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–+ servings
Pieces of lemon poppy seed cake stacked on a marble board.

High Altitude Lemon Poppy Seed Crumb Cake

Heather Smoke
High altitude tested lemon poppy seed cake, swirled with lemon curd and sprinkled with buttery crumble topping.

All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.

5 from 1 vote
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings9

Equipment

Ingredients
 

Crumb Topping

  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
  • ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted

Cake

  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
  • 1 large egg
  • ½ cup full fat sour cream
  • ¼ cup whole milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp lemon extract
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp cake flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
  • 1 ½ tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
  • 1 tbsp poppy seeds
  • ⅓ cup lemon curd

Instructions
 

Getting Ready

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven.
  • Lightly spray an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan with non-stick baking spray, or line with parchment paper.

Crumb Topping

  • In a bowl, rub together the sugar and lemon zest until moist and fragrant. Add the flour and salt.
  • Stir in the melted butter until moist and crumbly, then set aside until needed.

Cake Batter

  • In a bowl, rub together the sugar and lemon zest until moist and fragrant. Whisk in the egg, sour cream, milk, vanilla extract, lemon extract and melted butter.
  • Separately, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and stir just until moistened.

Bake

  • Spread the cake batter into the prepared pan, dollop with the lemon curd, and gently swirl it in with a knife. Sprinkle with the crumb topping.
  • Bake the cake for about 40-45 minutes for a 9 inch pan or 50-55 minutes for an 8 inch pan, until a cake tester or sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
  • Let the cake cool for 1-2 hours before cutting. Enjoy the cake warm or at room temperature.
Keyword Coffee Cake, Crumb Cake, High Altitude, Lemon Poppy Seed
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