Lemon Yogurt Poppy-Seed Cakes & February's Apron Winner

Anything lemon was one of my mother's favorite flavors.  I know I've said before, but she made the best Lemon Meringue Pie and her Lemon Cheesecake was out of this world.

I'm not sure when poppy seeds were added with lemon for baking, but it makes for a delicious combination.  In the United States, it's a difficult business to grow poppy seeds due to their risk of heroin production.  Poppy seeds have a low dose of opium alkaloids, which if you're having a drug test for a job, will probably get you flunked!  I'm not worried, these little cakes (or you can bake them as muffins) are the perfect start for the morning.

Lemon Yogurt Poppy~Seed Cakes
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
zest & lemon juice of 1 large lemon
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
1 8-oz container of Lemon Yogurt (I used Chobani)
2 large eggs
2 T poppy seeds
2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup milk
Lemon Wafers (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Spray mini loaf pan with a baking spray that included flour.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter, lemon zest and juice together.  While mixer is running, slowly add the sugar.  Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the vanilla, lemon extract, poppy seeds and yogurt.

Mix the dry ingredients together, then alternately combine them with the milk.  Beat one minute more to ensure everything is combined

Scoop batter into prepared baking pan.  I added a lemon wafter on top of the batter, pushing down slightly.  This is optional, but I thought..."isn't it a lovely surprise."

Bake cakes for 20 to 22 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before turning them out onto a baking rack.  I chose to add a glaze on top:

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 T light Karo syrup
2 T hot water
1/8 tsp. lemon extract

Serve warm and Enjoy!

Now, the winner of February's apron is ~ Martha Ellen!  Please contact me and I will send out this lovely apron to you.

March's apron will be up tomorrow with an unique recipe:-D

Brown Butter Pecan~Poppy Seed Loaves

Thanksgiving looms around the corner--I just put away the Halloween decorations and ate the last of the candy corn.  My mother loved this day and we'd get up very early to start the preparations...from the bird to dessert, we did it all in a kitchen that was no bigger than 8' x 10' to be served in a dining room not much larger!  It was Thanksgiving that I made my first yeast rolls at age 7; a memory that stays with me always.

Thanksgiving became a Federal holiday, proclaimed by Abraham Lincoln, in 1863 during the Civil War.  The first recorded feast was in 1621 after the first harvest by the Colonists and shared by Native Americans as well.  The "sharing" is what I remember from my school days so baking today, I decided to make a recipe with an extra loaf.  I've made lots of pumpkin and cranberry breads to share, but thinking of my mother, I came up with one that she would have loved--butter pecan.

Brown Butter Pecan~Poppy Seed Loaves

12 T (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, browned
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 T poppy seeds
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Spray two 9"x4" loaf pans with a baking spray and cut a piece a parchment for the bottom and spray again.

Start by browning the butter.  Place in a sauce pan and on medium heat, melt the butter.  It will take about 7-8 minutes to turn a nutty brown after "foaming."  Add the vegetable oil to the pan and set aside to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together thoroughly.  Add the vanilla extract.

Add the poppy seeds and stir in.  Add the oil/butter mixture and mix together to combine.  Sift the dry ingredients and add to the mixture, alternately with the milk.  Stir in the pecans.

Pour (or scoop) the batter into the prepared pans and place in the preheated oven.  Bake 55-60 minutes until a wooden skewer comes out cleanly after poking it in the center of the bread.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool about 10 minutes before turning them out onto a rack or bread board.  Glaze if desire.

Brown Butter Glaze:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 T unsalted butter, melted and browned
1 T light Karo syrup
2-3 T very hot water

Brown the butter in a small sauce pan.

Pour it over the confectioners' sugar and add the Karo syrup and 2 Tablespoons of hot water.  Whisk until smooth, adding more hot water as needed to make a thick glaze.  Spread over the warm bread.

 Once cool, cut into the loaf and wrap up another to give--that's what Thanksgiving means to me. Enjoy!

My new Woodland Leaves dies adorn this card I made to go with the bread that reads, "The measure of a home is the friends who frequent it!"

Do you make Thanksgiving dinner or go to family/friends for the holiday?

 

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake

Pound cake is like a "little black dress" that you can accessorize in a number of ways.  I've made literally hundreds of pound cakes in my lifetime and it's still my go to dessert that my hubby never gets tired of.

Meyer Lemons finally showed up in our grocery store and I couldn't wait to run home and make this luscious cake in a new cake pan I discovered at Sur La Table.  The Meyer lemon is from China and is thought to be a cross between a lemon and mandarin orange. It was introduce to the United States in 1908 by an agricultural explorer, Frank Nicholas Meyer.  The thinner skin is perfect for zest and I think it produces much more juice than the common variety we have in the stores.

This Four Bundt pan is larger than minis, but smaller than the 10 or 12 cup version--perfect size to freeze for us "empty-nesters" or to give as gifts.  With the addition of poppy seeds, this  pound cake would be great for breakfast, but also make a lovely dessert with some berries.

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
zest and juice of 2 lemons
2 tsp. vanilla extract
8 large eggs
3 cups Cake Flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 cup poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Spray 12-cup Bundt pan (or small 4 Bundt pan + loaf pan) with a baking spray that has a flour addition.

In a stand mixer, using the paddle attachment, beat the butter completely.  Rub the zest into the sugar then, add to the butter gradually, beating until fluffy.  Add juice and vanilla extract and beat once more.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula.  

Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds together and add to the batter.  Beat on medium until completely combined.  Scraping down the sides as needed.

If you're using a 12-cup bundt pan place in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 325F-degrees and continue baking 45 to 55 minutes, testing the center with a wooden skewer that should come out cleanly.

I measured the batter among the 4 Bundt pan and a glass loaf pan.

I started them in the 350F-degree oven for 15 minutes, then, lowered the temperature to 325F-degrees for 30 minutes for the 4 Bundt pan and left the loaf pan in another 15 minutes.
Total time: 4 Bundt pan - 45 minutes; Loaf pan - 60 minutes.

You can dust the tops with confectioner's sugar or as I like to do, make a glaze:

1 cup confectioners' sugar
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 T Light Karo Syrup

Whisk all ingredients together in a 2-cup bowl and pour over the slightly cooled cakes.

A simple and easy cake that never ceases to delight my family. Enjoy!

Sour Cream Poppy Seed Muffins with a Lemon Curd filling

I've never been a fan of the "typical" breakfasts of eggs and bacon.  I think I was traumatized by my father, on Saturday morning, cooking up a package of bacon in the iron skillet and when it was all crispy and removed, he'd crack eggs into an inch of bacon fat. I can hardly even type the memory. LOL! That's why for me, I chose peanut butter on toast, scones, doughnuts, and yes, muffins--warm and inviting from the oven.

This morning, with the rain falling and the temperatures barely reaching 60-degrees today (Hey! isn't this suppose to be almost summer!!), I decided to bake something that I could use the leftover lemon curd in and what better than a poppy seed muffin--they go together like Burns & Allen, Sonny & Cher, Rowan & Martin, Abbot & Costello...am I dating myself : -D!  I liked the idea of having a surprise center and what better than the tartness of the lemon curd to pair with the moist poppy seeded muffin?

Poppy seeds are an oilseed harvested for thousands of years from the opium poppy.  They have been used in baking by civilizations from all over the world.  In North America, we use them as a spice and decoration on bagels, buns and crackers, but in Europe you'll also see poppy seeds ground, mixed with butter, milk and sugar and used as fillings in yeast breads, cakes, and cookies.  For the muffins I made this morning, the poppy seeds are added to the batter, as is, and gives a subtle crunch as you bite into it.

Sour Cream Poppy Seed Muffins with a Lemon Curd Filling
2 1/2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp. lemon extract
1/4 cup poppy seeds

1 cup lemon curd
Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2-3 T hot water
1/2 tsp. Vanilla paste

Preheat oven to 400F-degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or spray with a nonstick baking spray.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, add all the dry ingredients and mix with a dough whisk or spatula.  

Make a "well" in the center of the dry ingredients and add the eggs and sour cream.  Stir together, then, add the melted butter, the lemon extract and poppy seeds.  Stir until combined, but be careful not to over mix--the batter will be thick.

Use a scoop to divide the batter amongst the 12-cups.

Bake in the preheated oven 5 minutes, then, lower the temperature (without opening the oven door!) to 375F-degrees and continue baking for 15 minutes.

I've found that the "burst" of a hot oven gives my muffins a better rise.

While the muffins are cooling, slightly, fill a pastry bag, fitted with a #250 tip, with the prepared lemon curd.  

Fill the muffins by poking the tip into the center of the muffin and pipe in the curd.  
Mix up the glaze and spread the tops with about one teaspoon.

Serve the muffins warm and if your weather is like ours today, I also made a cup of cocoa to sip.

To me, these muffins are much more memorable than the usual bacon and eggs for breakfast. And, I know my mother would have preferred the lemon curd addition--sorry Dad. Enjoy!