Orange and Poppy Seed Butter Cake

Have a slice of cake if you please...

Been craving for butter cake of late. There really is nothing like good simple butter cake. I've always been sticking to chocolate so I thought why not do something different? Thus this Orange and Poppy Seed Butter Cake. It just so happened the my aunt gave me some poppy seeds last week and I wanted to use them. I remembered this butter cake recipe from one of Donna Hay's Magazine and decided to go with it.

If you're wondering what poppy seeds are; well it's actually from the poppy plant which is used to make opium. Before you start thinking that it's all drugs, let me have you know that you can't possibly get high just by eating poppy seed cake. haha... besides, poppy seed is a much popular ingredient in baked goods like bagels and cakes, especially Chiffon cakes! (my aunt makes excellent orange poppy seed chiffon cakes that are as airy and fluffy as clouds).

Hmmm well poppy seeds are banned here I think. But my aunt got hers from the U.S. the last time she went there. So heh, all's good! I like how the seeds provide an extra crunch and a slight nuttiness to your cakes etc. They look like small black dots:


folding the poppy seeds into my cake batter - look how tiny the seeds are?


mixed cake batter in cake tin, ready to be baked.

I liked how this cake turned out - moist and not too dry. Love the fresh citrus-y taste. Hmmm feel like baking poppy seed cookies next. We'll see... I have only some seeds left.

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Orange and Poppy Seed Butter Cake

185g (6 and 1/2 oz) butter, softened
1 and 3/4 cups caster (superfine) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
3/4 cup (6 fl oz) sour cream
2 and 1/4 cups plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted
1 and 1/4 teaspoons baking powder, sifted
1/2 cup (4 fl oz) orange juice
2 tablespoons finely grated orange rind
1/3 cup poppy seeds

1) Preheat the oven to 160 degree celcius (320 Fahrenheit).
2) Place the butter, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 8-10 minutes or until light and creamy
3) Gradually add the eggs and sour cream and beat well
4) Fold through the flour and baking powder.
5) Add orange juice, orange rind and poppyseeds. Mix well.
6) Spoon the mixture into a 22cm (8 and 1/2 inches) round cake tin lined with baking paper and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer.
7) Cool in the tin for 10 minutes then trn onto a wire rack

Serves 8-10.

Donna Hay Magazine
Issue 20