Lemon-Glazed Pound Cake Recipe
Even though lemons are something you can buy year-round, their bright sunny color just speaks of summer. Lemon cake, too, pairs wonderfully with fresh summer berries to make the perfect warm-weather dessert. This lemon-glazed pound cake, recipe developer Jessica Morone says, "is moist, delicious, and packed with lemon flavor." She does note, though, that you could actually turn it into an orange or even a lime pound cake by swapping out the juice and zest for these different fruits.
One reason why this cake is extra-rich is that Morone uses sour cream in the batter. As she tells us, "The best sour cream to use in baked goods is full fat because the fat is what helps to add the moisture." If the kind you've got in the fridge is reduced fat, though, you can go ahead and use it. And don't worry, your cake won't taste anything like sour cream — it will just be dense, moist, and absolutely bursting with citrusy flavor.
Collect the ingredients for the lemon-glazed pound cake
For the pound cake, you'll need standard cake-type ingredients: flour, baking powder, salt, butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. There's also the aforementioned sour cream, plus a lemon or two (both the juice and zest). To make the glaze, you will also need some confectioners' sugar.
Make the cake batter
Preheat the oven to 350 F, then start mixing up the batter. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt), then cream the butter and the granulated sugar. When the butter/sugar mixture is fluffy, stir in the eggs, vanilla, sour cream, lemon zest, and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Once those additions are incorporated, mix the dry ingredients into the batter.
Bake the cake
Grease or line a 9x5-inch loaf pan, then pour in the batter. If you prefer, you could also use a bundt pan. As Morone notes, "The glaze would look really pretty drizzled over a bundt shape." Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes or until a toothpick stuck into the center comes out clean. Once the cake is done, let it cool completely before you do anything else with it.
Glaze the cake
Stir the remaining lemon juice into the confectioners' sugar until you have a nice smooth glaze. Drizzle this over the top of the cooled cake. Make sure to let the glaze harden before you cut the cake because otherwise, it won't look quite so pretty.
As long as you keep it in an airtight container, the cake should be okay at room temperature for five days, although refrigerating it will extend the shelf life. You can also freeze the cooled cake if you want it to stay fresh for a really long time.
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 4 tablespoon lemon juice, divided
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease or line a 9×5-inch loaf pan with a piece of parchment paper.
- In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, vanilla extract, lemon zest, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and sour cream and mix until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely.
- In a small bowl whisk together the confectioners' sugar and the remaining 3 tablespoons of lemon juice until smooth.
- Pour the glaze over the cooled pound cake. Let the glaze set, then cut and serve.
| Calories per Serving | 329 |
| Total Fat | 17.9 g |
| Saturated Fat | 10.6 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 90.9 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 39.5 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0.5 g |
| Total Sugars | 26.9 g |
| Sodium | 86.2 mg |
| Protein | 3.5 g |
