Dense, buttery pound cake gets a lemon lift in this bright and cheery citrus version. Iced lemon pound cake is super moist and bursting with the flavors of fresh lemon, creamy butter, and sweet vanilla. A creamy lemon icing that sets on top is the only decorating this small-yet-stunning cake requires.
One reader, Laurie, says: “I’ve never made pound cake before but this turned out very well. It was moist and delicious. It took 50 minutes to bake and I’m glad you mentioned that a couple of moist crumbs on a toothpick is ok, otherwise I may have left it in the oven longer and it may have been a bit dry. I used the zest of 1 1/2 lemons as suggested as I love lemon. I’m making another one today! ★★★★★“
Here’s exactly what you need to make when it’s citrus season: grapefruit Greek yogurt cake.
But if grapefruit isn’t your ideal choice, iced lemon pound cake is another home run. I originally published this dessert recipe on my website in 2017 and I make it at least once every winter season. Imagine a coffee shop lemon loaf, but with a tighter crumb and with supremely fresh flavor you only get from homemade. (Nothing compares!)
Do you enjoy pound cake? My favorite is this cream cheese pound cake, which has an upgraded flavor, tight and dense crumb, and remains wonderfully buttery and soft. Brown butter pound cake has a similar texture and comes with the addition of brown butter flavor. Nutella swirl pound cake has the classic pound cake crumb with defined Nutella swirls throughout. Point being—I love adding flair and flavor to pound cake, and lemon is always a lovely choice.
By the way, if you’ve tried the lemon loaf recipe in my cookbook Sally’s Baking Addiction, you’ll appreciate today’s recipe, too. The cookbook variation is a lighter-crumbed quick bread—soft and airy like birthday cake, but with big and bright lemon flavor that hits as soon as you take the first bite.
The Exact Texture of This Lemon Pound Cake
Today’s recipe has the same wake-up-your-tastebuds flavor as my cookbook variation, but the texture is a little different. It is:
- Unapologetically moist
- Caramelized around the edges
- Dense and satisfying without tasting heavy
- Super rich and buttery
- Extra smooth with a velvety crumb
Best Ingredients to Use & Why I Don’t Recommend Substitutions
You need just 9 ingredients in the lemon pound cake batter. With so few ingredients, it’s best to stick to the recipe because each has an important job. I’ve tried my hand at many variations, and keep coming back to this recipe because of its careful ratio of ingredients. I don’t recommend straying.
Dry Ingredients: You need all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. The amount of flour isn’t a misprint. You really only need 1.5 cups, or 188g. Somehow, it just works!
Wet Ingredients: Grab your room-temperature butter and sugar, then you’ll need eggs, sour cream for moisture (it also keeps the crumb a bit light), vanilla extract, and lemon zest + juice.
Helpful Tip: You need lemon zest and juice and it’s easiest to zest the lemon before juicing it. Here’s the citrus zester and the citrus juicer I use if you need recommendations.
Expect a Thick Lemon Pound Cake Batter
This is a thick batter. Unlike vanilla cake or chocolate cake, there’s no milk to thin things out. The only real liquid is from the lemon juice, and there isn’t too much of it. Pound cakes do not typically include liquid besides eggs. (If you consider those liquid!)
You can bake this in a 9×5-inch loaf pan, but lately I have been using my 1-lb. 8×4-inch loaf pan. It yields a taller loaf, and needs a little extra bake time. I include instructions for both pans in the recipe below. If all you have is a 9×5-inch loaf pan, which is what you use for banana bread and pumpkin bread, you can use it, but expect the bread to be a little shorter than pictured.
Spread the batter into the greased loaf pan. There isn’t much pouring involved… more of a spoon-and-spread situation here!
Lemon Icing That Sets
I believe the saying goes… when life hands you lemons, make lemonade glaze. The icing on top of the pound cake adds a whole other level of lemon flavor. It’s thick and sets after a couple hours, producing a sweet and zingy layer you’ll want to save for last. You need heavy cream (or half-and-half or milk), lemon juice, and confectioners’ sugar.
Feel free to add candied lemons on the top for presentation, like I do with lemon poppy seed bread.
This recipe is too small for a Bundt pan. In you want a larger lemon pound cake in a Bundt pan, here are 2 options: (1) Double the recipe, but use 3/4 cup (180g) of sour cream to ensure there is enough moisture. The rest of the ingredients are simply doubled. Follow the same baking time and temperature from my cream cheese pound cake. And (2) Use my lemon poppy seed Bundt cake recipe, and feel free to skip the poppy seeds.
Absolutely. You can fold 1 cup (about 140g) of fresh blueberries into the batter. I try to avoid frozen blueberries because they turn the batter and cake grayish blue, but feel free to use them if that’s all you have. No need to coat them with flour before folding in, but feel free to do so if you’d like. This batter is quite thick, so they don’t really sink.
Description
Dense, buttery pound cake gets a lemon lift in this bright and cheery citrus version. Iced lemon pound cake is super moist and bursting with the flavors of fresh lemon, creamy butter, and sweet vanilla. A creamy lemon icing that sets on top is the only decorating this small-yet-stunning cake requires.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (60g) sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 Tablespoons (45ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Lemon Icing
- 1 cup (120g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1 and 1/2 Tablespoons (22ml) lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) heavy cream or milk (heavy cream produces a thick icing as pictured)
Instructions
- Lower the oven rack to the lower-third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease an 8×4-inch loaf pan (like this one or this one) with nonstick spray. Or you can use a 9×5-inch loaf pan for a shorter loaf.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter on high speed in a large bowl until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) With the mixer running on low speed, add the eggs one at a time. Once the last egg is completely mixed in, stop the mixer. Add the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract, then beat on medium speed until combined. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. The mixture may look curdled as a result of the varying textures combining. This is normal and the batter will come together when you add the dry ingredients in the next step.
- With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients just until combined. If needed, run a whisk through the batter a few times to rid any large lumps. Avoid over-mixing. Batter is very thick.
- Spoon/spread the batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 55-65 minutes if you used an 8×4-inch pan and 45-60 minutes if you used a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Tent the cake with aluminum foil halfway through baking to prevent the top from over-browning. Pound cakes are dense and take awhile to bake in the oven. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours and don’t be alarmed if yours is taking longer. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out *mostly* clean. A couple moist crumbs are OK.
- Remove the cake from the oven and place on a wire rack. Allow cake to cool in the pan on the wire rack for 1 hour, then carefully remove the slightly warm cake from the pan. Let it continue cooling on a wire rack or on a serving plate/platter. You can add the icing while the cake is still warm or wait for it to cool.
- Make the icing: Whisk all of the icing ingredients together and pour over cake. Serve immediately or wait until the cake cools completely, which promises neater slices.
- Cover and store leftover cake for up to 3 days at room temperature or up to 1 week in the refrigerator.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can make the pound cake ahead of time by freezing it. (I suggest icing it right before serving, so freeze it without the icing.) Bake it, cool it, then wrap it in a layer of plastic wrap and then a layer of aluminum foil. Freeze the loaf for up to 3 months. Allow the cake to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature before topping with icing and serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 8×4-inch Loaf Pan (like this one or this one) or 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Cooling Rack | Citrus Juicer | Citrus Zester
- Sour Cream: If you don’t have sour cream, you can use plain yogurt or dairy/nondairy milk instead. If using milk, your pound cake won’t have a super tight crumb that is signature to pound cakes. Instead, the cake will have a lighter and cakier texture. For best results, I recommend full-fat sour cream.
- Bundt Pan: Here are 2 options for making a lemon Bundt pound cake in a Bundt pan. (1) Double this recipe, but use 3/4 cup (180g) of sour cream. If you were doubling the recipe, you would use 1/2 cup but make sure you increase to 3/4 cup for added moisture. The rest of the ingredients are simply doubled. Spoon/spread into a generously greased 10–12-cup Bundt pan. Follow the baking time and temperature from my cream cheese pound cake. (2) Use my lemon poppy seed Bundt cake recipe. Feel free to leave out the poppy seeds. That cake has a lighter texture and isn’t quite as heavy as pound cake.
- Can I Add Blueberries? Yes, absolutely. You can fold 1 cup (about 140g) of fresh blueberries into the batter after it comes together. I strongly recommend fresh blueberries, as frozen blueberries can turn the batter and finished cake a grayish blue. Keeping that in mind, you can use them if you’d like. I have better luck with fresh.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi,
I forgot to ask earlier, in the note where it says “If you don’t have sour cream…. If using milk, your pound cake won’t have a super tight crumb that is signature to pound cakes….” Are we replacing the sour cream with the same measurement of milk if using milk? (ie. recipe calls for 1/4 cup (60g) sour cream, at room temperature, so should I use 1/4 cup milk, at room temperature)?
Thank you in advance!
Alexa
Hi Alexa, correct — same amount. Enjoy!
I made this today and it turned out absolutely perfect and is delicious! Softened butter in microwave before beating and everything worked out after that. My husband said it was so delicious, a perfect and easy recipe
I don’t have sour cream at home, but I do have some buttermilk. Could I use that instead? Would it still be 1/4 cup? Thanks!
Hi Valerie, buttermilk is a fine substitution if you’re in a pinch. Same amount.
Hi Sally – I made this loaf this morning to give as a gift. The amount of batter seemed smaller than what I’m used to for a loaf/pound cake. It baked beautifully and has shrunk a little while cooling. I find this to be a small loaf that didn’t seem to rise much. My baking powder is new, so I don’t think that’s a factor.
This loaf is denser than most, but it is a pound cake and it smells amazing. Since I’ve not made this before and I’m not sure about taste or texture, is there any way to taste it before wrapping it up as a gift?
Hi Nora, as a pound cake, this cake doesn’t have a ton of rise. However, if it shrunk a bit while cooling, make sure that it is fully baked through as sometimes that can indicate that it needs a bit more time in the oven. Unfortunately there isn’t really a way to test it without cutting into the loaf, but you can use a toothpick inserted into the center to test for doneness (a few crumbs is OK). Hope this helps!
I am the biggest Sally’s baking aditiction addict… Probably for almost ten years? I have never had a recipe go so sideways. Reading the comment that the old recipe used to call for 1.5 sticks makes much more sense! As it baked, the batter was swimming in so much butter that I ended up literally pouring some out!? Maybe it was my batch of butter, or maybe the new oven I hadn’t used much, but I certainly think the amount of butter to flour ratio seems off. Thanks for letting us know about the old recipe Samantha! I have triple checked all other ingredients and can’t figure this out…
Hi Taylor! This recipe hasn’t changed. Did you cream the butter and sugar together? If the butter was separating, it may have been too warm to begin with. Here’s a helpful post on what room temperature butter really means. Thank you for giving this recipe a try 🙂
How many cups batter does this recipe make? I wanted to make mini tea cakes, so I’m just wondering how many batches I will need. Thanks!
Hi Becky, we haven’t measured this batter before. Let us know if you do!
Hi Sally,
Is there any way to make this into a round cake. If I wanted two layers, each a couple inch high, would I need to double or triple the recipe?
Thanks in advance!
Hi Alexa, The cake will be very dense and squat if baked in round pans. We recommend sticking to a loaf pan, however the batter would likely fit into one 9 inch round pan if you wish to try it. For a lemon layer cake we recommend using this recipe.
l.o.v.e.d.
I had a taste for lemon pound cake and this did not disappoint! I was down 1/4 c butter so I added more sour cream. Also because I was looking for a really intense lemon flavor I used zest of 3 lemons. I was rushing to get to a mother’s day event and forgot to tent and pulled it out with a little moistness at the bottom, wrapped it in a dishtowel with icing in a jar and ran out the door — icing it 4 hours later in the car. My only regret was not bringing extra confectioners because the icing was a little runny — but let me tell you, I regretted leaving that cake with my family.. And if I hadn’t been given boxes of Girl Scout Cookies, I would have walked in the door, and without hesitation made another, just for me and my husband. So good.
Hi Sally!
I tried this recipe but i used 2/3 plain flour and 1/3 soft wholewheat stone grained flour. Then i used 2 lemons instead of one. I used 170c baking for 45-50 mins (coz my oven gets too hot too fast). However the end product- when i inserted the toothpick it was clean and had few crumbs. So I thought my cake is done..then when i sliced the cake, there are some normal cakey surface, but there is also a bit of some very dense spots. What do these dense spots indicate? Gluten? Underbaked? Need your expert advice please
Hi Diyana, The grain flour and the extra liquid likely both contributed to the extra dense texture. For the best results we recommend sticking to the recipe if you try it again.
I loved this lemon cake. It’s just a little too dense. How can I get a little bit bigger crumb?
Hi Nancy! The texture should be very dense with a rich, smooth velvety crumb but not taste super heavy. If you think it should be rising more the first thing you can do is to check that your baking powder is fresh. Just keep in mind that pound cake will have a dense and tight crumb, not at all like a regular vanilla or white cake. For a lighter cake, you might enjoy this lemon cake instead!
Hi there,
Excited to try more loaf recipes! Just wondering if there is any difference to the temperature/bake time depending on type of loaf pan used (glass versus tin versus silicone). I have glass! Thank you! 🙂
Hi Amena, in general, if using a glass pan, the bake time may be a few minutes longer. As always, insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf to check for doneness.
I’ve been playing around with a variety of lemon pound cake. I loved the texture and lemon flavor so much. My SO thought it was too buttery (as if there is such a thing!) What would happen to the moist factor if I cut back the butter to 1/2 cup or one stick?
Hi Lynn, this is definitely a butter-heavy batter, but reducing it will change the taste, texture, and structure of the final cake. While you’ll lose the butter flavor, you can try substituting in the same amount of room temperature (solid) coconut oil for the butter. Thanks for giving this a try!
Hello I don’t know if you respond as soon as possible, but can i put this into my Bundt cake pan to bake it?
Hi Khaliq! See the post above for instructions on making in a Bundt pan.
VERY GOOD! my icing tasted strange for some reason, maybe my powdered sugar was stale. So i added cream cheese and it fixed it!!!! Delicious!
The flavor of my cake was amazing. I finally got the chance to use some Mexican vanilla my boyfriend got for me while he was on vacation. Unfortunately the crumb was too dense… if you could call it a crumb. It looked like the loaf hardly TRIED to become a cake. I was too afraid over overmixing the eggs after all the warnings so I beat them with a manual whisk, so I don’t think that’s the cause of my plight. I’m afraid my oven was too hot and cooked everything too quickly. In the cream cheese pound cake recipe it calls for the oven to be 325. I’m wondering if that would’ve saved my poor little loaf. Perhaps I’ll try this recipe again and adjust the oven temperature?
Hi Ashley, thank you so much for giving this recipe a try! A few small adjustments to the oven settings will help for next time. First, it sounds like your oven may run hot so we recommend reducing the oven temperature down to 325°F (163°C). Lower the oven rack as well. Use a light colored loaf pan if you can. By lowering the oven rack and oven temperature, the cake will need longer in the oven. When you notice the exterior browning, tent it with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent it from burning before the center can cook. Hope all of this helps!
This is a really great lemon pound cake! I added dried cranberries and it was delicious!
Do you think it would be fine to add blueberries to this? I would think so but I wanted to see what you thought before I tried it. Thanks!
Hi Mel, blueberries would be a fantastic addition– we would stir in about 1 cup.
Sally, help! My cake was way too dense. The flavor was yummy but the consistency was off. My only thought is maybe the butter didn’t incorporate correctly? It was sizzling when I checked on it at 20 min and applied the tin foil. I used the wisk attachment like you do in your video. Do you think a paddle would yield better results?
P.S. I LOVE your recipes!
Hi Janell, We are glad you enjoyed the flavor of this cake. The texture should be very dense with a rich, smooth velvety crumb but not taste super heavy. If you think it should be rising more the first thing you can do is to check that your baking powder is fresh.
Second attempt
Was a success! I used my paddle attachment instead of whisk and I think the butter incorporated better. Texture is dense but not too dense. Flavor is perfect! Thanks for another incredible recipe, Sally!
I have never found one website in which every recipe I try turns out phenomenal! Oh my Lord! Now , I have just made this lemon pound cake and it is the real deal! Delicious, moist, lemony( i also added a little lemon extract )! Thank You Sally for sharing all of your wonderful delicious recipes!!!
I never really liked lemon loaf/pound cake before because most recipes are too sweet for my taste. But this recipe totally takes the cake. I loved it! Baked 2 and gave 1 away which was also loved. Im making 2 more tonight to share with friends tomorrow. (Have piles of fresh lemons to use up.) Thank you for sharing this recipe
I love the recipe! How do I adjust the time and temp to make mini cupcakes and mini bunt cakes for parties?
Hi Rita! You can bake this as mini cupcakes/bundts but mini pans vary greatly in size, so how many you will get from one recipe and the exact bake time will depend on your exact pans (use the same baking temperature). Keep close eye on them and use a toothpick to check for doneness. Enjoy!
I made loaf pound cake using your recipe and it turned out really dry. What could’ve I don’t differently to prevent that from happening ??
Hi Manisha! As a pound cake this should be pretty dense, but not dry! It could simply be a little over-baked. An easy fix for next time is to check it a few minutes earlier. Also be sure to measure your ingredients properly (spoon and level the flour – not scoop!).
I made this today with lemons from the garden. It was fantastic. So many lemon cakes disappoint in the lemon flavor department. This one is spot on. Perfect lemony flavor, excellent texture. Everyone loved it. Also, fast and easy to make. My only change was flouring the pan as well as buttering it.
Would their be a way to incorporate lemon curd in the pound cake?
Hi Keith! We haven’t tested baking lemon curd into this cake (that would require extensive testing), but lemon curd would be a perfect topping to this pound cake when serving. Let us know if you try anything!
Amazing lemon flavour and so easy to make!
I’m really in love with your recipes! But I recently acquired a convection oven and I just cant get the cooking right!!! Do you suggest changing temps in this case?? Please, please help this sally’s fan!!!
Hi Ana, We test and write all of our recipes with a conventional oven. If you use convection settings (fan-forced) for baking, the general rule is to lower your temperature by 25°F. Additionally, keep in mind that due to increased airflow in convection ovens, recipes usually take less time to bake.
I followed instructions exactly. Correct spot in oven. I have an oven therm so I know heat is correct. Used 9×5 greased glass pan. Tented halfway thru with foil. Ingredients were within “use by” dates.
Cake still wasn’t done after 1 hr 10 min. Top center was gooey. I took it out of oven because it was browning around edges. I let it cool on rack & removed from pan & top center never did set up.
I will go ahead & make glaze & see how gooey the center of loaf is when I cut into it.
Anybody know what went wrong?
Humidity and weather, as well as the oven, can change baking times. you may need to bake for longer at a lower temperature (I’m in Hawai’i and need to do this because of the high humidity). Wintertime in cooler areas may need to do this as well.
I have made this recipe about 5 times now. The first two times were couple years ago and the result was fantastic. This week, I made it 3 times because all 3 times were a disaster so I just kept trying. I don’t know what went wrong but my batter was always tough and dry. So dry that it even forms a ball shape in the bowl. Tried different ways to fix it, including using a scale to measure the flour, using an extra egg and mixing the flour by hand. None of it worked. I’m a fairly experienced baker and no recipe has frustrated me more than this one. I wonder if you have revised the recipe because the first few times I made it was so good!
Hi Monica, the recipe hasn’t changed and it certainly yields a thick batter. This is actually a butter-heavy batter so it could be that your butter is simply too firm/cold. Could you try letting it soften up a bit more before creaming it with the sugar? Make sure all other cold ingredients are at room temperature too. You could thin out with 2-3 Tablespoons of milk (I recommend that over an extra egg.) Let me know if you try it again.
The old recipe only calls for 1.5 sticks of butter.
My FAVORITE cake. I’d never even had pound cake before this recipe but I’m so glad I tried it. So very simple and so perfect in texture. I’ve made it for my family as well as for my boyfriend to celebrate our anniversary (feel free to try out using food dye and piping different patterns! I did a three layer purple gradient since that’s his favorite color and it came out really well due to the thickness of the batter and thus its ability to maintain shape in the loaf pan).
I don’t have any fresh lemons so can I substitute bottled lemon juice for the fresh?
Hi Beth, yes, but you’ll lose a lot of flavor without the lemon zest!