by Audrey
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I bid a final farewell to citrus season in the form of this simple Lemon Poppy Seed French Yogurt Loaf, drenched in a honey lemon syrup. It tastes deliciously moist, fluffy and zesty. And like any other French yogurt cake, it is a foolproof and ridiculously simple recipe to make.
If you’ve been following this blog for a bit, you know of my love for French yogurt cakes. Last winter, I had shared a recipe for a classic Orange Yogurt Cake (still to this day, one of the most popular recipes on this blog), and last summer I had shared a recipe for a Fresh Peach Yogurt Cake.
A Yogurt loaf is one of the most popular cakes to bake in France. It is one of those wonderful classics that is so simple to make, works well every time, and invites variation.
Today’s yogurt cake combines zesty fresh lemons with creamy yogurt and a sprinkle of poppy seed for earthiness. Such a simple variation that works so well! The flavor is deliciously lemony with a slight tang from the yogurt. The crumb is fluffy and moist with a gentle bounce– the perfect cross between a pound cake and a light sponge cake.
The loaf bears a golden exterior that gets brushed with a honey lemon syrup. It makes for an even moister and zestier loaf, and helps keep it fresher, longer.
This Lemon Poppy seed French Yogurt Loaf also freezes well. You can freeze it whole or cut it into slices, wrap them individually in plastic wrap and place them in an airtight container.
Cooking notes:
- Use 2% m.f. Plain Yogurt. I have tried this recipe with different types of yogurt: 2%m.f; Greek yogurt and Skyr. Surprisingly, the yogurt that produces the best cake texture and taste is the 2%m.f (I thought Greek Yogurt or Skyr would be better, but no!). You want a cake that is dense, but also airy and bouncy – the 2%m.f. yogurt cake version is exactly that! Avoid flavored yogurt, only use plain.
- Use Organic Lemons. Because we are using zest from the peels, make sure you are using organic lemons which are pesticide free.
- Instead of brushing the cake with warm honey and lemon juice, you can choose to cover it with a light dusting of icing sugar, or leave it plain.
I hope you enjoy this Lemon Poppy seed French Yogurt Loaf as much as I do!
Any questions, don’t hesitate to leave a comment.
You may also like:
- Orange Yogurt Cake
- Fresh Peach Yogurt Cake
- Homemade Honey Lemon Marmalade
- Classic French Lemon Tart (Tarte au Citron)
Lemon Poppy seed French Yogurt Loaf
Print Recipe
Serves: 8-12 people Prep Time: Cooking Time:
Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat
Rating: 4.2/5
( 34 voted )
Ingredients
1 cup (200g) sugar
2 medium lemons, zest and juice
½ cup (120g) plain yogurt (2%)
3 large eggs, at room temperature
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 ½ cup (187g) all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
2 tsp (10g) baking powder
1 tsp (8.5g) poppy seeds
½ cup (112ml) neutral oil, such as canola or grapeseed
¼ cup (85ml) honey
Instructions
Make sure your read the cooking notes before you start.
Pre-heat your oven to 350F (180C) with a rack in the middle. Grease a loaf pan with butter, sprinkle the inside with flour and set aside.
Step 1 - In a medium mixing bowl, combine the sugar with the zest of the two lemons and rub with your fingers so the zest releases moisture and the sugar is moist and lumpy. Whisk in the yogurt, eggs and vanilla extract.
Step 2 - In a large mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Whisk in the wet ingredients until just incorporated. Switch to a spatula and fold in the oil, until just incorporated. The batter should look smooth and glossy.
Transfer the batter to the pan and bake for 50 minutes, until golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack.
Step 3 - Warm up the honey in a small saucepan and stir in the juice of the two lemons.
When the cake pan is cool enough to handle, remove the cake from the pan and transfer onto a plate. Brush the warm lemon honey “syrup” all over.
Enjoy warm or cool.
Did You Make This Recipe?
Leave a comment below, rate the recipe and/or share a photo on Instagram and tag @pardonyourfrench
Did you make this recipe?
I’d love to know how it turned out! Please let me know by leaving a comment below, rate the recipe and/or share a photo on Instagram: tag@pardonyourfrenchand hashtag it#pardonyourfrench.Bon Appetit!
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dessertlemonpoppy seedyogurtyogurt cake
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46 comments
Bailey May 10, 2020 - 12:47 am
This was delicious! Not too sweet, light and fluffy with great lemon flavor. I love the lemon honey syrup, I will use it for other things in the future!
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Audrey May 11, 2020 - 10:37 am
Thank you for the great feedback!
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Louise June 27, 2020 - 12:00 pm
We were supposed to be on holiday in France this week so we’ve tried to bring a bit of France into our home instead. This recipe was delicious and possibly the best thing I’ve made in a long while. We are in the UK so using grams. I thought there might be a typo in the flour amount as the grams amount was less than the sugar amount but the reverse in the cups recipe. I decided to use 300 grams of flour so 1.5 x sugar as per the cups recipe and it turned out great. I needed to stir the oil in quite vigorously to get it all combined, it looked like a scary amount of oil but was fine once combined.
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Audrey June 28, 2020 - 3:25 pm
Hi Louise, and thank you for your great feedback! The conversion of grams vs. cups can be confusing sometimes; but flour actually weighs less sugar – which explains why 1 cup sugar (200g) weighs more than 1 1/2 cup flour (187g). The conversions are correct in the recipe, but I am glad to hear the loaf still turned out great with 300g of flour :). I was supposed to leave for France in a few weeks as well… hoping we can all go there safely soon!
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Donna July 15, 2020 - 5:55 pm
This was so easy and perfect. Thank you so much for this recipe. Rubbing the lemon zest into the sugar was new for me, and it was so satisfying and worked so well! I can’t wait to make your Fresh Peach Yogurt Cake!
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Audrey July 16, 2020 - 11:02 am
Fantastic, thank you Donna!
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JW July 29, 2020 - 5:01 pm
Hi Audrey, very different from the usual ‘mix butter and sugar’ and the oil only goes in at the end. What if I decide to use butter? It’ll be the same quantity in ml?
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Audrey July 29, 2020 - 7:36 pm
Hi there, I wouldn’t recommend baking a yogurt cake with butter. Oil cakes tend to bake up loftier, and switching to butter would alter the texture of the cake. Also, the batter already has a good amount of dairy (thanks to the yogurt) so using oil, instead of butter, is preferred. I hope this helps 🙂
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Kristine August 11, 2020 - 12:10 am
Delicious lemon flavor and exquisite texture!! I made it exactly as written (except for using whole milk yogurt), and it came out perfectly. I had to bake it for a few extra minutes because I was using a glass loaf pan. This recipe was the perfect use for a batch of homemade yogurt that went too far, which was way too sour to eat by itself.
I will definitely keep this in my “favorites” rotation and I can’t wait to serve this for guests.
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Audrey August 11, 2020 - 1:41 pm
Amazing, thank you for this great feedback Kristine!
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Monica August 13, 2020 - 10:16 pm
I was looking for a quick easy last minute recipe for my daughters friends who came over for dinner. Hesitated between tis one and the chocolate vanilla marble cake, so I ended up doing both so they could choose. Both turned out fantastic and were delicious, my daughters friends enjoyed them both and very thankful for this extra treat. With this heat you still want to eat something sweet but at the same time not too heavy, so this was the perfect choice for this hot summer night.Thank you
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Audrey August 14, 2020 - 11:06 am
Amazing, thank you Monica!
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Ita August 17, 2020 - 2:43 am
Hi Audrey! Can I use coconut oil for this recipe? Thank you!
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Audrey August 17, 2020 - 11:09 am
Hi! I never tried this recipe with coconut oil, but I am assuming it is possible! Usually, you can substitute coconut oil on a 1-1 ratio for vegetable oil. Just know that using coconut oil will give a strong coconut/tropical flavor to the loaf, which may overshadow the intended lemon taste. Happy Baking!
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Anonymous August 18, 2020 - 8:08 pm
Hi Audrey, I just made these with coconut oil. Glad i can barely taste the coconut flavor in it. Another great recipe of yours! Will definitely make it again and again in the future. 🙂 Thank you!
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Audrey August 19, 2020 - 10:59 am
Perfect, thank you!
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Dawn October 27, 2020 - 8:26 pm
Hi Audrey – I’m missing terribly my annual trip to Brittany & Normandy, so I’ve been using your recipes to alleviate some of my yearning, especially Buckwheat Crepes (savory style with an egg in the middle). Thank you for that! Your Orange Yogurt Cake is so good that I made one for my package delivery person to show my appreciation, and he was delighted. I can’t wait to make this Lemon Poppy Seed Yogurt Loaf – I’m sure it will be delicious as well.
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Audrey October 27, 2020 - 8:29 pm
Hi Dawn! Thank you for this nice comment, I definitely miss my yearly trip to Brittany as well!
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Carol February 3, 2021 - 2:54 am
Hi Audrey, I just made this recipe tonight. It was super easy, and turned out so delicious! Mixing the zest and sugar was so satisfying. Talk about aroma therapy! I will have to try more of your recipes. Thanks!
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Audrey February 3, 2021 - 12:49 pm
Amazing, thank you Carol!
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Mary March 6, 2021 - 6:47 am
I made this cake yesterday using whole milk yogurt rather than 2% because it’s what I had on hand. This was such an easy cake to make and so delicious. And I had extra lemon-honey syrup that I will boil down a bit to make it thicker and plan to use it on pancakes this weekend. The only problem with this cake is that I can’t stop eating it!
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Audrey March 7, 2021 - 6:29 pm
Fantastic, thank you Mary!
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henry March 13, 2021 - 1:50 pm
hi and thank you Audrey for a great recipe. i loved the loaf but mine is more pound cake in texture than fluffy. i followed directions faithfully and while i cup measured the sugar, i weighed my king arthur flour in grams. the loaf raised above my metal baking pan but after cooling it fell! i did not open the oven door until i took it out. the flavor is delightful. thank you!
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Audrey March 15, 2021 - 1:07 pm
Hi Henry! Did you insert a pointy knife or toothpick in the loaf before taking it out of the oven, to check if it was well baked? Sometimes when a loaf is under baked, it falls/collapses when cooling down. I hope this helps!
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Lynn March 14, 2021 - 11:08 pm
Made this today…very good but next time I think I might double the amount of poppy seeds.
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Audrey March 15, 2021 - 12:59 pm
Thank you for your feedback Lynn!
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MF March 29, 2021 - 4:44 pm
Ths was absolutely delicious. I followed the recipes as is, no changes and it was amazing.
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Audrey March 30, 2021 - 10:25 pm
Amazing, thank you!
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Angie Kauenhofen November 20, 2021 - 4:36 pm
Hello
Made this yesterday for a friend; I am wondering why the honey lemon juice mixture is not made into a true syrup? I feel like it’s going to be soggy with just pouring straight lemon juice with only warmed up honey over the cake.
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Audrey November 20, 2021 - 10:51 pm
Hi Angie. The lemon + honey is brushed on top of the cake, so you can stop brushing when you feel the loaf is moist enough. I feel this mixture makes the loaf moist (and keeps it moist longer) but not soggy. You can skip this part if you prefer, or making a true syrup will work too. Happy baking!
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Britt December 24, 2021 - 8:33 am
This has been my favorite cake for a while now! I’m preparing another for tonight’s Christmas dinner right this moment. For variation on the syrup, sometimes I make a ‘3 seconds frosting’ by mixing some sour cream with icing sugar and drops of lemon juice.
Joyeux Noël & festive greetings from Amsterdam!
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Audrey December 24, 2021 - 11:50 am
Thank you Britt. Happy Holidays and best wishes!
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Kristy January 14, 2022 - 6:26 am
May i check if the oven temperature is fan forced oven setting or non fan forced? Thank you!
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Audrey January 14, 2022 - 11:58 am
It is non-fan forced. Although every oven can differ slightly in baking time and temperature, so keep an eye on the loaf during the 5 last minutes of baking. It hope this helps!
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Karishma January 14, 2022 - 10:06 pm
Hey Audrey, this looks beyond delicious and I’m intending on making it in a couple of days. I’ve got natural yogurt made from full fat milk (3.2% fat) and wanted to get your perspective on any changes potentially needed if I were to use that % fat yogurt v. 2% fat. Thanks in advance!
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Audrey January 15, 2022 - 12:08 pm
Hi there. I do recommend 2% m.f. yogurt which will give you an airy, bouncy crumb texture. That being said, you can use 3.2% m.f. yogurt – the crumb texture will be slightly denser, but still good! Happy baking!
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Ellie M April 5, 2022 - 2:08 am
I made this tonight after realizing I had all the ingredients in my kitchen. Although when went to cook it, midway through realized I had no poppy seeds. I subbed some black sesame seeds, and it came out great.
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Audrey April 8, 2022 - 6:13 am
Thank you!
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Elizabeth December 22, 2022 - 1:47 pm
I Love Poppy Seed bread and muffins and this has to be, by far, the best one I have ever had. It’s not too sweet and so light. I used 5% yogurt since that’s all I had and it still was great. Didn’t use all the glaze but probably only half. I only had cranberry honey which gave it a lovely flavor.
A definite keeper and will be making these for my neighbors for the Holidays and also keeping one for us to have on this snowy day with a good cup of tea. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes!
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Audrey December 22, 2022 - 4:03 pm
So very kind of you, Elizabeth! Sometimes you just have to use what you have on hand, and it’ll still turn out great. I hope you enjoy your stay and get to try out more recipes. Enjoy your tea (and loaf)!
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Anonymous January 13, 2023 - 1:23 pm
I am interested in trying this recipe. However I have only Almond Flour and Coconut Flour in the house. Can either of these be used in place of the white flour?
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Audrey January 15, 2023 - 2:26 pm
Unfortunately, I cannot give you accurate information on that as I have never tried. That being said, as much I enjoy using almond flour in place of white flour in recipes, I usually only suggest, at maximum, replacing a smallish amount.
To sum it all up, I don’t think the end result would be great using either flour as a replacement. Sorry!
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Sara Goverman September 10, 2023 - 9:18 pm
Planning to make this again for my holiday. I would like to make it ahead, and I see that it is ok to freeze. Just to make sure, I can freeze it after I use the lemon/honey syrup?
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Audrey September 11, 2023 - 5:35 am
Hello, Sara! I have had success freezing this loaf with the syrup. I just ensure that the loaf is completely cooled and given a little extra time for the syrup to absorb. then wrap it as well as you can (ensuring it’s airtight).
My absolute best advice is telling people to freeze a single slice of this (or other dessert) and then thaw it a few days later to enjoy to see if you’re ok with the taste and consistency/texture. Baked goods all change slightly after freezing, to varying degrees and for some changes their enjoyment of the cake, tart, pie etc.
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alisa November 25, 2023 - 9:24 pm
hi audrey!
i’ve been trying to find a perfect lemon+poppyseed loaf cake for quite some time now and i’ve had some success with it but i’ve always felt something was i bit off. like, every time i made it everything seemed fine but never was i completely satisfied with it. one evening before bed i stumble upon your (beautifully captured btw) yogurt cake on pinterest and know i have to try it. i make it with little to no expectations it’d be THAT good. just wow!!!! i literally started jumping when i first cut it and saw the most amazing, moist texture i’ve been trying to find for so long. thank you SO much, i’m so glad i found your blog and i cannot wait to try more of your recipes! have the best day💘
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Audrey November 26, 2023 - 7:52 am
This was the perfect comment to wake up to on a Sunday morning, Alisa. I really, truly appreciate the kind words and review of this delicious loaf. I am so glad ot hear that your search is “over” now, and hope you’ll find more recipes on the blog that you’ll enjoy! Feel free to join the mailing list (the bottom of the home page) and I’ll send my newest recipes and recipe round ups right to your email. Thanks again!
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Audrey
Bonjour ! I'm Audrey Le Goff, a French cookery writer, photographer, creator of the blog Pardon your French, and cookbook author of Rustic French Cooking Made Easy.
