My go-to lemon loaf recipe for years! This delicious Glazed Lemon Pound Cake Loaf is always perfectly moist and lemony!
I have been making this same lemon loaf for years. It’s my “go to” when only lemon loaf will do. The fact that I’ve never posted it to this point is simply my belief that maybe the internet didn’t really need another lemon loaf recipe. But what the heck. It’s good, it’s tried and tested (many, many times!) and for anyone who has yet to find their “go to” lemon loaf, it’s definitely worthy of consideration.
I suppose lemon loaf is somewhat subjective. What makes this loaf a winner for me is the lovely texture (not too light, not too dense), the perfect level of moistness (not too oily, never dry) and just the right amount of lemon. With this one, the hit of lemon actually comes more from the glaze than the cake, though there is obviously some lemon in the cake. But it’s in the lemon glaze that the the perfect balance is struck, so definitely don’t skip that.
The final point I love about this loaf, is that it needs only 1 large lemon and pretty much typical pantry and fridge items to make it. That means I’m always stocked to make this one, which has come in handy many times when I needed a little something special to share or gift.
Featured Review: I made this lemon pound loaf today and it tastes incredible! I was worried that it wouldn’t have much lemon taste because of the small amount of lemon juice that goes into the batter. There was no need to worry though, the lemon taste is the star of this loaf. This recipe is pure perfection! – Krista
Cook’s Notes
When it comes to baking loaves like this one, there is really just one secret to success. Follow the instructions :) Take it from someone who has (in the past :) skipped certain instructions like “at room temperature”, “whisk together well in a separate bowl” and “add alternately” … yet had what I considered (at the time) to be a reasonably fine result.
It was only when I started following those instructions that I discovered the reason they were there. There’s fine and then there’s great. I learned I prefer the great, so I am willing to be a bit more organized and patient. It’s a small price to pay for great lemon loaf :)
So the moral of that story … be sure to take your eggs, butter and sour cream out of the fridge 30 minutes before you start baking. Be sure to combine the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder in a separate large bowl and whisk it together well. You will be rewarded!
This lemon loaf freezes beautifully. Freeze it whole in a freezer bag, or slice it first and freeze it. Slicing first means you can grab a slice when you feel the need, instead of trying to cut/thaw a slice from a frozen whole loaf. To thaw a slice, simply set a frozen slice on the counter on a piece of paper towel and it will be ready to enjoy in 20-30 minutes. To thaw a whole loaf, set on the counter inside the sealed freezer bag until thawed.
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Get the Recipe: Glazed Lemon Pound Cake Loaf
Ingredients
Loaf:
- 1/2 cup (113 g) butter, salted, or unsalted, at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) white sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 Tbsp lemon zest, from about 1 large lemon
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups (185 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp table salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 cup (75 ml) sour cream, removed from fridge 15 minutes before using
Glaze:
- 1/2 cup (65 g) icing/confectioners' sugar
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice, plus more, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 F. (not convection bake). Spray an 8x4-inch loaf pan with baking spray and line with a piece of parchment paper that covers the bottom and long sides, with an inch or so extending past the top of the pan (these will be the "handles" to lift the loaf out of the pan).
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugar at medium speed (about "4 or 5" on a KitchenAid mixer) until light coloured and fluffy. (Don't skimp on this process. It should cream about 3 minutes). Add the eggs one at a time and beat in well after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl, as needed. Beat in the lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together well the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. With mixer on low, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the sour cream, starting with 1/3 of the flour, 1/2 of the sour cream, 1/3 of the flour, last of the sour cream, then finally the last of the flour.
- Scrape into prepared 8x4-inch loaf pan and level batter. Bake in preheated oven for 55-60 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then run a knife along the short ends and use the parchment paper edges to lift and remove from pan. Allow to cool on a cooling rack.
- While loaf is still a little warm, prepare the glaze by stirring together all the glaze ingredients in a small bowl, adding enough lemon juice to make a pourable glaze. Place a baking tray under the cooling rack to catch any drips and spoon glaze slowly over top of loaf, allowing it to drip down the sides a bit. Cool completely, then slice and enjoy.
Notes
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Hi Jennifer,
This has become my go-to lemon pound cake recipe! I have it saved on my iPad and make it a couple of times a month. Just love it! But this morning I’m craving an orange treat. Could I simply sub orange zest/juice for the lemon zest/juice?
Hi Deb and so glad you are enjoying this one :) As for subbing orange, you definitely could, but I’m thinking if you did it in the same quantities as lemon, the orange flavour might be quite subtle. I wouldn’t increase the juice as it would probably throw off the recipe a bit, but I would increase the orange zest. Maybe double? Worth trying, I think!
Made today for my daughters birthday. Yum. Thanks!
So glad to hear, Debbie :) Thanks!
This has become a family favorite in our house….make it on a regular bases. Thank you for such lovely recipes!!!
Thanks so much, Jenn :) So glad you are enjoying them!
Hi Jennifer! I am newbie baker and loving your blog. How do you make a glaze? Just mix the sugar and lemon? Or do I whisk it up in the electric mixer?
Thanks for the help!!
Hi Reguina, no mixer needed. If it had butter in it a mixer is good, but this one will come together nicely with a spoon. When you first add the lemon juice to the icing sugar, it will look like there isn’t nearly enough liquid, but just stir and stir and the lemon juice will melt the icing sugar into a smooth glaze :) It will be pouring consistency, not spreadable. Hope that helps!
I totally made this yesterday and can’t believe how perfect it came out. I only had a half cup of white flour left so I used a full cup of coconut flour along with it and WOW not only does it feel a bit healthier but it didn’t crumble, super moist super lemony and a small hint of coconut from the flour.. had to come back and comment to thank you
So glad to hear, Amanda! Thanks :)
My loaf pan measures 9.25 x 5.25 inches…..how long would I bake it, also it’s a dark metal pan. Thank you, Jennifer. I look forward to making this!
Hi Mary, You can bake this in a 9×5 pan, but it will be a pretty short loaf. Cooking time will be less. Can’t say how much exactly, but I would probably start checking at 40 minutes. For a dark pan, you may want to reduce the oven temperature to 300F. Hope that helps :)
A short loaf and less cooking time with a 9×5 pan? I’m in the same boat, but what size pan do you typically use, recipe says 8×4? Thanks, I’m excited to make this!
Hi Steph and yes, this one is best baked in an 8 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan. That said, if you only have a 9×5 pan, it will be shorter, so you will want to reduce the baking time. Check often for doneness and you will be fine.
Hi, it looks awesome! I havent tried it yet but before I do can I ask if it will still taste sweet without the glaze? I dont want to add the glaze but i also dont want the cake to taste bad without it. Also, will the mixing times still be correct if I hand mix? I don’t have an electric mixer, and im a huge amateur, so im not sure if i can eyeball it to make sure its mixed well enough. Thank you! Cant wait to try it.
Hi Reagan, So a couple of things … you don’t need to do the glaze, but the glaze in this recipe is where the real hit of lemon is, so you’d want to up the lemon juice and zest in the loaf if you aren’t doing the glaze. Maybe double. As for making without an electric mixer, you will need to really (really!) use your muscles and whisk the butter and sugar until it lightens in colour (goes from yellow coloured to whitish.). Also whisk the eggs in well after each addition. After that, you should be good :) Enjoy!
Would this cake be good without icing for a fondue?
Hi Kate, it may be a little too tender for fondue. While it is a pound cake, it is not a dense one that would cut well into cubes etc.
Do you think I can double the recipe and bake it in a bundt pan?
I think it’s worth a try, Liana. The cooking time would be longer, I suspect. Let me know how it works out!
I am gluten free, but I substituted a gluten free flour blend, cup-for-cup, in this recipe and it turned out amazing!! It was so good, it didn’t even last 6 hours at our house! I have a daughter who is gluten free as well, and she was very happy to have it for breakfast! The lemon flavor is incredible!
I’d love to see gluten free baked goods on this site as well. I’m sure they would be very good!
Hi Katarina and thanks so much for letting me (and everyone :) know that this one turns out so well with gluten free flour. I appreciate your interest in gluten free baked goods. I will keep that in mind. So glad you enjoyed it!
As is, it’s perfect! Thank you for sharing! It’s a keeper for me and my boys. :)
Thanks so much, Patti! So glad you all are enjoying it :)
Hello Jennifer i was looking lemon cake recipe and I found this I tried it oh my good delicious my kids loved it moist perfect I used homemade yogurt.thanks Jenni
So glad you enjoyed it. Would be great with homemade yogurt :) Thanks!
Hi I only habe 2 eggs at the moment and am an hr away from town lol ..would this work with 2 eggs? Sounds delicious!
Batter looks and tastes great, and it was super easy to put together, even for an amateur like me! Just put it into the oven, let’s hope it turns out good :) thanks for the recipe!
Thanks Sarah! Enjoy :)
Hi would this work with just 2 large eggs?
Hi Tara, I haven’t done it but you could try replacing the missing egg with 1 Tbsp veg oil + 1 Tbsp water.
Loved it. Made multiple times now. I do add about 2 more tbs of lemon juice though, and about 4 tbsp of poppyseed.
So glad to hear, Chris! Thanks :)