Orange & Poppy Seed Individual Pound Cakes
Submitted by UncleSue
Orange poppy seed pound cakes bake fresh orange juice, zest, and crunchy poppy seeds into individual butter loaves. Make-ahead holiday gift cake.
YIELD
16 servingsPREP
30 minCOOK
55 minREADY
85 minA Citrusy Pound Cake In Gift-Worthy Mini Loaves
These orange and poppy seed individual pound cakes hit the sweet spot for holiday baking. The portion size is built for gifting, four small loaves wrap easily in foil and ribbon, and the citrus-forward flavor stays bright for up to a week at room temperature.
Fresh orange juice and a tablespoon of grated orange zest carry the citrus flavor on two fronts. The juice goes into the batter for moisture and acid, while the zest contains the volatile oils that deliver real orange aroma. Bottled juice alone tastes flat in this kind of recipe.
The poppy seeds add their characteristic gentle crunch and slight nutty quality, distributed evenly throughout the crumb. Cream the butter and sugar a full 3 to 4 minutes until very pale and fluffy. Properly creamed butter is what gives pound cake its signature dense-but-tender crumb.
Don’t worry if the batter looks curdled when you add the orange juice. The recipe specifically warns about this. The flour mixture brings everything back together once incorporated.
Pro Tips
- Bring eggs and butter to full room temperature before starting. Cold ingredients seize and curdle the batter.
- Add the eggs one at a time and beat well between each. Dumping them all in at once breaks the emulsion and gives a denser crumb.
- Zest the orange before juicing it. Zesting a juiced rind is messy and frustrating.
- Bake on the middle rack only. Top racks brown the tops too fast and bottom racks risk a pale top.
- Wrap the cooled cakes in plastic, then foil. Plastic seals in moisture, foil keeps light out, and both extend freshness past a week.
Variations
- Drizzle warm cakes with a simple orange glaze (powdered sugar plus orange juice) for an extra citrus hit.
- Substitute lemon juice and zest for a brighter, more tart pound cake.
- Stir in ½ teaspoon almond extract along with the vanilla for a deeper aromatic note.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃).
Butter and flour 4 individual small loaf pans.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl.
Using an electric mixer, beat sugar and unsalted butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy.
Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
Beat in orange juice, grated orange peel and vanilla extract (batter may look curdled).
Beat in flour mixture.
Fold in poppy seeds.
Divide batter equally among the prepared pans (about 1½ cups each).
Place pans in the oven and bake until tops of the cakes are brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 55 minutes.
Transfer pans to racks.
Cool cakes 10 minutes.
Cut around sides of pans to loosen cakes.
Turn cakes out onto wire racks and cool completely.
Cakes can be prepared up to 1 week ahead.
Wrap in aluminum foil; store cakes at room temperature.
Wrap in holiday plastic wrap, foil and paper, etc.
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