Lemon poppy seed cake is a classic dessert and perfect for Spring. This bundt cake recipe is low carb and grain free so it fits in well with your healthy keto diet. Now with an instructional video!
I first made this keto lemon poppy seed cake WAYYYYY back in 2013. It was delicious back then and has stood the test of time, with many copycat recipes. So I decided to give it a shiny new update, with brand new photo and a how-to video. Ready for one of the most delicious sugar-free cakes you will ever eat?
What do you think of when you think of lemon poppy seed muffins, or any poppyseed recipe really? I can’t help it, I instantly think of the episode of Seinfeld where Elaine tests positive for opium after eating poppy seed muffins.
In typical Seinfeld fashion, the scenario seems utterly ludicrous and you think it can’t possibly be true. But apparently it is actually possible to test for opiates from eating a few poppy seed-containing baked goods.
And people have been fired, suspended and denied employment because of it. So I suppose this low carb lemon poppy seed bundt cake recipe ought to come with a warning. Do not eat prior to taking a drug test! If your employment requires regular, surprise drug tests…well, I can’t help you there.
How to Make Keto Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
I love bundt pans for their instant elegance. Bundt cakes hardly need any decoration at all, they look so perfect as is. A little drizzle of glaze or a sprinkling of powdered sweetener is all you need.
But it turns out that I have a very similar recipe in The Everyday Ketogenic Kitchen. I did that one as a Lemon Poppy Seed Bread and you could easily bake this recipe in a loaf pan if you prefer. They really take about the same time to bake.
Almond flour is your best choice for a big bundt cake like this one, as it produces the finest results. You always want to choose finely ground blanched almond flour for keto cakes.
Why protein powder? I get this question all the time so I will just head it off at the pass and answer it here. Because gluten is a protein and in its absence, another dry protein helps keto baked goods rise and hold their shape. You can use egg white protein if you prefer.
If you really are in danger of having a drug test thrust upon you, try substituting chia seeds in place of the poppy seeds. The carb count will be roughly the same.
Lemon zest is vital to the flavor. The freshly grated zest of a lemon provides so much of that tart-sweet lemony flavor, so don’t skip it!
Vanilla extract and lemon extract together. Lemon extract can be a little harsh and have a bitter flavor, but it plays really nicely with vanilla, which tones it down a bit. I like to use both in this lemon poppy seed cake recipe.
Room temperature ingredients! Remember to let your butter, eggs and water all come to room temp before proceeding. It defeats the purpose of creaming softened butter with sweetener, if you then add cold eggs. All your lovely butter will clump up again!
What about Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins? Yes, friends, you can absolutely make muffins with this recipe. Just divvy it up into your muffin cups, and try to use parchment or silicone liners. Your bake time will probably be about 25 minutes but start watching them at 20, just in case.
If you’re a lemon dessert lover, you are going to adore this low carb Lemon Poppy Seed Cake, I assure you. It’s tender and sweet, with a spectacular lemon flavor. What could be better?
More Delicious Keto Lemon Recipes
Lemon is perfect for spring and Easter, and I’ve got quite a collection of low carb lemon recipes!
Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3 cups almond flour
- 1/3 cup unflavoured whey protein powder
- 3 tbsp poppy seeds
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup butter softened
- 2/3 cup Swerve Sweetener or granulated erythritol
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract (up to 1 tsp if you like strong lemon flavor)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup water
Glaze:
- 1/3 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener or powdered erythritol
- Fresh lemon juice from 1 lemon
Instructions
- For the cake, preheat the oven to 325F and grease a bundt pan very well.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, protein powder, poppy seeds, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter with the sweetener until well combined. Beat in the eggs, scraping down the beaters and the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the lemon zest, lemon extract, and vanilla extract.
- Beat half of the almond mixture in, then beat in the water. Add the remaining flour mixture and beat until just combined. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula.
- Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until top is deep golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 30 minutes, then flip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the glaze, whisk together the powdered Swerve and lemon juice until smooth. If too thin, add a bit more powdered Swerve. If too thick, at a bit more liquid (water or lemon juice).
- Drizzle glaze over the cooled cake.
Notes
Bev Zad says
I made this cake and instead of poppy seeds, I used blueberries and layered them into the batter in the Bundt pan. It turned out spectacularly! Great recipe! Thank you! I will make it again!
Maggiesara says
I made the muffins with two small tweaks: I used BochaSweet rather than Swerve (i really don’t like Swerve…though I trust Carolyn enough that I will probably test something with it), and I swapped out 1 t of the baking powderfor a t of “encapsulated” baking powder, designed specifically for gluten-free products, since they tend to need serious help in the rising department. I think the combo of the two baking powders was a bit too aggressive: The muffins dipped in the middle, which usually means they over-rose. Also, I made the stupid stupid mistake of using a silicon muffin pan (what a junk piece of equipment, throwing that away RIGHT now), which meant the muffins had to be sort of SQUEEZED out of it, and half of them fell apart.
BUT they taste fantastic, and the texture issues were entirely my fault.
Kayla Beatty says
I don’t use whey protein powder because it upsets my stomach. For egg white protein—do I whip actual egg whites? I’ve read I can use pea protein as well…just substitute the pea protein powder for whey protein powder??
Carolyn says
No, you need egg white protein powder. Pea protein may work but I haven’t tried it myself.
Carolyn ( great name!) says
Whey protein powder…unflavored I get but there are so many types out there. Is whey protein powder isolate what I need? And, would egg white protein powder be interchangeable with whey protein powder? Read your entire blog and others have asked similar questions. It’s the type of whey protein powder to buy. Too expensive to make a mistake.
Can’t wait to try this recipe as well as the zucchini chocolate muffins. Thanks in advance.
Carolyn says
Oddly, it really doesn’t matter. I haven’t tried a whey protein powder that doesn’t work since they all have about the same amount of protein. But here’s one I like because it’s grass fed: https://amzn.to/3nTpe20
Amy J says
Hi – what would be a good substitute for the butter in this cake?
Carolyn says
Coconut oil, I guess. I haven’t tried it.
Stella Carrasquillo says
I made this earlier tonight and just had a second serving. It’s delicious. And I forgot to add the 2/3 cup of water as I drank it thinking it was my water cup. Thank you for sharing so many recipes. I appreciate all your step by step instructions and videos.
Darlene says
Could you use a 9 x 13 inch baking pan for this recipe instead of a bundt? Easier for my portioning and for freezing.
Carolyn says
I am sure you can, I just can’t say the timing exactly so watch it carefully.
Joanne Parkin says
Can I use Whey Protein powder instead of Collagen? I’m trying to use what I have on hand…
Carolyn says
This recipe already takes whey protein. I never recommend collagen in baked goods.
Jasmine says
This was DELICIOUS! Just made a batch in a muffin tin and they turned out amazing. The texture was perfect and they held together like ‘real’ cakes. My first low-carb baking attempt and I can’t wait for my next one. I was a little worried about the icing as it was runnier than I’m used to but it held on and tasted great.
I’ve been keto for a year now and really missed baking. Thank you for a great recipe Carolyn – made my day 🙂
Fran says
Hello, thank you for this recipe! I made it and it came out very dense (although tasty!). I have made plenty of cakes and never had one come out this dense. I’ve also eaten plenty of almond flour keto cakes and not one was this dense. I can’t think of anything I did that could have been the cause for this texture. I baked at the recommended temperature for 45 minutes, middle rack, and the cake was overcooked and almost crunchy on the edges. I used blanched, fine almond flour. I used granulated erythritol. Everything was according to recipe. Is there a common pitfall I might have fallen into? Or is the expected result of this cake to be dense and not fluffy/spongy?
Carolyn says
Did you use the protein powder? It should not be dense at all, but just like real sponge cake. Also, if it seems over-cooked, it probably was. What pan did you use?
Fran says
My goodness, first of all, thank you for the lightning-fast reply! Wow! Yes, I used grass-fed, unflavored whey protein powder, and a bundt pan. I will just try again and start with shorter cooking time (crazy oven maybe?). My SO and I don’t mind soaking a slice of this cake in a bit of milk for a moist dessert, so nothing is wasted, lol. Again, thanks for the crazy fast response! 🙂
Carolyn says
Really can’t account for it being so dense, unless your baking powder was off. Definitely sounds a bit overcooked, though. Sorry I can’t help more.
Janeen says
Hi Carolyn –
I made this yesterday for the first time and it is incredible!
A couple questions: the cake was not as lemony as I would like. Do you think some of the water could be replaced with lemon juice? Then, there’s the question of getting the cake out of the pan. I greased well and let cool for 30 minutes, but it ended up coming out in three sections. Any tips?
Thanks!
Carolyn says
The tip is to get a better pan. Sorry to put it so bluntly but not all bundt pans are created equal. You can certainly add some juice and perhaps some more extract.
TALIN MIRZAYAN says
can i replace whey protein with oat fiber or vita wheat gluten?
Carolyn says
No I am sorry, those do not work in the same way.
Maria says
Can I adjust this recipe somehow to make it chocolate? My daughter wants to make this recipe and my son wants a chocolate cake, I was hoping maybe to use the recipe and add cocoa powder (do not know how much) to half of it and made like a marble cake so they are both happy. 🙂
I just found your site and I cant wait to try your recipes!
Thank you for sharing!
Carolyn says
Hi Maria… please search my blog for my marble cake. You can use it as the batter in the bundt pan.
Wendee says
Would coconut flour work with this recipe?
Carolyn says
No, this is an almond flour based recipe.
Mary says
Thank you. Can I use vanilla whey protein instead?
Mary says
Hello,
I am not keto dieting but have to watch my sugar intake for health related reasons. Can I use actual egg whites instead of the protein powder? Thanks.
Carolyn says
No, that throws off the wet to dry ratio.
Ruth says
This sounds great! Do you think Lemon Whey Protein would work?
Carolyn says
Sure!
Dawnj says
The crumb on this lemon poppy seed cake is so light and fluffy, one would never know the difference from “regular” baked cake. Incredible spot on lemon taste in the cake and lemon glaze. So excited to be able to bake again and stay on a keto-based diet.
P.S. I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia in the eighties for seven years before my “sugar level” rose. You have changed the face of diabetes, what I wouldn’t have given to have had your recipes back then.
Carolyn says
Thanks, Dawn! Hey, I would have given almost anything to have had my recipes when I had GD! 🙂