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Buttery, moist, and bursting with fresh lemon zest—this homemade, classic lemon pound cake is even better than Starbucks!
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A Pound Cake Better Than Starbucks
I’ve always loved a good Lemon Pound Cake—moist, buttery, and bursting with fresh lemon flavor. With its bright citrusy kick and tender crumb, it’s the perfect treat for springtime, baby showers, or a fun brunch with friends. And trust me, this recipe is better than Starbucks! Making it from scratch brings out the purest lemon flavor, striking the perfect balance between tart and sweet.
Is It Cake? Is It Bread?
This lemon pound cake is technically a cake, but its dense texture and loaf shape sometimes make people think of it as a bread.
- Why it’s a cake: It follows the traditional pound cake formula—made with butter, sugar, eggs, and flour in equal parts, resulting in a rich and dense texture.
- Why it looks like bread: pound cakes like this one are often baked in a loaf pans, similar to quick breads like banana bread, which makes people associate it with bread. It is also served sliced like bread but while it may look like a sweet bread, it’s definitely a cake!
Ingredients for Lemon Pound Cake
For this cake, you want the wet ingredients to be room temperature. It really makes a difference in the texture!
- Flour – all purpose flour works great for this recipe
- Baking powder – this increases the volume of the cake and also helps with the light texture.
- Baking Soda – I use baking soda is in this recipe because I also use buttermilk. The combination of the who makes for a light, fluffy texture. Not all lemon pound cake recipes use these ingredients but I think it is a must!
- Salt – I like to use fine sea salt when baking. Kosher salt is also a good choice.
- Butter – softened. You can use salted or unsalted butter. For a sweeter cake, use unsalted.
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs – room temperature
- Buttermilk – room temperature
- Vanilla extract
- Fresh lemon – You use both the juice and the zest of the lemon for this recipe.
- Icing: A simple combination of powdered sugar, milk, and lemon juice
How to Make Lemon Pound Cake
- Prepare pan – Prepare your 9×5 baking pan by lining with parchment paper or spraying with cooking spray.
- Dry ingredients – Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a medium-sized mixing bowl and set aside.
- Cream butter – In the bowl of a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to cream together the butter and sugar. Mix at medium speed until combined and then increase to medium-high until fluffy. This takes about 5-7 minutes. The mixture should be smooth and fluffy and there should be little to no graininess to it.
- Wet ingredients – With the paddle still on, add eggs in one at a time, mixing until well combined. Next, alternate adding dry ingredients and buttermilk until a batter forms. Finally, add vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest and mix.
- Bake – Pour batter into pan and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. Lightly cover with foil and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes. Use a toothpick or skewer to check for doneness.
- Cool – Allow cake to cool in pan for 20 minutes before removing from pan and allowing to cool the rest of the way on a wire rack.
- Icing – Whisk together ingredients until smooth and pour the lemon glaze over cooled cake.
Additions and Variations
You can add 1 cup of blueberries to the batter, tossing them in 1 tablespoon of flour so they don’t sink to the bottom. If using frozen blueberries, add them directly to the batter right before baking.
Try adding 1-2 tablespoons of poppy seeds for a different texture. You can soak the poppy seeds in warm milk or water for about 15 minutes before adding them to the batter—this helps soften them and enhances their flavor.
Storage and Freezing Tips
Store in an airtight container at room temp for 3-4 days. Keeping your cake in a loaf shape will keep it more moist rather than cutting into slices.
Lemon Pound Cake can be refrigerated up to a week either in an airtight container, or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap to keep the moisture in.
To freeze, wrap in plastic wrap and foil, it will keep for 3 months. I would recommend icing the cake after you take your cake out of the freezer because when the icing freezes, it has a tendency to flake off.
Frequently Asked Questions about Lemon Pound Cake
Yes, bottled lemon juice will work in a pinch, although fresh is best. Fresh lemon juice has a brighter, more zesty flavor, while bottled tastes more acidic and dull due to the preservatives in it.
If you want more of a lemony punch, add more lemon juice and more lemon zest to both the cake batter and the icing.
There are a few things you can do to help make your cake super moist, including using buttermilk, which reacts with the baking soda in the batter, creating little air pockets that help the cake to rise and give it a lighter, softer texture, as well as not over mixing the batter, and using ingredients that are at room temperature.
Lemon Pound Cake
Equipment
- 1 9×5 inch loaf pan
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)
- 2-3 teaspoons lemon zest
Lemon Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar (aka confectioner's sugar)
- 1 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.Prepare 9×5-inch loaf pan by spraying with cooking spray or lining with parchment paper.
- Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a medium-sized mixing bowl and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment to cream together the butter and sugar. Mix at medium speed until combined and then increase to medium-high until fluffy. This takes about 5-7 minutes. The mixture should be smooth and fluffy and there should be little to no graininess to it.
- Still using the paddle attachment, add the eggs one at a time, beating until well combined. Slowly add in the flour a little at a time, alternating with the buttermilk and mixing on low until a batter forms. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest and mix on low until combined.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes. Cover lightly with foil and bake an additional 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick poked into the center comes out clean.
- Allow cake cool for 20 minutes then remove the cake from the pan and cool the rest of the way on a wire cooling rack. Cake should be only slightly warm or room temperature before icing.
For the icing:
- Whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Pour evenly over the top of the cake. Pro tip: Use a baking sheet under the cooling rack to allow the extra icing to drip over the sides onto the sheet for an easier clean up.
- Allow to set before slicing.
Nutrition Information
More Lemon Desserts and Treats
Lemon Blueberry Scones
Lemon Cupcakes
Creamy Lemon Pie
Lemon Meringue Pie
Lemon Bundt Cake
Very Best Lemon Bars
Lemon Zucchini Bread
Lemon Cream Cheese Bars
