Belula

Simple Lemon Pound Cake Loaf with Lemon Glaze

This simple lemon cake is delicious, moist, and easy to make. Topped with lemon glaze and made with heavy cream, it is the best homemade lemon pound cake loaf recipe.

Belula June 02, 2015 February 21, 2022
90° closeup shot of the sliced lemon cake

This moist lemon cake is high up in my top 5 things I love to have as a teatime treat. So easy to put together, this recipe uses heavy whipped cream to make this lemon pound loaf cake extra moist and fluffy. It takes you step-by-step to make lemon cake from scratch. It is delicious, super tasty, full of flavour, and the perfect balance of acidic and sweet - And to top it off, this simple lemon pound cake loaf is covered with lemon glaze. You can also use lemon curd as a frosting if you prefer, it works out great. I can’t wait for you to try it out.

90° closeup shot of the sliced lemon cake
Overhead macro shot of the lemon cake glazed and sliced

Material & Ingredient notes

  • Lemon zest: must be freshly grated. (see below for more tips)
  • Heavy Whipping cream: must have full-fat content for it to be able to be properly whipped to soft peaks.
  • Butter: use full-fat content butter. It must be incorporated into the batter melted and warm.
  • Loaf cake pan: this lemon cake recipe calls for a 21x11x8 cm (8. 5 x 4. 5 x 2. 75 inch) loaf cake pan.
Overhead shot of the cake tin lined with parchment paper
Overhead shot of the creamed eggs and sugar
Overhead shot of the mixing bowl with the batter plus whipped cream and lemon zest
Overhead shot of the mixing bowl with the batter plus the flower
Overhead shot of the mixing bowl with the batter and the melted butter
Overhead shot of a hand filling the cake tin with the lemon cake batter
Overhead shot of 2 hands holding the cake tin filled with the batter ready for the oven
90° shot of one hand pouring the lemon glaze over the lemon cake

How To Make this Recipe

To make this simple lemon cake you simply:

  • Grease the cake pan and prepare the ingredients
  • Make the cake batter
  • Bake the lemon cake
  • Glaze the lemon cake

Make sure to read the notes and tips below to make this best lemon cake you have ever made.

Recipe notes on how to make this lemon cake extra moist and full of flavour

  • It is all about creaming the eggs and sugar. This means that you should mix until the eggs and sugar have grown in volume, changed color to a pale yellow, and changed its texture; About 10 minutes if using an electric mixer.
  • If you add the already whipped cream to the batter you end up with a very moist lemon cake.
  • To properly incorporate the butter, add a little lemon cake batter into the melted butter and mix until combined. Then pour this mixture into the batter and mix it in.
  • Let your lemon cake batter rest in the mold for an hour before baking.
  • Lemon zest or peel should be added to the batter freshly grated and mixed with the granulated sugar. This way it will not dry up and lose all its flavor, and your cake will be super lemony.

Recipe Notes on Baking

  • To be able to properly remove the lemon pound cake loaf from the pan is to grease the cake pan. You can either use cooking spray, butter the cake pan using a brush, or line the cake pan with parchment as shown in the photos below. Make sure to first grease or butter the pan, so that the parchment paper stick to it.
  • Whenever I mention baking/cooking times in this blog, it is an approximation- Do not forget. So, the 45-minute baking time needs to be taken into consideration. The baking time will be determined by the oven you have and by the size of the pan you chose to bake your lemon pound cake in.
  • So, for instance, if you decide to bake mini lemon cakes, the baking time will be shorter. The important thing to take into consideration: the cake is ready if golden and set.
  • When you think your cake is ready, insert a skewer at the center. If it comes out clean, then your lemon cake is ready. If it has crumbs stuck to it, it needs to go back in the oven.
  • Finally, do not open the oven during the first stages of baking. Your cake will end up with a crater at the center. To test with the skewer, wait at least until it has risen properly, and it is golden.

Recipe notes on the lemon glaze

You will notice that powdered sugar absorbs a lot of liquid. So you might have to adjust quantities. I suggest you add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar slowly.

The amount of lemon juice you will use will depend on the glaze consistency you are looking for. If you like your icing dense, then you will not be adding all the juice. I sometimes like it more on the liquid side, which will give a nice effect on the cake, I use a little more juice in this case.

Make the lemon glaze however you like it best!

45° shot of the sliced lemon cake
Overhead shot of the whole glazed lemon cake
90° closeup shot of the inside of the lemon cake

Expert Notes

  • You can make this lemon pound cake by hand; it will take a little longer, but that’s it.
  • If you do not feel like beating the heavy cream to soft peaks, no big deal. You can always add the cream to the egg/sugar mixture before they have reached that pale-yellow colour and mix for 8 extra minutes. If you can though, the effort pays off.
  • You can keep your lemon zest fresh by grating it directly over the sugar and mixing it in.

Storage tips

This lemon pound cake loaf keeps at room temperature for 3 to 4 days.

Once it has been sliced, cover it with with saran wrap to keep the cake moist.

Freezer instructions

This lemon cake freezes super well. Once it has completely cooled down, cover in film wrap, several times and then place in a freezer bag or container. It keeps for up to a month.

To defrost: remove from freezer and let it sit, wrapped, at room temperature overnight. Glaze and enjoy!

How to make ahead

This lemon loaf pound cake can be made ahead:

  • Make the batter - don't forget the fresh lemon zest!
  • Fill the loaf cake pan.
  • Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight and for up to 36 hours.
  • Let it sit 30/45 minutes at room temperature before baking.
  • Bake following the recipe instructions.

Variations to this recipe

You can make this into a mini lemon cake recipe: simply divide the batter amongst 6 mini cake pans. I usually use these mini bundt cake pans, or you can use rectangular loaf cake pans. And don't forget to adjust baking times.

The ingredients used in all recipes on this site are measured using the metric system. I use a scale to be precise with my measurements and ensure good results. If you would also like to use a scale, here are some: USA, Canada, UK, Australia, France.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Servings: 10 servings
Nutrition: 353 cal
Cuisine: International

Ingredients

Simple Lemon Cake

  • Eggs (approx 4) 200 g
  • Sugar 265 g
  • Salt 1 g
  • Whipping Cream 115 g
  • All-purpose Flour 200 g
  • Baking Powder 5 g
  • Lemon Zest 3
  • Butter (unsalted) 75 g

Lemon Glaze

  • Powdered Sugar 150 g
  • Lemon Juice 1

Procedure

  • 1. Prepare ingredients and materials: Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celcius (340 F). Butter the cake pan and line with parchment paper. Mix and sift the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Whip the cream until soft peaks are formed. Refrigerate. Melt the butter over low heat. Let it warm up at room temperature. Mix the lemon zest in with the granulated sugar.
  • 2. Make the lemon cake batter: Cream the eggs and sugar and the lemon zest - you should obtain a dense and pale-yellow mixture. Add the whipped cream and mix until combined. Add the flour and continue mixing at low speed. Finally add the melted butter and mix until it has fully incorporated into the batter.
  • 3. Bake the lemon pound cake loaf: Pour the batter into the pan and bake until golden - approximately 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool down at room temperature over a wire rack.
  • 4. Prepare the lemon glaze: Squeeze the lemon juice and strain. Add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar slowly until you obtain the desired consistency. You should mix constantly with a hand mixer. Once you are happy with your glaze, cooled-down cake. And there you have it, deliciously simple lemon cake with lemon glaze!
If you made this recipe I would really appreciate it if you leave a rating or comment below! Also, if you share on social media please use #cookwithbelula, I would love to see what you create!
8 comments
(4)
Share
You May Also Like
8 Comments
Martu June 16, 2015

It looks absolutely amazing! and it definitely brings back memories of home ;) I always leave the parts with icing for last!!

Belén Gowland
Belula June 24, 2015

Martu, me tooooooooo!! I love love the icing... the best for last, right?

Alma June 18, 2020

How much flour? 500 gr? the ingredients list don't have this information. THX

Belén Gowland
Belula June 18, 2020

Hi Alma! If you scroll down to the end of the post youll find the ingredients with quantities and the step by step :) Let me know if you found them!

Valerie November 08, 2020

Hi Belula! Can you please clarify - what does '3' lemon zest mean? Also is '1' under lemon juice - lemon juice from 1 lemon? Thank you!! :)

Belén Gowland
Belula November 11, 2020

HI Valerie!
sorry for the late response (computer glitch)! it means de zest of 3 lemons, and the juice of 1 lemon. Hope that clarified a bit! sorry for the mix up.
best,
Belen

Sandy November 10, 2020

Belen!
Thank you so much for sharing the recipe!
It's delicious and easy to make, but it gets devoured very quickly! ;-)

Belén Gowland
Belula November 11, 2020

Hi Sandy!
It is my pleasure! So happy you enjoyed the recipe :) It has that upside, at home it also gets devoured very fast ;)

Michelle November 11, 2020

I made this last weekend and the whole family simply love it! I see many more in our future. Thank you for the recipe!

Belén Gowland
Belula November 11, 2020

Hi Michelle!! So happy to hear you and your family loved the lemon cake 😊 Thank you for feedback, I really appreciate it!

Isabelle November 15, 2020

Tested today and it is the best lemon cake ever!

Belén Gowland
Belula November 15, 2020

Isabelle!!!! So so happy you enjoyed the cake! 😃This comment has made my day! Thanks for making it!

Joyce M. Cascio May 29, 2022

WHERE IS THE RECIPE, Please?

Belén Gowland
Belula June 03, 2022

Hi Joyce, the recipe is just over the comment section. If you scroll up, you can find it there. All the ingredients and procedure are listed. Hope this helps!

Earl Chestnut May 30, 2022

It didn't taste sweet enough.
I followed the directions except when did the icing I should pour icing while its waz still on the ra

Belén Gowland
Belula June 03, 2022

Hi Earl, was the cake or the icing not sweat enough?

Leave a comment and/or rating
Would you like to rate this recipe? (optional):