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
What’s a pound cake?
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.
What is a lemon loaf?
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.
Do I have to use cake flour?
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.
Why does lemon flavor fade after baking?
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.
How do I know when lemon pound cake is done baking?
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.
Can I freeze lemon loaf?
Yes. Freeze the unglazed loaf tightly wrapped for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and glaze before serving.
Can I bake this recipe in a bundt pan?
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.
Lemon Pound Cake Loaf
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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.
Recipe 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
This was amazing!! I’ve made it twice already! Super easy to put together also.
Absolutely the best! I can’t tell you how many recipes I have tried to only “toss” them after taking a bit. This is definitely a keeper!!! Thank you Tessa!
Hi. I’ve made many of your recipes and they never disappoint. I also recently purchased your cookie book. Love it! I made your lemon pound cake this morning. My question is if it is normal for the outside of the cake to be quite dark? Inside seems just fine. Just curious if the dark color is normal? I used a nonstick loaf pan. Not glass or ceramic. Thank you in advance!
Thank you so much for your sweet review, Rachel, I’m so glad you love my cookie book! Yes, it is normal for the outside of the loaf to be a bit darker. You can see it’s more of a dark golden brown in the above photos 🙂 I hope you enjoy your loaf!
If it’s a nonstick (dark) pan, it tends to create a darker crust. I use light silver pans for all of my baking. You can also try using parchment in the bottom and sides to see if that helps keep it from getting too dark. The outsides bake faster than the middle, of course, and that’s why they tend to get darker.
Fantastic! The best lemon loaf pound cake I’ve made! Amount of tanginess from the lemon is just right and the texture is ‘pound cake perfect’! The only change I need to make for next time is to grease my loaf pan more generously (I had a bit of a problem getting it to release after cooling). Thank you for a great recipe and technique!
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this recipe!
My husband loved it!
I had to add 10 more minutes to bake time.
So happy he loved this recipe! Baking time can vary depending on type of pan and oven. Glad it worked for you!
I made this wonderful cake last weekend and it came out perfectly. The texture and flavour were amazing (I cannot stand crumbly, dry and bland cakes). It was chewy and you could really taste the lemon. It was a big hit with the family and I will definitely be making this again.
I have two questions.
1. What’s sprinkled on top of the cake in the picture? Is it lemon zest?
2. Could I use packed lemon zest or just lemon juice for the batter? I know it’s not exactly the same but lemons can be super expensive where I live in winter.
I’m so happy to hear you love this loaf! You are correct, lemon zest is sprinkled on top in the picture-I LOVE LEMON 🙂 I wouldn’t just use lemon zest as lemon juice is absolutely necessary for the flavor, but you could definitely just use juice without zest (it’ll be a little lighter in lemon flavor though). I’ve had a few reviewers switch this recipe to an orange loaf with great results too! That might be an idea for you in the winter months? Good luck!
I made this lemon pound cake loaf recently. I couldn’t believe how easy it was to make as I’m not a baker. It turned out amazing! Very moist and delicious. I would use this recipe again! Thanks for the recipe, Tessa! It is definitely better than the Starbucks one.
YAY! I’m so thrilled to hear this!
Scrumptious! My Grand daughter said that it was better then the lemon cake available at Starbucks.. WOW!
YAY! So happy you both enjoyed this lemon loaf!!!
If I dont have a cake flour then what to do?
I discuss this in the pink box above the recipe!
I made this cake today ! Used lime as we don’t get lemon in our area. It was sooooo good !!!! Thank you so much for the recipe !
Yummy! Glad you made this loaf your own with lime!
I’ve tried other recipes that claim to taste better than Starbucks, but this one really does!! Light, moist and flavorful! The perfect amount of lemon and that glaze on top is to die for (I used organic powdered sugar and it was just right – not too sweet).
Woohoo! I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe!
Will it turn out the same if I use a mixer instead of a blender?
A blender or food processor not only assists in making quick and easy work of making this batter, but it also helps emulsify all the rich ingredients together into a smooth batter. You can try a mixer, but it might not have QUITE the same outcome. Good luck!