coconut and grapefruit poppy seed cake with a sparkly sugar crust

a little twist on one of my favorite classic cakes

the loaf take on this cake on a pretty snack plate from helka ceramics

i am, like countless others, a tried and true lover of a good lemon poppy seed cake. it’s a bakery-slash-café classic for a reason, and i sometimes even find myself using it as gauge by which to judge said bakery-slash-café and therefore decide whether i will or will not be returning again to try something else.

this is just a slightly tweaked version of the classic. i swapped in floral, punchy grapefruit for the lemon, added coconut milk and coconut oil for a subtle yet flavorful addition, and instead of just mixing in whole poppy seeds, i took a page from audrey leonard of red currant bakery’s book and blended them up before mixing into a portion of the batter. this both releases the nutty flavor of the poppy seeds and creates a beautiful, distinct swirl throughout the cake.

while it might seem like there would be too much going on flavor-wise with grapefruit, coconut and poppy all vying for the attention of your tastebuds, it’s actually a very balanced cake. each bite presents delicate yet discernible notes of the main ingredients, which all work harmoniously together (imho) to create a fresh, light tasting cake that gives the lemon poppy vibes we all know and love with just a bit more complexity. i found it to be a perfect companion to coffee or tea just as equally as a sweet after dinner treat.

pre-bake round on the left; sliced on the right

many of the lemon poppy cakes i’ve seen and eaten get a final douse with lemon simple syrup to lock in moisture and add even more lemon flavor, and while i’m a fan of that simple finish, i found this sparkling, slightly crisp and crackly sugar crust to be far superior. it’s a common topping on british lemon drizzle cakes and this recipe and ratio was adapted from the version on kitchen projects by nicola lamb.

i absolutely love the way it looks even though it’s a bit finicky (especially after being wrapped) as you can see on the slice photo above. that being said, the real reason it’s here is because of the way it amps up the grapefruit flavor and adds a fun texture to the cake. for me, it’s the ideal finishing touch to a simple slice where something soft, tangy or creamy doesn’t really fit.

if you’re a traditionalist you can of course stick to lemons instead of grapefruit in this recipe, or even experiment, as i have, with a mix of your favorite citrus fruits (oranges, limes, lemons, grapefruit, et cetera). i did a quick poll on instagram to see which baking pan people preferred for this recipe, and while loaf won out by far you can certainly use the same recipe for a 9 inch (23 cm) round cake; i’ve written some specifications for that adaptation in the recipe below.

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makes one standard loaf; i have a 9x5 inch / 23x13 cm loaf pan but you could also use a 8.5x4.5 inch / 22x11 cm loaf pan or a 9 inch (23 cm) round cake pan

for the cake

50 grams poppy seeds

250 grams all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

200 grams granulated sugar

1 large grapefruit, zest and juice (substitute: lemon, orange)

3 large eggs, room temperature

180 grams full fat coconut milk, room temperature

120 grams coconut oil, melted but not hot

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

30 grams finely shredded, unsweetened coconut (optional)

for the crackly sugar crust

100 grams caster sugar (use 180 grams for the round cake)

50 ml grapefruit juice (use 75 ml for the round cake)

pinch of fine salt

pinch of citric acid (optional)

1. preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. grease your pan with a little bit of vegetable oil and line with parchment paper.

2. use a spice grinder, stand blender or mortar and pestle to grind up the poppy seeds until they look moist and crumbly, about 10 - 15 seconds. keep in the grinder and set aside. add the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt to a medium bowl and set aside.

3. add sugar to a large mixing bowl. zest grapefruit into the bowl with the sugar, then use your hands to massage the mixture until it’s very fragrant and the texture of wet sand. juice grapefruit into a separate small bowl until you get the amount you need then set aside.

4. add the eggs to the bowl with the sugar and whisk until pale yellow in color, about 2 minutes. add the coconut milk and whisk until combined, then add in the coconut oil and vanilla and whisk again until well combined and emulsified. sift in the dry ingredients, then use a rubber spatula to fold the mixture until combined.

5. add one third of the batter (about 300 grams) and the ground poppy seeds to the now empty bowl you had the dry ingredients in. add the shredded coconut, if using, to the other half of the batter. mix both batters separately until well combined.

6. add about half of the coconut batter to your pan, then add half the poppy seed batter on top. repeat until you use up all the batter; you can do this with an ice cream scoop or a large spoon. swirl, if desired, by running a perpendicular butter knife in a figure eight through the batter, then transfer to the oven and bake for about 35 - 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

7. once baked, remove from the oven and set on a wire rack. immediately whisk the reserved grapefruit juice with the caster sugar, salt and citric acid until well combined. pour all over the top of the hot cake; it will seem like a lot, that’s okay, let it be!

8. let cool completely before removing from the pan with the help of the parchment paper, slicing and serving. the cake will keep for up to 5 days at room temperature wrapped well with plastic wrap.