Poppy Seed Cake... and a Big Bus



I am in a tizzy getting blog posts ready because I am going to be away for a little while. The little school where I work(!) is doing a tour and I have been 'asked' to be a chaperone. Of course, I 'willingly' obliged! So, off we all go on a big bus for 6 days to more places than I can keep track of. I have 9 'lovely' Grade 8 boys for the week and I'm really looking forward to it (!).

I wish that I could take this cake with me. There is something homey about it. It's neither sweet nor heavy which makes for an interesting thing. I would call it a loaf but it doesn't exactly have a 'loafy' texture. It's quite perfect just the quaint way it is. Nothing flashy, loud or attention seeking but beautiful and mellow.

I've had my eye on the recipe for a stupidly long time, don't know why I never got around to trying it... makes no sense. What makes this recipe a little different than the straight up poppy seed loaf varieties is that the poppy seeds are soaked in scalded milk for about 20 minutes or so. As a result, the poppy seeds aren't as crunchy. I found that the recipe called for a truck load of poppy seeds but when they are soaked they blend into the texture of the cake much more easily. I played with the glaze a little bit and you'll see in the pictures that the cake ended up having little pieces of citrus on it - ah well, it tastes good! AND it does taste good. It is mellow and understated, perfect for afternoon tea or after-school snacks. Not the kind of cake that will blow the socks off your dinner guests but just the kind of cake that will satisfy that afternoon snack craving!


Ukrainian Poppy Seed Cake
(adapted from Moosewood Cookbook)

3/4 cup poppy seeds
1 cup milk (I used just under a cup though)
1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon rind (I used a tangerine that needed using)

Glaze
1/2 cup orange juice (I used the juice of about 1 orange)
1/3 cup of sugar


Place poppy seeds and milk into a heavy sauce pan and heat just until it begins to come to a boil. Set aside for about 15 minutes or so to cool.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 10 inch tube/bundt pan.

In a bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside
In another bowl cream the butter then add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add in the vanilla and mix well.
Add the flour alternately with the milk/poppy seed mixture beginning and ending with the flour. Once well mixed add in the lemon juice and lemon rind. Mix well. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the tester comes out clean. Cool and then put onto a platter.

Mix together the orange juice and sugar and heat just until the sugar is dissolved. Once the cake is cooled pour the glaze over the cake (I poked little holes everywhere in the cake so that the glaze could sink in).

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St Michael's Choir School is celebrating it's 75th anniversary year of service to St Michael's Cathedral. Part of the school celebration is a trip to Italy where our boys from Grades 5 - 12 will be performing and celebrating Mass. This blog will be chronicling our adventures. Wanda Thorne is the Vocal Coach at St Michael's Choir School. Gerard Lewis is the Grade 7/8 Homeroom teacher at the Choir School.

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  • Naparima Girls High School Cookbook
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Wanda Thorne
St Michael's Choir School is celebrating it's 75th anniversary year of service to St Michael's Cathedral. Part of the school celebration is a trip to Italy where our boys from Grades 5 - 12 will be performing and celebrating Mass. This blog will be chronicling our adventures. Wanda Thorne is the Vocal Coach at St Michael's Choir School. Gerard Lewis is the Grade 7/8 Homeroom teacher at the Choir School.
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