This Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake is the perfect cake for gatherings. Made with a gluten-free baking flour and dairy-free friendly. If you are a lemon lover, you’ll love this cake.
This post is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. As always, all opinions expressed are my own. Thank you for supporting Fit Mitten Kitchen and helping make this website possible.
Well it’s official, friends… We are now puppy parents! We picked up our yellow lab last Friday and are quickly getting used to our new normal. Like waking up in the middle of the night to whimpering, having to pick up anything and everything off of the floor, and the puppy already figuring out how to knock down the gate. Ooohhh man this is gonna be fun.
Also I’m figuring out this whole “working” thing (mainly food photo shoots) with having a puppy around. We’re crate training her, but she definitely doesn’t like it in there quite yet. I was working on the setup for this lemon poppy seed bundt cake and she basically just whined in her crate the entire time. I suppose that is normal but hoping she gets used to it because I certainly can’t trust this puppy around my food setup! May have to seriously consider hiring a dog trainer when she gets old enough to help me/help her get comfortable when I am in the kitchen and always around food…
Oh! Her name is Gilly. Like… Gillyweed from Harry Potter. I think the only reason Drew agreed to that name because I said it could also be for “Bluegill” (the fish)… And maybe the character Gilly from Game of Thrones? Sure, why not? But Gilly is her name and she is certainly adorable. You can follow @mr_fitmittenkitchen (Drew) on IG for more puppy pics 😉
But let’s chat about this lemon poppy seed cake already!
The Best Gluten-Free Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
I probably say this all the time but does anyone else just LOVE lemon desserts? Like, why are they so good? And I love me some chocolate things but man lemon is a close second in some instances. Like bundt cake. Lemon poppy seed was made for bundt pans. Ya know what I’m sayin’?
Oh and this Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake happens to be gluten-free. Thanks to my friends Bob’s Red Mill.
1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour
If you’re looking for a great gluten-free baking flour, this one is it! I love that the blend is already perfect and you don’t have to buy tons of different flours to get the right ratio.
I sub this flour in loads of my whole wheat muffin and scone recipes when I am baking gluten-free. It usually works out perfectly. Typically I don’t need to make any other substitutions for those recipes either. Cookies can be a little different though so just keep that in mind if looking to sub this gluten-free flour for regular wheat based flours.
Ingredients needed for a gluten free lemon poppy seed bundt cake
- Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- poppy seeds
- lemons
- non dairy milk
- butter
- oil
- sugar
- eggs
- vanilla
- powdered sugar (for glaze)
Also did you know Bob’s Red Mill carries poppy seeds?! Perfect for the lemon poppy seed lovers. Or if you feel like adding poppy seeds into other citrus recipes …
How to make gluten free bundt cake
Baking this lemon poppy seed bundt cake is really not all that difficult either. I love bundt cakes because they automatically turn out pretty. And all you need for the topping is a simple glaze.
But here are some things I wanted you to know about this recipe
- Butter – I was referencing several different lemon poppy seed cakes and most called for a full cup of butter. I decided to take the butter down a notch but still wanted a bit for some flavor. So there is just 1/4 cup butter in here but if dairy-free, you can use all oil.
- non-dairy milk + lemon juice (or apple cider vinegar) – This combo acts as a “homemade buttermilk”, if you will, but just dairy-free. Buttermilk is a common ingredient in many conventional lemon poppy seed bundt cakes, but I’ve had success with making a non-dairy version for most of my recipes when I am thinking about the dairy-free folk.
- Lemons – Don’t skimp on the lemon zest here! I used about 1/4 cup of lemon zest, and then 1/2 cup of lemon juice. I thought the flavor was really good on it’s own. But if you’re really wanting to take it up a notch, you can also add a touch of lemon extract (or essential oil).
- MAKE AHEAD TIP: Try making this cake the day before and store tightly covered in the fridge. Then all that’s left to do the day of serving is making the glaze.
All in all a pretty standard recipe. It doesn’t take too long to bake and once the cake is cooled you can drizzle on the glaze. Do make sure the cake is entirely cool though or your glaze will melt into the cake.
Hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as I did! And our friends – I gave them the leftovers and I think it went over pretty well. I don’t think anyone had the slightest clue it was gluten-free and basically dairy-free 😉
Gluten-free Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake
This Lemon Poppy Seed Bundt Cake is the perfect cake for gatherings. Made with a gluten-free baking flour and dairy-free friendly. If you are a lemon lover, you’ll love this cake.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Total Time: 60 minutes (includes cooling time)
- Yield: 12–16 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 3 cups Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free 1 to 1 Baking Flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup poppy seeds
Wet Ingredients:
- 1 cup non-dairy milk (I used cashew)
- 2 TBS freshly squeezed lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter*, softened
- 1/2 cup oil (sunflower, avocado or melted/cooled coconut)
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar (I used white to keep lighter color, but you can use coconut, light brown or another dry sweetener)
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract (optional)
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
- zest of 3 large lemons (about 1/4 cup)
for the glaze:
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 TBS lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF; Spray 10″ bundt pan with oil or grease with softened coconut oil (or butter). Set aside.
- In a large bowl combine dry ingredients – flour through poppy seeds. Set aside
- In glass measuring cup add the non-dairy milk plus 2 TBS lemon juice or apple cider vinegar; set aside.
- In large bowl using handheld mixer or paddle attachment, beat butter until light and fluffy. Then add oil and sugar beating again until thoroughly mixed – about 1 minute. Scrap down sides of bowl as needed.
- Add in eggs one at a time, mixing on low-medium speed until well combined. Then add in extracts, lemon zest and lemon juice, mixing on low speed. Scrap down the sides of the bowl.
- With mixer on low speed, slowly start to add dry ingredients about 1/2 cup at a time, alternating with milk mixture and finishing with the flour. Batter will be wet and somewhat thick.
- Transfer batter to greased bundt pan; bake for 35-45 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Check the cake after 40 minutes to check for browning on the top – cover in foil if needed to prevent browning too much.
- Allow cake to cool in pan for 15 minutes before gently flipping cake out onto cooling rack; allow cake to cool at room temperature for 45 minutes.
- Once the cake has cooled make the glaze: in a medium bowl combine powdered sugar with lemon juice. Place plate under cake on cooling rack before glazing. Pour glaze over cake in zigzag fashion.
- Allow glaze to set for before slicing and serving. Enjoy!
Notes
*If dairy-free you can sub the butter with 1/4 cup more oil or even 1/4 cup non-dairy yogurt could also work. I did not test this with another flour but I am guessing you’d be fine to sub whole wheat pastry flour here 1:1.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/12th
- Calories: 483
- Sugar: 32
- Sodium: 339
- Fat: 23
- Saturated Fat: 9
- Unsaturated Fat: 10
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 64
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 5
- Cholesterol: 92
Keywords: gluten free cake, lemon poppy seed cake, lemon bundt cake
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Kat says
I just completed this recipe. Thanks so much for providing it!
One suggestion: For the glaze I used Swerve confectioners sugar and had to add some almond milk (about 1/4 C) to make the consistency right.
Can’t wait to taste it!
★★★★
Kendall says
Man, this did not turn out for me. Undercooked, and not sweet in the least. I tasted no lemon at all, either. It was like bread with poppy seeds. I was really looking forward to a yummy desert. I left it in for 20 minutes longer and it was cooked well, but still didn’t taste good. More lemon, more sugar.
★★
Ashley says
Sorry this recipe didn’t quite turn out for you! Did you use a 1:1 gluten free baking flour? Or regular wheat flour? The sweetness is personal preference, but more granulated sugar can be added to the cake if you’d like. Making sure you have fresh baking powder and baking soda is important too.
Sarah T. says
This cake was FANTASTIC!!! Moist, fluffy & bursting with lemony flavor. I ended up doubling the glaze. This is a new favorite for sure. Thank you!
★★★★★