Recipe: Lavender and lemon poppy seed cake from "Cake Picnic"

Sunday Morning Recipe: Lavender and lemon poppy seed cake from "Cake Picnic" by Elisa Sunga .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-sunday-morning.jpg'); } Updated on: May 24, 2026 / 9:00 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Elisa Sunga, founder of Cake Picnic, has seen thousands of baked creations at her multi-city gatherings. She published a new cookbook, "Cake Picnic: Recipes for the Love of Cake & Friends," that's part recipes and part how-to guide on hosting your own cake picnic. She shares a recipe for lavender and lemon poppy seed cake from her book. Excerpted from: "Cake Picnic: Recipes for the Love of Cake & Friends" Chronicle Books Lavender & Lemon Poppy Seed CakeA while back I finally made my way to a lavender field outside of London. When I got off the bus, I immediately smelled the floral scent in the air. It felt like I was being hugged by the nature around me. Whenever I bake with lavender, I revisit that field in my mind. For this cake, I highly recommend using food-grade lavender extract for both ease and true lavender flavor. This cake pairs classic lemon poppy seed with a trip to the lavender field. Come with me. Makes one two-layer 9 in [23 cm] cakeLEMON POPPY SEED YOGURT CAKE 1¼ cups [250 g] granulated sugar  3 Tbsp lemon zest 1½ cups [340 g] vanilla yogurt, at room temperature 2⁄ 3 cup [132 g] neutral oil 3 eggs, at room temperature 1 tsp kosher salt 2 1⁄ 3 cups [280 g] all-purpose flour ¼ cup [28 g] cornstarch 2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 2 Tbsp poppy seeds LAVENDER SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM 1½ cups [300 g] granulated sugar 6 egg whites 2 cups [452 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 1 in [2.5 cm] pieces 1 tsp table salt ½ to 2 tsp lavender extract, to taste 1 or 2 drops purple food coloring (optional)DECORATIONS  Candied lavender, fresh lavender sprigs, lemon slices, candied lemons, piped buttercr...