By popular demand! This is a spin on my vegan lemon loaf recipe, but made without vegan butter and with an even lighter crumb. Adding poppy seeds gives the cake a lovely crunchy texture in every bite!
Similar to my vegan lemon cake, this recipe uses lots of fresh lemon zest and juice, with no lemon extract or artificial flavorings.
🧾 Ingredients
Here's everything you need to make vegan lemon poppyseed cake:
Ingredient Notes
Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the full recipe card at the end of this post.
- Fresh Lemons: I say this with all lemon dessert recipes, but please use real lemon juice, not the bottled stuff! You just won't get those lovely fresh lemon flavors otherwise.
- Non-Dairy-Milk: I use soy milk, but feel free to swap in almond milk or oat milk.
- Olive Oil: I use EVOO, but you can use a more neutral flavored oil like sunflower or canola oil. Using oil gives the cake a more fluffy texture as opposed to using butter.
- Non-Dairy Yogurt: Greek-style vegan yogurt is best here, or in a pinch thick coconut yogurt or vegan sour cream.
- Powdered Sugar: This can also be labeled as icing sugar or confectioners sugar.
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🔪 Instructions
Here are step-by-step images to give you a visual guide on how to make this lemon poppy seed cake recipe. Please refer to the detailed printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for full measurements and written instructions:
Step 1: In a large bowl, rub the lemon zest into the sugar until it feels wet - this releases the lovely natural lemon oils!
Step 2: Whisk in the wet ingredients (vegan yogurt, olive oil, and vanilla extract). Then mix in the plant-based milk and fresh lemon juice.
Step 3: Add the sifted dry ingredients (all purpose flour, baking powder, and sea salt) in 2 parts until "almost" combined.
Step 4: Gently fold the poppy seeds into the cake batter with a rubber spatula.
Step 5: Transfer batter to a prepared loaf pan, and dip a butter knife in olive oil and run it down the center of the cake. This promotes a crack down the center of the loaf during baking!
Step 6: Bake until golden brown and a knife or skewer comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool before adding the lemon glaze, poppy seeds, and lemon slices.
💭 Recipe Tips
Wash your lemons really well. Especially if you aren't using organic lemons, make sure you give them a good scrub or soak them in salted or vinegar water before use to remove any pesticides or residue.
Line your loaf tin with a parchment paper sling. Leaving a slight overhand on either side will make it super easy to lift your baked cake out of the pan.
Let the glaze set before slicing. Wait at least 30 minutes to an hour before serving, to let the sugar glaze harden, giving you nice clean cake slices.
💬 FAQs
Transfer the cake to an airtight container or wrap it in plastic wrap (once the lemon icing has hardened). It can be kept at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the fridge for 7 days.
Absolutely. The best way to freeze a loaf cake is to start by slicing it into portions. Then separate each slice with a piece of parchment paper, and place them in a sealed container or ziplock bag. Then grab a slice whenever you fancy and let it defrost at room temp for a couple of hours, or in the fridge overnight.
Rather than converting this recipe to fit a muffin tin, I recommend following my vegan lemon muffin recipe instead, and adding 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds to the batter. They bake up tall and fluffy, like Bakery-style muffins!
🍞 More Vegan Loaf Cakes
📖 Recipe
Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 120 ml (½ cup) soy milk *note 1
- 60 ml (¼ cup) lemon juice freshly squeezed, *note 2
- Zest of 3 large lemons *note 2
- 200 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
- 120 ml (½ cup) olive oil *note 3
- 160 g (½ cup + 2 tablespoons) vegan Greek-style yogurt *note 4
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 280 g (2 ¼ cups) all-purpose flour sifted
- 1 tablespoon baking powder sifted
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds plus extra for garnish
Glaze
- 120 g (1 cup) powdered sugar
- Zest of 1 lemon *note 2
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon vegan Greek-style yogurt *note 4
Instructions
- Prepare: Preheat your oven to fan-forced 160°C/320°F or conventional 180°C/356°F. Lightly grease an 8" loaf tin and place a sling of parchment paper into it to help lift the cake out once baked.
- Make "buttermilk": Add the soy milk and lemon juice to a jug, stir, and allow to sit for 10 minutes.
- Flavor the sugar: Add the lemon zest and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar until it feels "wet".
- Wet ingredients: To the same bowl, add the olive oil, vegan yogurt, and vanilla extract and whisk to combine. Then add the vegan buttermilk (milk and lemon juice mixture) and whisk again.
- Dry ingredients: Add the sifted flour, baking powder, and salt to the bowl with the wet ingredients in 2 parts, and gently fold with a rubber spatula until just combined. Gently fold the poppy seeds into the batter - be careful not to overmix.
- Assemble: Add the batter to the prepared loaf pan. Place the pan on top of an aluminum tray or baking sheet. Optionally, dip a butter knife in some more olive oil and run it through the center of the loaf, this will help the loaf to crack in the center once it bakes.
- Bake: Bake for 50-55 minutes. Check the cake is done at the 50-minute mark by piercing it with a toothpick or a knife, the knife should come out clean with just a few visible crumbs. Continue to bake in 5-minute increments as and if needed until baked through. Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the glaze: Whisk the glaze ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Place a sheet of parchment paper under the wire rack to catch any icing. Pour the glaze on top of the cake, you can add more or less depending on your taste. Sprinkle with more poppy seeds and fresh lemon slices.
Notes
- Soy Milk: Swap for almond milk or oat milk.
- Lemons: You'll need the zest of 4 lemons for the batter and glaze. Use organic if possible and wash thoroughly before use. Zest the lemons before you juice them. We use a lot of zest here, so cut back to 2 lemons if you prefer a more subtle flavor.
- Olive Oil: Or neutral oil like canola (rapeseed) or sunflower oil.
- Greek-Style Yogurt: I use Greek-style soy yogurt. Swap for thick coconut yogurt or vegan sour cream.
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I swapped the lemon with orange, and although the orange had much more juice that I thought, I followed the recipe regardless and it came out perfect. Brought it to my friends for a snack with chai and it was amazing !
Hi Lois,
That sounds SO good - orange + chai is such a perfect combo! And fair play trusting the process even with the extra juice, citrus can be unpredictable, but I’m so glad it worked out perfectly for you. Love that you shared it with friends too, that’s the best way to enjoy it
Have you tried a 1:1 gluten-free flour swap? I'm gluten-free and hoping that would work. It sounds delicious!
Sublime!!!
Can you recommend some brands of vegan Greek yogurt, and should I buy unsweetened or is vanilla okay? I usually buy cashew yogurt but it’s sweetened. I don’t mind sugar! I’m allergic to coconut though, so it has to be coconut-free. Thanks!
Hi Renee,
Absolutely. My favorites are Sojade and Alpro, both do a really good, thick Greek-style soy bead. yogurt. I hope this helps
Acabou a minha farinha de Trigo e completei com farinha de aveia. Espero que dê certo 🙏🥰
Turned out so sour, it was almost bitter 🙁 really disappointing
Oh no! I was about to try this recipe - maybe using Meyer lemons is better because they are less sour! Or use less lemon juice?
Fantastic!
Thanks so much, Molly!
Best lemon poppy seed cake I've ever made or had vegan or not. The crumb was so tender and moist even days later. The lemon flavor was assertive but not overpowering. I had never thought of adding Greek yogurt to baked goods, but I'm convinced that's one of those secret ingredients you wouldn't know is in there but makes all the difference. My partner loved it so much she's strong-arming me into making it again today. This recipe is a definite keeper.
Hi Cameron,
Oh wow, what an amazing review! Thank you so much for sharing this! I’m thrilled you and your partner loved it so much - and that you’re already making it again 🙂
One of my top 5 recipe
Hi Ameni,
That’s such a huge compliment - thank you! 🙌 I’m so happy it made your top 5!
Absolutely wonderful recipe! Made it many times over the past few weeks. I’ve found I personally prefer it with vegetable oil over the olive oil as the lemon flavor is way more prominent then. Been using silks Greek coconut yogurt and highly recommend
Hi Holly,
Love hearing this, I'm so glad the recipe's been a hit for you! Great call on using vegetable oil to let the lemon flavor come through more clearly too.
Delicious and cozy. Will make again!
WOW Christina,
Found this recipe today , and I’ve made , iced and couldn’t wait for anyone to come hm before I tried a piece with a lemongrass tea.
Before turning vegan I used to bake almond meal dessert cakes and have missed having a delicious cake to offer friends .
I found a king island vegan Greek yoghurt in my super market which is new .
Everything about this cake cooked ate and tasted beautifully
I can’t wait to try more of your recipes
Susan
Hi Susan,
Awh this is so lovely to hear! Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback 🙂
Came out a little under baked after 55 plus 5 minutes.
Likely my fault for using regular oat-gurt in place of "greek".
Delicious and brightly lemony.
Hi Jen,
Thanks so much for your feedback and that could likely be the case, but also ovens tend to run differently with some hotter than others.
I just made it today! It had a bright, lemon flavor and moist crumb. The crust of the bread has a nice crunch 😋
Hi Brianna,
That's great to hear, thanks so much for your lovely feedback 🙂
When did you ask the sugar and lemon mix, and do we have to dry roast the poppy seeds?
Hi Mishtii,
The wet ingredients are added to the bowl with the lemon sugar. There's no need to roast the poppy seeds 🙂