Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Lemon Poppy Seed Tea Cakes


As a little girl, I used to play in my tree-house with my little kitchenette, and host tea parties for my friends (sometimes they were pretend friends, but they were friends none the less). Now as an adult, I still fantasize about hosting tea parties and all the delightful treats I would make to accompany the tea (or coffee). I think it would be a wonderful way to visit with my girlfriends and fulfill my urges to bake for others. But with life and all the busy schedules, I often talk myself out of the idea.

Then a couple of weeks ago, I received an email from the Foodbuzz Editorial Team announcing an Electrolux Tea Party Top 9 Takeover. Foodbuzz will donate $50 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund for every tea party recipe created by a Featured Publisher. And this Friday, March 25th, they will showcase recipes in their Daily Top 9 section. So how could I resist! Here was my chance to partake in a tea party and contribute to a great cause! I knew exactly which recipe I wanted to use... I have had my eye on these lemon poppy seed tea cakes for over a month. :)
All cancer research is extremely important, and as a woman, ovarian cancer research obviously hits home a little more. I'm happy to spread the word, and the great news is, you can help support this cause too! Join Kelly Ripa and Electrolux for a virtual tea party for a cause, at Kelly Confidential. When you do, Electrolux will donate $1 to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. Check it out!
A few notes about this recipe... When you whip up the egg whites, make sure your beaters are absolutely clean. Otherwise, the exposure of other ingredients will prohibit the thickening of the meringue. Also, feel free to fill your muffin pans to the rim with batter. I wasn't sure how much they would rise, so I only filled them 3/4 full, but as you can see they didn't have much of a top (like the ones shown in my cookbook).

Overall, I loved these tea cakes! They were the perfect companion for my morning cup of coffee. And when I get around to hosting my own tea party, these little darlings will be featured. But until then, they're just for me... and you! :)

Ingredients
Yields 6 tea cakes
2/3 cup cake flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
4 tbsp (1/2 a stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
2 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 tbsp poppy seeds
1/4 cup buttermilk

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Spray 6 standard muffin cups with baking spray; set aside.

In a small bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream butter and 1/3 cup of sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and poppy seeds until well combined. Add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, combining the mixture well. 

In another large bowl, beat egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Gradually beat in the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar, and beat until the meringue holds stiff peaks. Stir 1/4 of meringue into the cake batter and fold in the remainder gently but thoroughly.

Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. Bake 20-25 minutes or until tops are golden. Remove tea cakes from the pan immediately and cool on wire racks.

Source: adapted from Gourmet's In Short Order cookbook 

32 comments:

Harvesting for Life on March 23, 2011 at 12:23 PM said...

They look amazing! I love lemon poppy seed, a combo I haven't had in years. Perfect recipe for spring!

Lori Lynn on March 23, 2011 at 12:53 PM said...

Great addition to the big tea party!
lemon + poppy seed = great pair!
LL

Cassie | Bake Your Day on March 23, 2011 at 12:56 PM said...

Perfect combination & beautiful pictures!!

Angela@RecipesFromMyMom on March 23, 2011 at 1:31 PM said...

Lovely little cakes! I did a lemon treat for the Tea Party for a Cause too. The sweet and lemon combo goes great with tea.

RavieNomNoms on March 23, 2011 at 1:34 PM said...

What a perfect little cake for a tea party! I would gobble up quite a few of these...they look outstanding. Gorgeous pictures too!

Georgia | The Comfort of Cooking on March 23, 2011 at 2:08 PM said...

What a wonderful recipe for an excellent cause! These look magnificent, Lindsey. So feminine and absolutely perfect for a spring party. Thanks for sharing and being such a caring person to contribute this recipe to ovarian cancer research!

Anonymous said...

Delicious cakes for an awesome cause :) I love everything about these!

Mateja ^_^ on March 23, 2011 at 7:38 PM said...

Ohh my goodness, don't these poppy cakes look just delicious! Thank you for sharing :)

Carolyn on March 23, 2011 at 7:50 PM said...

The tea cakes are just right for a tea party for a cause. They look so light and perfect for having with a cuppa!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake on March 23, 2011 at 8:48 PM said...

Oh, these gorgeous little tea cakes would be a hit here. Yummy treats for a worthy cause~

Kate @ Diethood.com on March 23, 2011 at 9:55 PM said...

Very pretty ... those photos are beautiful. The cakes look like I can pick them off the screen.

Anonymous said...

So yummy!

Kat @ Cupcake Kat on March 23, 2011 at 11:10 PM said...

Beautiful yummy looking cakes for a great cause. I love poppy seeds and recently made my own muffins. I still have some poppy seeds to use up so I think I might try these

Lyndsey on March 24, 2011 at 12:12 AM said...

These looks beautiful and absolutely delicious - a great recipe for a great cause! : )

Magnolia on March 24, 2011 at 3:35 AM said...

This is so yummy. Thank you very much for sharing!

Jill Colonna on March 24, 2011 at 2:08 PM said...

What beauties: they look so airy, too. For an airy fairy girlie's teaparty? Sorry, I used to dream about fairy tea parties when I was little ;-)
Well done on the Foodbuzz cause.

Emily on March 25, 2011 at 9:48 AM said...

These look so tasty and light, I bet it's easy to sit down and eat a bunch without realizing it =)

briarrose on March 25, 2011 at 10:09 AM said...

Beautiful, little cakes. I have so been craving lemon poppy seed.

Anonymous said...

A great cause and your cakes look wonderful.

Ann on March 25, 2011 at 4:30 PM said...

Beautifully light - my old restaurant made great lemon poppy muffins for Sunday brunch - but these appear to be refreshing.

little j @ whiskitgood! on March 25, 2011 at 7:25 PM said...

Love your pictures! These look very yummy too!! Congrats on Top 9 :)

Sonia on March 25, 2011 at 10:01 PM said...

Wonderful tea cakes for a really noble cause... ! Congrats on top 9 !

kita on March 26, 2011 at 5:36 PM said...

I have recently seen some poppy seed recipes but I am having some problems finding them. Any tips/suggestions? These look great.

Alex on March 26, 2011 at 11:08 PM said...

My daughter's favorite food in the world is what she calls "lemon seed poppy seed muffins." I cannot wait to make these for her.

Emily Ann on March 28, 2011 at 11:36 PM said...

I like these pictures a lot! I have the same plate set :)

Cakewhiz on March 29, 2011 at 5:07 PM said...

Those tea cakes are so cute and a belated congrats on the top 9!

cocoa and coconut on March 29, 2011 at 9:17 PM said...

Well done for contributing this! They look gorgeous and bright. Lemon and poppy seed is such a yummy, and classic, combination.

Lindsey on March 30, 2011 at 11:22 AM said...

Hi Kita! I found this poppy seed recipe in one of my cookbooks, but when I'm searching for recipes online I tend to search Foodgawker or Tastespotting. I would also suggest searching poppy seed recipes on Google or other recipe sites/blogs that you visit frequently. Hope that helps!

Lindsey @ trail to train on March 30, 2011 at 11:57 AM said...

Lemon and poppyseed has to be an alltime favorite combination of mine and I have almost exactly the same story about wanting to host a tea party! lol Whenever I get around it it, I'll be making these for sure! :)

Beth on April 6, 2011 at 3:01 PM said...

What beautiful little cakes! They look terrific.

Marcia on February 25, 2013 at 1:49 PM said...

Thanks a lot for this recipe, I'll certainly try it! <3

My Love Wedding Ring on June 3, 2013 at 5:55 PM said...

Mmmm, these look lovely, will give them a try!

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