Iced lemon pound cake is a moist cake that’s full of bright lemon flavor. This simple cake is easy enough for everyday baking but looks and tastes good enough to serve for special occasions.
This iced lemon pound cake is a simple from-scratch dessert that delivers bright lemon flavor in every slice. This pound cake has the classic dense texture of a pound cake but is still moist, and it’s topped with a tasty lemon glaze that adds moisture, has just the right amount of sweetness, and brings even more lemon flavor.
The cake is easy to make but still feels special enough to serve for get-togethers or holidays. It’s the kind of recipe that works year-round, but it’s especially welcome when you want something fresh and citrusy to brighten up your winter baking. For even more lemon desserts, check out my lemon pudding cake or lemon olive oil cake.
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Butter: If using salted butter, decrease the salt to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Cream cheese: I recommend using full-fat cream cheese in this recipe for the moistest cake.
- Lemon juice: I strongly suggest using fresh lemon juice, especially as you’ll be using the lemon zest in the cake as well.
- Kosher salt: If using table salt, halve the amount.
How to make lemon pound cake
Here you’ll find instructions and step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including ingredients, is given below.
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously grease and flour a bundt pan. Set aside.
Step 2: In a large bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese with a mixer until well combined, scraping the bowl as needed.
Step 3: Add in the sugar, and mix until well combined, about 2-3 minutes.
Step 4: Mix in the eggs on at a time until well combined.
Step 5: Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix in until combined.
Step 6: Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in dry ingredients just until combined. Don’t overmix. It will be a thick batter.
Step 7: Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan.
Step 8: Bake for about 50-70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. You want a golden crust, so tent with foil if cake is browning too quickly.
Step 8: Let cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges to loosen. Invert onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely before glazing.
Step 9: To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice together. Add additional lemon juice as needed to make the glaze a drizzle-able consistency.
Step 10: Drizzle glaze over top the cooled cake. Serve topped with sliced lemons if desired.
Recipe Tips!
- Lemon flavor: For stronger lemon flavor, substitute lemon extract for the vanilla, increase the lemon zest to 2 tablespoons, and add 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest to the icing.
- Freezing: If you would like to freeze the cake, you can wrap cooled slices of cake or the entire cake tightly in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-safe container. I recommend waiting to ice until it is thawed.
Storage
Store any leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature. The cake will keep for around 3 days when properly stored.
More pound cake recipes!
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Iced Lemon Pound Cake Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 8 ounce package full-fat cream cheese softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups sifted all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3-5 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously grease and flour a bundt pan. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and cream cheese until well combined, scraping the bowl as needed.1 cup unsalted butter, 8 ounce package full-fat cream cheese
- Add in the sugar, and mix until well combined, about 2-3 minutes.2 cups granulated sugar
- Mix in the eggs on at a time until well combined.6 large eggs
- Add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla. Mix in until combined.2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in just until combined. Don’t overmix.3 cups sifted all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan.
- Bake for about 50-70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Tent with foil if cake is browning too quickly.
- Let cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges to loosen. Invert onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely before glazing.
- To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice together. Add additional lemon juice as needed to make the glaze a drizzle-able consistency.1 cup powdered sugar, 3-5 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- Drizzle glaze over top the cooled cake.
Notes
- Butter: If using salted butter, decrease the salt to 1/4 teaspoon.
- Cream cheese: I recommend using full-fat cream cheese in this recipe for the moistest cake.
- Lemon juice: I strongly suggest using fresh lemon juice, especially as you’ll be using the lemon zest in the cake as well.
- Kosher salt: If using table salt, halve the amount.
- Nutrition values are estimates.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Susan hurrie says
Lovely looking and delicious cake …thank you ..
Kate Dean says
Thank you!
Jean Thomas says
I really want to make the Iced Lemon Pound Cake. But I have a convection oven and I haven’t had success baking cakes or cookies. For one thing it’s almost impossible to tent anything because the air blowing from on top of whatever you are baking blows away. I live in a small apartment that has no stove. I have to use a hot plate to cook and this convection oven to bake. I have baked casseroles successfully so far but cakes are more easily dried out from the air blowing.
I really need some input. I love my apartment except for this oven. Thanks for any help.
Jean
Kate Dean says
Hi! It’s really frustrating when your oven isn’t working the way that you had hoped. A few things that you could potentially adjust with a convection oven are lowering the oven rack, decreasing the temperature by 25F, and decreasing the baking time. Also, sometimes my foil will try to blow off, too. I tent it in the middle, and then I pinch it on the sides onto the pan in two places just to hold it down. I hope that helps!
Solange TESSIER Roy says
Le gateau au citron me plait beaucoup,j aimerais savoir avant de le faire si on peut diminue le sucre dans ce gateau,2 tasse ces beaucoup,plus le glacage a la fin qui a du sucre ,merci j attent une reponse solange
Kate Dean says
Le sucre contribue à la structure du gâteau et lui apporte une touche sucrée. Vous pouvez en réduire la quantité de 60 à 120 ml (1/4 à 1/2 tasse), mais je ne recommande pas d’en retirer davantage. Vous pouvez également préparer une demi-dose de glaçage pour un résultat moins sucré. J’espère que cela vous sera utile!
Jen says
Does it have to be a bundt pan or would a loaf cake tin suffice
Kate Dean says
Hi! I haven’t tried that with this recipe, but I would guess that it would work to make it as a loaf cake. I would recommend checking a pan conversion chart to see how many loaf pans you would need if converting from a bundt pan. I do have a similar iced lemon loaf cake recipe if you’re interested.