A blasphemous thought ran through my mind the other day: I can’t wait until Fall.
I immediately regretted thinking it because summer is so short here in Vancouver; I haven’t soaked up nearly enough sunshine and I still have lots of summer plans on the horizon. But even still, Fall is my favourite season and a part of me can’t wait for crunchy leaves, leather boots, wool scarves and cinnamon apple cider. I’m also excited because this will be Port and Fin’s first Fall, meaning we can make and post deliciously cozy foods like stew, squash pastas, cheesy casseroles and roasts.
But we’ve got a ways to go until then and I still have a lot of summer dishes calling my name.
Summertime just screams CITRUS and I can’t get enough. Lemons, limes, oranges, grapefruits, they’re all bursting with such flavour and colour and I love everything about them. Citrus is a pretty powerful flavour, but so versatile when used in baking or cooking. If you need proof, check out this post, and this and this.
I was making my way through a pot of Earl Grey tea the other day (my favourite – I think I have 5 different kinds on my tea shelf) (yes I have an entire shelf in my cupboard dedicated solely to tea), and while I usually go for a tiny bit of vanilla syrup and some almond milk, I was feeling a bit adventurous so I threw in a couple lemon slices instead. And let me just say: delicious. The longer it steeped the more lemony it became, until it turned into some amazing earl grey/lemonade/neocitron-like summer drink. I wondered why it had taken me so long to combine the two.
And just like that, earl grey and lemon became my friends.
I was already planning on making a lemon loaf, and the earl grey + lemon realization inspired me to top it with a classic lemon glaze infused with some earl grey tea leaves. The flavours go together so well and taste so refreshing. I added extra poppyseeds because what’s a lemon loaf without poppyseeds? They give such a delightful crunch that the 5 minutes spent picking them out of your teeth later is totally worth it.
This loaf is extra moist owing to the use of yogurt instead of butter. Bonus! Four days later it was still as moist as it was on the day I made it. The batter comes together in minutes and takes about an hour to bake in the oven. Once the loaf has cooled it’s topped with a lemon syrup for added moisture, then finished with a lemon earl grey glaze. While the syrup and glaze step are optional, I don’t think I’d ever make this loaf without them! You could make these into cupcakes too, just be sure to adjust the baking time.
| Lemon Poppyseed Loaf with a Lemon Earl Grey Glaze | | Print |
- Loaf:
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 Tbsp poppyseeds
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 tsp lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
- ½ tsp vanilla
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- .
- Syrup:
- ½ cup lemon juice, strained (from about 3 lemons)
- ½ cup sugar
- .
- Glaze:
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice, strained
- 1 tsp earl grey tea leaves (about 1 teabag)
- Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan, dust with flour, then tap out any excess.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and poppyseeds; set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and vegetable oil. Slowly add in dry ingredients until mixed.
- Pour batter into pan and bake for about 1 hour until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Let cool 10 minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire rack with a baking sheet underneath.
- While loaf is cooling, make syrup. In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together lemon juice and sugar until dissolved. Cook for another 5 minutes until slightly thickened. Use a toothpick to poke holes in the top and sides of the loaf, then brush with lemon syrup. Let sit for 5 minutes to let the loaf soak in the syrup, then baste again. Repeat two more times. Let cool completely.
- When loaf has cooled, make glaze. Whisk together icing sugar, lemon juice and tea leaves. Pour glaze over loaf, let harden for 20 minutes, then slice and serve.
This is one of my all-time favorites! Picking the poppy seeds out of your teeth…well, it is just sooo worth it! 🙂 I love that this loaf contains yogurt. Actually I love everything about this! I bet the kitchen smells divine when it’s baking in the oven! Mmmmm…love this! 🙂 Great job!
It sure does! It makes the house smell like a burst of citrus heaven!
I have made this cake, perfect recipe and deliciously light! See my Instagram! IT IS AMAZING! (And in one sitting, we devoured all of one loaf…so here I am waiting for the second cake out of the oven!)
Yay, thanks daniellethecell!! I love the feedback! And awesome Instagram pic, by the way. Enjoy your second loaf!
Great recipe. I made 6 loaves for friends and family over the holidays, and they all came out beautifully. They looked and smelled amazing, and were so, so moist. Sweet, tangy, lemony slices of heaven.
So glad you liked it, Charlene! And thank you for the feedback!
Is this temperature for a conventional oven or a fan oven? Looking forward to making it !
Hi Jack, this recipe is based on use for a regular ol’ conventional oven. Let me know how you like it!
Amazing cake…. Made another for a table top sale at my kids’ school tomorrow…. I used 160c fan oven for 1 hr in 2 lb loaf tin….. Perfect!!!! Thanks very much 🙂
I’m so glad, Jack! Thanks for the feedback! It’s such a moist and fluffy loaf, perfect for spring & summer 🙂
Hi, just wondering, if I don’t put the plain yoghurt, is it going to make a huge impact with the loaf?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Hanna! The yogurt in this recipe is pretty necessary, it makes the loaf extra moist and brings the batter together. If you do omit the yogurt, you’ll need to replace it with something of a similar texture. Try using applesauce, sour cream, buttermilk, or Greek yogurt.
Is the batter supposed to be thick? I used coconut flour and my batter is almost like cookie dough.
Hi Megan, thanks for asking! The batter should be pourable; my guess is the coconut flour you used made the batter dryer (and thicker). Coconut flour is extremely absorbent and shouldn’t replace all-purpose flour at a 1:1 ratio. There’s a good guide here to finding the right ratio. To salvage your batter now, though, I’d suggest adding a bit more yogurt or another egg to give the batter more moisture.
This looks delicious! Before trying this out I wonder if I can replace vegetable oil with butter? I want the cake to taste more buttery
Hi Ella! Although this loaf is already super moist and fluffy, you could definitely use butter instead. Try using 2/3 of a cup of melted butter (slightly cooled, not too hot) to replace the 1/2 cup of oil. Let me know how it turns out!
Best ever lemon load or muffins! So cake like. I doubled the zest in the cake and baked it in 40 mins. I think the syrup could be cut in half next time. Thanks for sharing!
Did you actually try these with a muffin tin? I am not sure if I need to adapt the recipe to use my tin rather than my glass loaf pan.
Lovely photos by the way! Such beautiful photography & styling!
Great idea! These would be such cute, tasty muffins. This will work in your muffin tin, just be sure to adjust the cooking time. I’d suggest baking them for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Keep an eye on them to make sure.
Can you freeze these loaves???? and how would you recommend i do it?
I haven’t tried freezing this loaf myself, but it is essentially bread, so it should freeze well. I would suggest, once the loaf has come out of the oven and cooled, (before drizzling with the syrup), to wrap it tightly in saran wrap and place in a sealable freezer bag. Freeze up to a month or so, then defrost and proceed with the recipe.
So you don’t strain the tea leaves out of the glaze? I can’t see them in the picture, but it seems they’d be visible and also stick in the teeth?
Hi Ella, there are tea leaves in the glaze, but they are ground very fine. If the leaves you are using are thick, grind them down into a powder with a mortar and pestle. The more they’re ground, the less likely they’ll stick to your teeth. Now the poppyseeds on the other hand… 😉
Hello!
Wondering if there’s any substitution for the 1C sugar… just something a bit healthier..? And what about the flour, could you use a whole wheat, gluten free, something else? Thoughts? I’m obsessed with lemon anything and even more so lemon poppy seed!!
I haven’t tried this myself, but perhaps coconut palm sugar would work. I definitely wouldn’t omit the sugar, as the sweetness is needed to counteract the bitterness from the lemon juice, but coconut palm sugar (less fructose content than granulated sugar) is a healthier alternative. Gluten free or whole wheat flour would also work!
Hello! I’m pretty sure this will not even last a day at my house. 🙂 But would you know the shelf life of this yummy loaf?
Good question! If you store it in an airtight container in the fridge it will last for about a week. If it is stored at room temperature, I’d recommend eating it within 2 or 3 days.
Do I need to crush the tea leaves or are there just chunks of tea leaves in the glaze?
Hi Kayla! I use an Earl Grey tea that is very finely ground, which goes right into the glaze. It intensifies the flavour and I quite like the texture! But if your tea leaves are quite chunky, I’d recommend hand grinding with a mortar and pestle.
This is hands down the best lemon loaf ever… and I’ve tried a few! The earl grey glaze adds is lovely and really elevates the loaf. Its a real talking point… Thank you for posting this delicious recipe x
Thanks so much for your kind words, Sabrina! Chelsea is the baking wizard on this blog but since I’M here to read this comment first… I’ll definitely bask in the happy feedback on her behalf 😉
Can I try using Vanilla yogurt instead of plain yogurt?
By all means, Somi! Go for it 🙂