Easy, Delicious Lemon Pound Cake
Nothing says springtime like the scent of fresh lemons. This lemon pound cake is easy to put together, rich and dense, and perfect for slicing. Arrange the slices on a serving platter and watch it disappear!
This recipe was adapted from a King Arthur Flour original recipe.
Cook Time
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Ready in: 1 hour
Yields: 16-24 slices (depending on thickness)
Ingredients
- 3 oz full-fat cream cheese, softened
- 7 oz unsalted butter, softened (14 tbsp)
- 1/2 tsp table salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp lemon extract
- 1 tsp baking powder, (not baking soda)
- 7.25 oz all-purpose flour, about 1 3/4 cups
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 5 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
Fluffy Batter
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease or spray with cooking spray two 8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch loaf pans.
- Beat the cream cheese and butter together until thoroughly combined.
- Add the salt, vanilla extract, lemon extract, baking powder, 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar, and all-purpose flour. Beat for 5 full minutes. The mixture will be thick. A stand mixer works well here.
- Add eggs, one at a time. Beat well after each addition and scrape down the sides of the bowl in between each addition. When you are finished, the batter will be very fluffy.
- Divide the batter evenly into the prepared pans. It is a pudding-like consistency, so you will have to spoon it rather than pour. Even it out with a spatula.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees. They are done when a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Allow to cool on a rack for 10 minutes before turning them out onto the rack. I find it helpful to put a layer of parchment beneath the rack to start with. It will catch any glaze that drips over.
- While the cakes are cooling in their pans, microwave the lemon juice and remaining 1/2 cup of sugar 30-45 seconds or until it is warm enough to melt the sugar. Take it out and stir it after 30 seconds, then continue heating and stirring until the sugar melts. This will vary depending on your microwave.
- After you have turned the cakes out of their pans, poke holes all over them, but not all the way through the cakes. Use a cake tester or toothpick.
- Pour the lemon glaze slowly onto the cakes while they are still warm. Pouring slowly allows the cakes to absorb the glaze instead of it just running off the sides.
- You can eat the cakes right away (I did), but if you allow them to rest for a couple of hours before slicing, the slices will stay intact better and the cakes will retain their moisture longer.
I took these pound cakes to work. Everyone raved about how moist and tender they were. I hope you enjoy them as much as we did!
Fun Variations
- Bake all the cake batter in one regular size bundt or tube pan instead of 2 loaf pans. Fill the center hole with fresh red raspberries sprinkled with candied lemon zest.
- If baked in a bundt pan, this recipe will need to bake for closer to an hour. Make sure to test its doneness.
- Add 1 tablespoon of lemon zest to the cake batter for an extra-lemony flavor.
- Slice the cake length-wise and fill with lemon curd or raspberry jam.
- Substitute almond extract for the lemon extract and leave out the glaze for an almond-vanilla pound cake.
- If you do the almond-vanilla version, make fat slices, then pan fry them in butter until golden, then add a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream drizzled with fudge sauce. (Oh my goodness…back to the kitchen!)
These are the best loaf pans ever. Nothing sticks whatsoever, and you really can't beat the price for quality pans.
This pan would make a beautiful cake filled with berries in the center and around the edges!
© 2013 Leah Wells-Marshburn
