Orange and Poppy Seed Cake

Soft and tender Orange Poppy Seed Cake topped with a luscious cream cheese frosting. This easy cake comes together in minutes and is perfect for your next celebration! You can also find this recipe in my cookbook, Something Sweet, on page 88.

Absolutely delicious! 5 stars for this recipe. I made it tonight – Fabulous.I loved how this cake uses oil instead of butter. It is definitely going to be my go to orange poppyseed cake recipe!

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– Genevieve

I’m currently on a poppy seed bender! First, came my Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf Cake and now this orange-flavoured wonder.

I’ve recently been baking more and more with oranges and I’ve fallen madly in LOVE with my buttery Orange Cookies and Chocolate Orange Brownies. But now this Orange Cake has jumped to the top of my favourite list.

It’s the perfect cake to whip out for guests. It looks like a masterpiece but honestly, it’s not hard to make. And just look at that cake to frosting ratio 😍

How to make Orange Poppyseed Cake

• This cake is incredibly easy to make. Just like my favourite Pistachio Cake, you only need a bowl and spoon – no electric mixer.
• Start by measuring out your dry ingredients, in this case, plain flour, baking powder and caster sugar. If you don’t have caster sugar, you can use granulated sugar instead.
• Then add your poppy seeds and fresh orange zest.
• Next, we add together our orange juice, eggs, oil and vanilla. I recommend using a neutral oil for this recipe. I usually use vegetable oil, but I’ve also used a light olive oil or you could use grape seed oil. 
• I recommend using fresh orange juice and zest as suggested in the recipe for maximum flavour. 
• The final ingredients are milk and Greek yogurt. The addition of Greek yogurt ensures your cake has a soft, light and tender crumb. You can also use sour cream instead of Greek yogurt.
• Mix until just combined and then pour into a round baking tin lined with baking or parchment paper.
• Try not to over bake this cake. Every oven is different, so start checking the loaf from about 35 minutes onwards. Insert a knife or skewer into the centre of the cake, if it comes out clean, you know the cake is ready.

Tips for making orange cream cheese frosting

• You will need a hand mixer or stand mixer to make this frosting. Make sure you use a full fat block of cream cheese – not a light version or the spreadable kind. 
• For seriously creamy frosting, make sure both your butter and your cream cheese are at room temperature. 
• Once you beat together the butter and cream cheese, you need to add 3 cups of icing sugar.
• Instead of adding milk or cream, we add a tablespoon or two of fresh orange juice – just to make that orange flavour over-the-top.

Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more amazing recipe ideas.

Let’s Bake

Orange and Poppy Seed Cake

Yield Serves 8–10 1x

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

4.9 from 62 reviews

Prep: 45 minutesCook: 40 minutesTotal: 1 hour 25 minutes

Easy one layer Orange and Poppy Seed Cake made from scratch.

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Ingredients

Orange and poppy seed cake

• 210 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour 
• 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 200 grams (1 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar 
• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
• Zest of one orange
• 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) Greek yogurt*
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) milk

Orange cream cheese frosting

• 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) butter, softened
• 250 grams (1 and 1/4 cup) full fat cream cheese, room temperature, roughly chopped
• 375 grams (3 cups) icing sugar or powdered sugar
• 1–2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• Orange zest to decorate, optional

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Grease and line an 8-inch round cake pan with baking or parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, poppy seeds and orange zest. Stir briefly to combine.
3. In a separate bowl, add orange juice, oil, eggs and vanilla. Whisk briefly just to break up the egg yolks.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, along with the yogurt and milk, and gently mix until combined – but be careful not to over mix. Spoon batter into prepared tin.
5. Bake cake for approximately 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Transfer cake to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. To make the cream cheese frosting, add butter and cream cheese to a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy. Add sugar, 1 cup at a time, and continue to beat until smooth.
7. Add orange juice and mix until frosting is creamy. Taste and add extra orange juice if needed. Generously frost the top of the cake. Scatter over fresh orange zest. 

Notes

*Greek yogurt: You can use sour cream instead of Greek yogurt. This ingredient ensures a soft and tender cake.

Note for UK readers: I’ve been told that it’s hard to find blocks of cream cheese in the UK. If you use spreadable cream cheese, your frosting will be quite runny. You might want to use a buttercream frosting instead and add a squeeze of fresh orange juice.

Nutrition Information

Serving Size: 1 slice Calories: 611 Sugar: 59.2 g Sodium: 163.9 mg Fat: 31.6 g Carbohydrates: 78.3 g Protein: 6.9 g Cholesterol: 89.2 mg

Nutrition information is a guide only.

Author: Jessica HolmesCategory: CakeCuisine: Australian

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Jessica Holmes

Hi, I’m Jess, the creator of Sweetest Menu and the author of Something Sweet. A self-taught baker and published recipe writer who can’t stop making easy and delicious baking recipes.