This moist Lemon Cake Recipe is fluffy, tangy and so easy to make from scratch! Every bite of this supremely moist pound cake is bursting with lemon flavor. If you like the Starbucks Lemon Loaf then you'll love this homemade lemon pound cake!
Prep time: PT15M
Cook time: PT45M
Total time: PT60M
Rating
4.94 stars (1795 reviews)
Keywords
Lemon Cake Recipe
Ingredients
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp lemon zest
½ tsp salt
½ cup unsalted butter (room temperature )
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs (room temperature)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp lemon juice (about 1/2 lemon)
½ cup buttermilk (see below for substitution)
¼ cup lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
3 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 cup powdered sugar (sifted )
1 ½ Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp milk
Categories
Baking
Cuisine
American
Steps
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a 9x5-inch (or 8x4-inch) loaf pan (see note).
In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using an electric mixer), cream the butter and sugar together at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 4-6 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
With the mixer running on low-speed, add the eggs one at a time, then beat in the vanilla extract and lemon juice. Beat on medium-high speed until combined.
With the mixer on low, add about one-third of the flour mixture and mix until almost combined, then add half the buttermilk and mix until just combined. Repeat with another third of flour mixture and then the last half of the buttermilk, ending with the last third of the flour. Beat until just incorporated.
Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean with only a couple moist crumbs. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours.
Let the cake cool for about 15 minutes in the pan. Stir together the lemon juice and confectioners’ sugar for the lemon syrup. Carefully invert the loaf pan, and transfer the cake to a cooling rack, then brush the syrup on the cake while it’s still warm. Allow cake to cool completely.
When the cake is cooled, combine all the icing ingredients, start with 1 tbsp lemon juice and milk and add the remaining lemon juice as needed. The icing should be thick and not runny. Pour icing over cake and let dry before serving.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 306 kcal
Carbohydrates: 49 g
Protein: 3 g
Fat: 10 g
Saturated Fat: 6 g
Cholesterol: 58 mg
Sodium: 144 mg
Sugar: 34 g
Reviews
Wendy on 2026-08-11 (5 stars): I love this lemon cake, I followed the method and it turned out perfect, the next time I was in a rush and dumped all the ingredients in the bowl at once and the cake turned out exactly as before! Just a thought if you are short of time !
Sharryn on 2026-08-10 (5 stars): Awesome cake, easy, delicious, moist and fluffy
Bella on 2026-08-04 (5 stars): Amazing cake! Really soft and fluffy with a little lemon zing. Love it❤️
Hayden Unitt on 2026-07-30 (5 stars): Very nice moist cake great results
Jennifer Cabral on 2026-07-30 (5 stars): Tried the lemon cake yesterday, and it turned out absolutely delicious! The texture was perfect—soft, moist, and incredibly tasty. My family loved it!
The lemon syrup added at the end while the cake is still a bit warm, really elevated the flavour and gave the cake a wonderful fresh, citrusy taste.
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
I made a slight modification to the icing by whipping together ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, 3 cups confectioners' sugar, ½ tsp vanilla essence, and 2 tbsp lemon juice, omitting the milk. It turned out amazing and paired beautifully with the cake!
Ashley on 2026-07-27 (5 stars): I had only one lemon to work with, so I made the cake as instructed, but halved the amount of syrup and icing. It's just my personal taste, but that was perfect. It might be too much sugar/sweetness for me otherwise.
The crumb on this was also amazing, dense but not too heavy. When recipes tell you how to incorporate the ingredients a bit at a time, I usually just dump everything in and ignore it. But I followed the instructions in this recipe, and maybe it really does make a difference?
This is the recipe I'll be using for the rest of my life.
Lola on 2026-07-24 (5 stars): 👌 perfect .
natalie on 2026-07-22 (5 stars): this came out really good! super soft and tasty! my family loved it
Susanna on 2026-07-09 (5 stars): My first ever lemon loaf...was a huge success. I added extra lemon juice and zest for a really lemony zing...so good. I also swapped out butter and used olive oil also raw sugar not white...moist and good texture.Thankyou for the recipe.
Janice Wilson on 2026-06-27 (5 stars): Very good and moist. I made a few substitutions - used sal.ted butter so cut salt to 1/4t, also made buttermilk by adding 1.5 t to regular milk, used fresh eggs med size so I added 1 additional small egg. I topped individual pieces with homemade lemon pudding and a scoop of whip cream. It was a hit!
Lizzy on 2026-06-26 (5 stars): Amazing!! I put lemon extract in the batter as well as the zest and juice and only use lemon juice in the glaze because I think it tastes better that way. it’s delicious!! I always grate my knuckles but it’s worth it!! 💛💛💛
VQ on 2026-06-26 (5 stars): I don't normally eat lemon cake, but made this for someone who LOVES it. He said it was better than the store bought one I purchased for him. He said everything was PERFECT in flavor. And this was my FIRST making it and I detest cooking. 😂
Nina on 2026-06-21 (5 stars): I make this cake every year for my son‘s BD school celebration, I just double down the sugar ;) It’s amazingly moist and fresh. Kids love it. ❤️
Lisa on 2026-06-15 (5 stars): This is the best cake I have ever made. Great easy to follow recipe.
