Lemon Pound Cake: Recipe and Baking Tips
Written by MasterClass
Last updated: May 5, 2022 • 3 min read
Bursting with bright lemon flavor, this buttery spring dessert is sure to satisfy the lemon lovers in your life. Read on to learn how to make lemon pound cake.
Learn From the Best
What Is a Lemon Pound Cake?
A lemon pound cake is an old-fashioned baked treat made with fresh lemon juice, zest, and various pantry staples. Pound cake gets its name from the ratio of simple ingredients in its traditional recipe: a pound each of flour, butter, eggs, and sugar. Modern pound cakes typically feature less than a pound of any given ingredient, but the ratios of key ingredients remain equal. Topped with a creamy lemon glaze, this tangy baked dish is the perfect treat to serve for breakfast, lunch, or dessert.
4 Tips for Making a Lemon Pound Cake
Follow these tips to craft the best lemon pound cake possible:
- 1. Use fresh lemon. When making pound cake, fresh lemon juice and zest will always provide a brighter flavor than lemon extract. However, a teaspoon of lemon extract will also work in a pinch.
- 2. Bring the ingredients to room temperature. Bringing eggs, butter, and any other dairy-based ingredients to room temperature before the mixing process helps them emulsify easier, resulting in a cake with an even interior texture. Take perishable ingredients out of the refrigerator at least an hour before you begin baking.
- 3. Mix the batter just right. Overmixing leads to a stiff, heavy cake. When combining the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, fold them together by hand to ensure the batter stays light.
- 4. Experiment with additions. Customize this lemony cake batter with the mix-ins of your choice. Fold fresh blueberries into the batter for a blueberry-lemon cake. For some crunch, add in chopped nuts, like pecans, walnuts, or cashews. Incorporate coconut flakes for a tropical spin on a lemon pound cake.
Best Lemon Pound Cake Recipe
makes
1 9-inch loafprep time
20 mintotal time
1 hr 20 mincook time
1 hrIngredients
Note: The total time does not include 1 hour and 40 minutes of inactive time.
- 1
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease a 9-inch loaf pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray. Line the loaf pan with a large piece of parchment paper that hangs over the sides of the pan.
- 2
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set the flour mixture aside.
- 3
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. (Alternatively, add the ingredients to a large bowl and use an electric mixer to combine.)
- 4
Add the vanilla extract and mix again to combine.
- 5
Add the sour cream to the mixture and mix until combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- 6
Add the eggs one at a time and mix until fully incorporated.
- 7
Add 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice and the lemon zest to the batter. Stir to combine.
- 8
Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, and fold them together with a spatula until the batter just starts to form.
- 9
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Using a spatula, smooth out the top of the batter.
- 10
Transfer the cake to the oven and bake until it is golden brown and a toothpick inserted through the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.
- 11
Remove the cake from the oven. Set the pan on a cooling rack to cool for 10 minutes.
- 12
Using the excess parchment paper, carefully lift the cake out of the pan and place it directly onto the wire rack to cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.
- 13
When the cake is almost completely cool, make the glaze. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon juice until a pourable glaze forms.
- 14
Drizzle the glaze over the lemon loaf. Let the cake rest for an additional 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
Become a better baker with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Joanne Chang, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Chef Thomas Keller, Mashama Bailey, and more.