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Lemon Baby Bundt

posted in, Cakes on Tuesday, February 02, 2010

I like Baby Bundts and I cannot lie. Bundt Bundt Baby. Baby Got Bundt! Oh the jokes are endless...but lets get down to business. I have been wanting to make miniature-sized bundt cakes for ages. I have a strong affiliation for miniature things, especially miniature food...and i'm quite sure they will feature heavily here in many posts. I searched high and low for a baby bundt pan, and through my searching I learned that the miniature bundt is an illusive thing here in the UK, who knew?

So I requested one from my mum which she sent over for Christmas, leaving me with a dilemma of many bundts. Which to bake first? It took me almost a month to find the time to make my first batch and I opted for a classic lemon yogurt adapted slightly from the Barefoot Contessa At Home cookbook. As to the adaptation, it was a quick swap of a few things, and an addition of poppyseeds. I just love 'em. Who can resist their blackish purple tiny crunch? They add a subtle nuttiness that perfectly counterbalances the sweet sharp lemon zest.

Though I really love lemon and poppyseed, I do admit I am picky about just what type of lemon poppyseed treats i'll eat. And i'll be totally honest, they usually have to come from my kitchen to make the cut. I very much dislike the overly sweet almost crunchy glaze that everyone seems to drizzle, slather, or spoon over their lemon poppyseed concoctions. But hey, that's just me.

Barefoot's original recipe includes a glaze, and I have omitted it here since the tender cakes are just perfect as they are. (And please, if you see Ina don't tell her I've omitted anything, I am a little bit scared of her). If you really must have more sugar, a snowy sprinkling of confectioners sugar will do nicely. She also suggests making this as a loaf, but I really prefer it as a round cake, mini loaf, or bundts. Beautiful button-sized baby bundts! Or big bundts, if you wish. I like big bundts, too. (Sorry, last one.)

*After I baked this, I was wondering what actually makes a bundt a bundt? I then spent a quick moment with Google I discovered it is the shape that makes the bundt, the ingredients are essentially the same as they are for 'regular' cake. Just in case you were wondering too. Or maybe you're smarter than me and you already knew that. Smarty pants.*

Lemon Yogurt Cake...or Bundt!

Adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home

1 1/2 cups / 150g all purpose / plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 Tablespoons poppy seeds
1 scant cup / approx 200ml greek yogurt thinned with 2 Tablespoons milk
1 cup / 190g granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (from approx 2 lemons)
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup / 80ml sunflower oil

Preheat the oven to 350f / 180c. You will need an 8 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pan, or a baby bundt pan, with a small round pan for excess. You could also use an 8 inch round cake pan. I will say that you should grease and flour the pan very well. This recipe does have enough fat to keep the cake very moist, but it also has a tendency to stick to the sides of whatever you bake it in. I suggest using real butter, and flouring the pan as a safeguard.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add the poppyseeds. In another large bowl whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. Whisk very well, as it can be a bit lumpy at first. Bingo wings be gone!

Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet, and stir until just combined. Give those arms a rest here, as you don't want to over-mix at this stage. Now, Barefoot says quite specifically that you should fold the vegetable oil into this mixture with a rubber spatula. I am not quite sure what the purpose of adding the vegetable oil at this stage is (rather than with the rest of the wet ingredients as with most recipes), however she is quite clear that it should be done now, in this way. So I do what I'm told. And if this is what makes this a perfectly firm yet silky tender cake then I'm converted.

If you use a loaf tin, bake for 50 minutes. My baby bundts took about 20 minutes. With the excess small cake pan taking 35 total. Whatever size cake you make I do suggest checking it at least 10 minutes before you think it should be done as the more tenderly soft this is, the better.

Makes 1 loaf or 12 mini bundts, plus excess.

Over to you....

Yummy! That looks delicious, thanks for sharing!!
Jess :D

Oooh I love miniature things! These are so cute :)

I’ve made this recipe before and never thought to put poppyseeds in it, definitely trying this next time! Thanks.

I love lemon poppyseed too. will be trying this variation very soon!

These are SOOO cute!!

Thanks for sharing this recipe. I really feel hungry! Cheers, Jennifer tasteandshare.com food social network* wine social network

I have to say, every time I come to noteaafter12.com there is another fascinating post up to read. A friend of mine was talking to me about bundt cakes a few weeks ago, so I think I will e-mail her this link! thanks!