4 c Flour 1 tb Vanilla extract
2 ts Baking soda 4 lg Eggs — at room temp.
1 tb Baking powder 2 c Sour cream — at room temp.
1/2 ts Salt 1/2 c Poppy seeds
1 c Unsalted butter 1 1/2 tb Poppy seeds
2 c Sugar
Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease a 10″ tube pan with oil or
butter. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together
into a medium size bowl. Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla in a
large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light
and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer once or twice to scrape
the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the eggs one at a time to the
butter mixture and mix on medium low speed after each addition until
blended, 5 seconds. Scrape the bowl each time. When all the eggs
are added, beat the mixture for 10 seconds. It will not appear
smooth at this point. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the egg
mixture and fold them in lightly with a rubber spatula so that the
liquid is absorbed. Mix on low speed 5 seconds until partially
blended. Scrape the bowl. Add half the sour cream, and mix on low
speed for 5 seconds until partially blended. Mix the batter with
several broad strokes of the spatula and scrape the bowl. Add another
third of the dry ingredients, the remaining sour cream and then the
remaining dry ingredients with this same procedure. Mix the batter
on low speed until it it velvety, about 15 seconds. Add 1/2 cup of
the poppy seeds on low speed and mix just until blended. Pour the
batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the remaining poppy seeds
over the top. Bake the cake on the center oven rack until it is high
and golden, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Remove the cake from the
oven and allow it to cool in the pan on a rack for several hours
before unmolding and serving.
Yields
12 servings