Gluten Free Lemon Poppyseed Cake

This gluten-free lemon poppyseed cake is irresistibly soft and delicious! It's moist and light with just the right amount of sweetness. Perfect for spring!

It’s safe to say I’m completely obsessed with this gluten-free lemon poppyseed cake and so is my family, which feels like a real win, since we don’t always agree on the same desserts.

I have a real problem with sad, overly dense gluten-free desserts! So I set out to create a gluten-free cake with a tender crumb, a light texture, and plenty of moisture.

And I nailed it with this one! It's everything a bundt cake should be with a tangy lemon glaze on top. I can't get enough of it.

(This gluten-free pound cake is amazing too!)

Key Ingredients

• Butter - I used unsalted butter in this recipe. If you only buy salted, that's fine too. Just omit the kosher salt so the batter isn't too salty. I buy my butter in bulk at Costco and freeze it. Butter lasts for 6 months in the freezer!
• Egg whites - This recipe uses both whole eggs and egg whites, don’t leave out the egg whites! They’re key to giving the cake a lighter texture and helping it rise beautifully.
• Gluten-free all-purpose flour - I used Bob’s Red Mill's 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Flour (the blue bag). You can typically find it at Target, Walmart, or on Amazon. I highly recommend this brand for gluten-free cakes and muffins. Avoid using a random gluten-free flour blend you haven’t tried before, since some brands have a terrible taste/texture.
• Lemon - You need fresh lemons for this recipe! I recommend grabbing at least 3 lemons so you have plenty. Fresh lemons taste so much better in baked goods (like these gluten-free lemon muffins!)
• Whole milk - For the best results, use full-fat milk. Low-fat or reduced-fat milk will also work well. I haven’t tested this recipe with alternative milks (such as oat, soy, or almond), but based on experience, using them may result in a slightly denser texture.
• Poppyseeds - You can find these with the spices.

Instructions

• Cream the butter and sugar. This just means to beat the mixture until it becomes light, fluffy, and pale yellow in color. If your butter is soft, it should take about 3 minutes.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until combined.

• Add the egg whites and beat until smooth and creamy. At first, the mixture will look curdled. Just keep beating until it comes together and gets light and fluffy!
• Add the dry ingredients to the mixture. Begin mixing on low speed to prevent the flour from puffing out of the bowl and creating a mess. Continue beating until the dry ingredients are fully combined and the batter becomes thick.

• Add the wet ingredients, first the lemon juice, then the whole milk, beating until incorporated. Add the poppyseeds and mix to combine.
• Transfer the cake batter to a greased bundt pan, then bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 43 minutes.

• Let the cake cool for a little bit, then turn it onto a wire rack. I put the wire rack over a sheet pan so the icing doesn't make a mess of the counter when I spoon it on top.

Expert Tips

• Beat the egg whites into the batter. It's not enough to just mix them in and move on. The batter will look curdled at first, keep mixing! You want the mixture to emulsify and look fluffy before you move on to the next step.
• I highly recommend using the same brand of flour I used. Not just because it’s one of my favorites, but because gluten-free flour blends vary quite a bit in how they perform in recipes. Using the same flour will help ensure you get the best possible results.
• Fresh lemons are best. Use fresh lemons for the best flavor. Bottled lemon juice just won’t give the same bright, vibrant taste, so save it for another recipe. Since lemon is a key ingredient here, fresh juice really makes a difference.
• The glaze should be fairly thick. It might seem a bit too thick at first, but once you pour it over the cake, it will slowly flow down the sides and settle perfectly.

Storage

• Never try to store a warm cake in a container! Once the cake is completely cool, slice it up and transfer the slices to a zip-top bag or airtight container. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
• For longer storage, you can freeze the cake slices! The sooner you freeze the cake, the fresher the slices will be when you thaw them out. Transfer the cake slices to a zip-top freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
• Thaw the cake on the counter for at least 3 hours or thaw one slice in the microwave in 10 second increments until warm.

Gluten-Free Cake Recipes

• Soft Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes
• Gluten Free Funfetti Cupcakes
• Gluten Free Pistachio Cake