until the sugar is dissolved. Coat the cake in the glaze/syrup (as above) and set aside to cool.
7. Leave wrapped to infuse overnight - or for as long as you can bear it.
This cake is firm enough to be cut for school/work lunches and is best enjoyed with a cuppa or a good coffee - I recommend either beans from Mojo Wellington or Bourbon beans from Rwanda - my two favs.
Thank you to oneperfectbite for the basis of this recipe.
No comments:
Post a Comment