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RECIPE

Courgette, lemon and poppy seed cake with cheesecake frosting

The cream cheese icing is a favourite — pipe it on if you fancy making it a little pretty!

articlemain
  • place PRE 15
  • place COOK 30
  • place SERVES 10
  • printicon

This cake evolved over time from a muffin recipe. The cake will keep for 1-3 days in the fridge but take it out for around 15 minutes before you want to cut and eat it.

  • Preheat oven 160°C/140°C fan and grease and line two 20cm round cake tins.
  • Grate the courgette and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. 
  • In a large bowl mix the courgette, sugar, oil and eggs.
  • In another bowl mix the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, cinnamon, poppy seeds and lemon zest.
  • Fold the dry mixture into the courgette mixture and divide the batter equally between the two tins. 
  • Smooth the surface of each batter with the back of a spoon.
  • Bake for around 25-30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
  • Cool in the tin and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
  • To make the cream cheese frosting: in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment whisk together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the icing sugar a little at a time to avoid clouds going all over the kitchen!
  • Add the vanilla bean paste, then speed up the mixer and whisk for a minute or two. 
  • Take one cake and spoon half the frosting over the top and level with a spatula or knife. Place the other cake on top and then either spread as much of the rest of the icing as you want over, or put it into a piping bag and pipe it on. 
  • Sprinkle a little lemon zest over the top and refrigerate the cake on a pretty plate or stand.

Find more of Stacey's recipes and tips at her new Youtube channel -  Stacey Dee's Kitchen

Ingredients

400g grated courgette

300g caster sugar

2 medium eggs

250 ml vegetable oil

400g plain flour sifted 

1 tsp salt

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp poppy seeds

Zest from 1 lemon

For the Cream Cheese Frosting

110g unsalted butter softened

225g full fat cream cheese

360g icing sugar sifted

1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

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