German Poppy Seed Cake (Mohnkuchen)

Bursting with delicious flavours, this old-fashioned German Poppy seed cake is soft and moist. Glazed with lemon icing these contrasting flavours are an exciting treat for your taste buds. The recipe is simple, the ingredients minimal. This is a showstopper cake without any hassle.

I first made this cake as a bring-along to my friend’s birthday party in London in 2014. One of my friends is Polish and she was reminiscing about her Grandmother’s poppy seed cake. This cake brings up memories of care-free fun times, of my youth. 

History of Poppy Seed Cakes in Germany 

Poppy seed cake is called Mohnkuchen in German. Simply put together from the German word for poppy seeds “Mohn” and cake “Kuchen”. 

Traditional poppy seed cakes originate from Silesia and Poland but have become part of the German and Austrian cuisine over centuries.

About this German Poppy seed cake recipe 

This recipe is so easy and simple, you will love it. It is full of poppy seeds, yet it is light and moist. This is because the dough includes yoghurt which gives the cake a smooth texture. 

Ingredients: 

• 200 gr butter 3/4 cup or 7 oz – at room temperature 
• 4 eggs at room temperature 
• 250 gr caster sugar 1 cup and 1/8 cup or 8.8 oz 
• 200 gr poppy seeds 1.5 cups or 7 oz 
• 300 gr  flour 2 cups or 10 oz, in Germany Type 405 flour, UK plain flour, US pastry flour 
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 300 gr plain full-fat yoghurt 1 cup and 3 tbsp, 10 oz 
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• zest of half a lemon (about 1 tsp)

Baking Essentials (Affiliate Links)

How to make German Poppy Seed Cake: 

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C  or  356°F
2. Using a stand or hand mixer add the butter, eggs and sugar to the bowl. Whisk until mixture is creamy.
3. Add the yoghurt, poppy seeds, ground cinnamon and lemon zest to the mixture. Whisk the ingredients until you achieve a smooth batter.
4. In a separate bowl, sieve the flour and baking powder together. 
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then whisk until completely combined.
6. Pour or spread the batter into a greased cake tin.
7. Bake the cake for about 50 minutes. Oven times may vary depending on your oven. 
8. To check if the cake is done, poke a toothpick into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean your cake is done. 
9. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool before adding the icing. 

Icing options:

I would suggest three options on how to decorate the cake. In the pictures I used a lemon icing.

1. You can dust the cake with some icing sugar.
2. Alternatively, you can try the simple lemon icing below.
3. For a cream cheese icing, which is an American twist, I would suggest the recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction. 

Lemon Icing Glaze Recipe for Poppy Seed Cake 

Icing Ingredients: 

• 200 g icing/confectioners sugar (7 oz)
• 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice. 

Method

1. Sieve the icing/confectioners sugar into a bowl.
2. Wisk in the lemon juice spoon by spoon until you achieve a thick, creamy consistency.
3. TIP: If the icing gets too liquid add more icing sugar. If it is too hard to spread, add a couple of drops of lemon juice.  
4. Spread with a knife or a palette knife over the cake and leave to set. 

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How to serve lemon poppy seed cake? 

In Germany this cake will traditionally be served with coffee or tea for “Kaffee und Kuchen”. This is cake time in Germany and traditionally takes place in the afternoon.  This is suppose to be a "dry" cake - but if you fancy why not serve with a big spoon of whipped cream (Schlagsahne)?

How to store poppy seed cake? 

This cake is great to prepare in advance. It does not need to be refrigerated. Simply store in an airtight container and consume within 4 days. After that the cake may dry out. 

Can I freeze poppy seed cake? 

This cake freezes very well. Place in an airtight container and freeze for up to three months. 

*This recipe was first posted in March 2014 and updated in January 2021. We make this cake very often. Here are the old pictures as reference.