Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: Tons of bright fresh lemon flavor! The perfect balance of sweet and tangy.
Texture: Ultra-buttery and moist with a thick, luscious glaze on top.
Ease: The batter comes together in minutes.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: The most perfect spring or summer treat that any lemon lovers will go crazy over!
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Inspired by the Starbucks lemon loaf, this homemade iced lemon pound cake is moist, rich, and finished with a thick, luscious glaze that sets beautifully before slicing.
Many lemon recipes seem to lose the intensity of the lemon flavor after baking, so I worked to find a way to pack a strong lemon punch without using difficult-to-source ingredients.
I tested batch after batch, tweaking and experimenting until I was obsessed with the final result!
Heavily inspired by Baked and Cook’s Illustrated recipes, this recipe turned out better than I could have imagined. Serve it for breakfast, brunch, tea, or dessert.
Reader Love
You will not find a better tasting, and best texture lemon loaf. I have made this recipe many times. It is truly the best lemon loaf recipe you will ever make!!!
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Sprinkle of Science
Ingredient Notes
- All-Purpose Flour + Cake Flour: In testing, using only AP flour produced a more muffin-like cornbread-y texture. Using only cake flour made the loaf too delicate and crumbly. The combination gives structure and tenderness. I highly recommend real cake flour (not DIY substitutes). Learn more about cake flour here.
- Granulated Sugar: Do not reduce the sugar. This is a high-ratio cake (more sugar than flour), which creates moisture and a tight crumb. Reducing sugar negatively impacts texture and structure. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking here.
- Fresh Lemon Zest + Juice: The recipe calls for 2 tablespoons zest and 2 tablespoons juice in the batter — plus another tablespoon in the glaze. That’s about 3 large lemons total. This is essential for bold lemon flavor.
- Eggs: Provide richness and structure. Room temperature eggs blend more smoothly into the batter. I have not found a suitable substitute for the eggs.
- Sour Cream: Adds moisture, tenderness, and enhances the tangy flavor. Full-fat plain yogurt works well as a substitute.
- Unsalted Butter: Two full sticks of melted butter give this lemon pound cake its signature buttery flavor and moist texture. Drizzle it in slowly while blending to properly emulsify.
How to Make Lemon Loaf (Step-by-Step):
- Prepare the pan. Grease a 9×5-inch light-colored metal loaf pan and preheat oven to 350°F.
- If using ceramic or glass, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F and increase the baking time by about 10 minutes.
- If baking in an 8.5×4.5-inch pan, add 5 minutes to the baking time.
- Combine dry ingredients. Sift together the cake flour, AP flour, baking powder, and salt. Don’t skip this step!
- Build lemon flavor. In a food process or high-speed blender, pulse the sugar and lemon zest. Add the lemon juice, eggs, and sour cream an pulse until combined.
- Emulsify the melted butter. With the machine on low speed, drizzle in the melted butter in a slow, steady stream. This is key to an ultra smooth batter and tight, tender crumb without needing to cream butter and sugar.
- Combine wet and dry. Make a well in the dry ingredients with a rubber spatula, pour in the wet ingredients. Gently fold to combine. Batter will be thin!
- Bake. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes, or until:
- A toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs.
- An instant-read thermometer registers an internal temperature for 200-205°F.
- Cool properly. Cool in pan for 15-20 minutes. Run a thin, flexible knife around the edges of the pan before inverting onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Glaze. Whisk together the glaze ingredients until very thick but still pourable. Spoon over the loaf and let set for 15 minutes before slicing or storing. Don’t skip the glaze, it really amplifies the lemon flavor!
Storage & Make Ahead
The cooled, glazed Lemon Pound Cake Loaf can be covered in foil or plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.
For freeze, wrap the unglazed loaf tightly in plastic wrap and store for 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then bring to room temperature before glazing. Your loaf will likely develop a moist or tacky surface on top, but the glaze should disguise it nicely.
FAQs
Pound cake is traditionally made with a pound of each of the four main ingredients: flour, butter, eggs, and sugar. While this makes a traditional pound cake recipe easy to remember, it doesn’t always produce the best results. You’ll see my recipe still uses a lot of butter and sugar, but the ratios vary slightly, for the best flavor and texture.
A lemon loaf is a loaf-style cake with a tight, moist crumb similar to pound cake. This version is rich with butter and topped with a lemon glaze, making it both dense and ultra flavorful. It’s like a pound cake and a loaf had a baby.
This recipe uses half all-purpose flour and half cake flour for the best of both worlds. When using only all-purpose flour, the loaf had more of a muffin texture. When using only cake flour, the loaf was too delicate and crumbly.
While you can use only all-purpose flour, I highly recommend using real cake flour for the best texture here. Learn more about cake flour (and why I don’t use DIY substitutes) here.
The heating process changes the flavor compounds. That’s why I use a generous amount of zest and juice, plus a fresh glaze on top to boost the lemon flavor. The flavor will intensify as the loaf sits.
It’s done when a toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. For precision, the internal temperature should reach 200–205°F.
Yes. Freeze the unglazed loaf tightly wrapped for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and glaze before serving.
Yes. Double all ingredients and bake in a well-greased 10 to 12 cup bundt pan and bake for about 50 to 60 minutes.
OR, use my Lemon Bundt Cake recipe.
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Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3/4 cup (95 grams) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (85 grams) cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest (from about 3 lemons)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup (57 grams) sour cream or plain yogurt, at room temperature
- 2 sticks (227 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
For the glaze:
- 1 cup (125 grams) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon milk or cream
Instructions
Make the loaf:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 by 5-inch metal loaf pan.*
- In a large mixing bowl, sift together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a food processor or high-speed blender, combine the sugar and lemon zest. Pulse a few times to evenly distribute the zest. Add the lemon juice, eggs, and sour cream and pulse until combined. On low speed, gradually drizzle in the melted butter in a slow steady stream until well combined.
- Make a well in the dry ingredient mixture. Pour in the wet ingredients. Mix gently with a rubber spatula until just combined. Batter will be slightly thin.
- Pour mixture into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached, about 50 minutes if using a metal pan, or once an internal temperature of 200-205°F is reached.
- Cool in pan for 15 to 20 minutes then run a thin flexible knife around the edges before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the glaze:
- In a small bowl, whisk together the glaze ingredients until thick but pourable. Add more juice or milk to thin out or more sugar to thicken to your desired consistency. Spoon over the cooled loaf, letting it drip down the sides if desired. Let set for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
More Lemon Desserts You’ll Love:
- Glazed Lemon Cookies – my favorite lemon cookies!
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
- Lemon Cheesecake
- Raspberry Lemonade Cheesecake Bars
- Lemon Yogurt Zucchini Bread
Absolutely a beautiful lemon poundcake.!
After making it once I immediately made it again and sliced it to use as a crust in a lemon raspberry cheesecake.
So decadent and thoroughly yummy.
What do you think of an immersion blender in place of the food processor or high-speed blender?
Thanks for your wonderful recipes, Tessa. 🙂
So happy to hear this! Your cheesecake sounds incredible! I’ve never tried an immersion blender with this recipe, let me know how it goes!
This loaf’s crumb has one of the most satisfying texture i have ever seen and eaten! And the tangy to sweet ratio is right on point. I will only use this lemon pound cake recipe from now on
I’m absolutely thrilled you love this lemon loaf so much!!!
Husband absolutely loved this. Printed and saved this for the good books! Thank you 🙂
This makes me so happy!
Hey what can switch cake flour with? I cant find cake flour where i live. Thanm you
I’m not sure what would be a good substitute where you live, sometimes cake flour can be named something else in different countries! I recommend checking out my Cake Flour 101 article where I talk all about cake flour https://handletheheat.com/cake-flour-101/ Hope this helps!
Made this last week and just put my second loaf in the oven (I’m overnighting it to a friend who said they wanted some after seeing pictures). It is super easy to put together. Planning to make it for a third time for easter. Thanks for sharing!
This just made my day! I’m thrilled to hear you love this recipe so much! I hope your friend loves it just as much as you do!
Can’t wait to try! Please advise if I do not have processor or blender- can I still achieve?
Hi Andy! You could try mixing by hand, but I can’t guarantee the same outcome. A blender or food processor helps emulsify the ingredients better than mixing by hand would.
This cake definitely tasted like a bakery-style lemon pound cake which was delicious, but I found that mine was a bit gluey/gummy! In your video the cake is super soft and mine came out denser, which I actually preferred, but it was almost too dense and it was a bit pasty. Another friend of mine found the same thing so I’m not that sure what steps I should pay more attention to in regards to the texture, but besides that it was really delicious!
Do you measure your ingredients with a digital scale? It sounds to me from the gluey-side that maybe you used too much flour? As far as the gummy texture, that’s usually due to underbaking. Did you bake in a light or dark colored metal pan?
I did weigh out the ingredients using a scale and I baked it in a metal pan. I only used regular AP flour so maybe that was it? And I think I must have underbaked it because I found the end pieces to be better but I took it out when there were moist crumbs like you said so maybe next time I’ll add 5 or so minutes. Thanks for getting back!
Sorry I can’t rate this recipe because I cannot print out the recipe. All I get are blank pages showing only the header and footer.
Is there a secret to printing the receipe? I love Starbuck’s Lemon Cake, but want to give Tessa’s recipe a try.
HELP!
Hi Janet! In the blue box where the recipe is, there is a red printer icon right below the recipe title. Click on that and print. It might not open if you have an Ad-blocker installed. Let me know if that helps! Good luck!
I sent the recipe to my neighbor. She surprised me with half a loaf! It was so delicious warm and again this morning for breakfast treat! ♥️
What a nice neighbor you have! So glad to hear this recipe was enjoyed.
Hi Tessa!
I was wondering if doubling the recipe and making 2 loafs would be an issue, or if it’s better to make 2 separate batches of batter?
Thanks,
Jess
Hi Jess! I’ve seen lots of people double this recipe with delicious results. Hope you enjoy your loaves!
This loaf turned out so moist an delicious! I love that it’s not overly sweet which can be adjusted with the glaze. This is absolutely perfect with my morning coffee!
So glad to hear that you loved this recipe!
I’m prepping to make this in a few days and I’d love to make it with cream cheese icing. Have you tested this?
Hi Sam, a cream cheese frosting would be absolutely delicious on this Lemon Pound Cake Loaf! I have a recipe for that icing here: https://handletheheat.com/best-cream-cheese-frosting/