This Iced Lemon Pound Cake is soft, sweet, and full of lemon flavor! It has the most perfect lemon glaze, making it extra tasty. It's perfect for parties, family gatherings, or just when you want a fresh, lemony dessert.
Better Than Starbucks Iced Lemon Pound Cake
This lemon loaf is on par, if not better than Starbucks - it's moist, aromatic, flavorful, and perfectly sweet! Try for yourself!
If you're a lemon lover, don't stop here! Try my other lemon-inspired treats like lemon poppy seed bread or lemon poppy seed muffins and lemon blueberry bread.
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- Better Than Starbucks Iced Lemon Pound Cake
- 🛒 Ingredients for Iced Lemon Loaf Pound Cake
- 🥣 How To Make Iced Lemon Pound Cake
- 📋 Tips
- 👨🍳 Equipment Needed to Make This Air Fryer Chicken Skewers Recipe
- 🍱 Storage Instructions
- More Lemon Desserts
- Did You Try This Recipe?
- 📖Recipe
- 🤷 Iced Lemon Pound Cake: FAQs
- More Recipes You'll Love
- 💬 Comments
🛒 Ingredients for Iced Lemon Loaf Pound Cake
This Iced Lemon Loaf Pound Cake is a delicious treat bursting with citrus flavor!
Here’s what you need to make it:
For the Cake:
- Unsalted butter - If you only have salted butter, that works too - just leave out the added salt.
- Eggs - You’ll need 3 large eggs, which should be at room temperature for easy mixing and fluffiness.
- All-purpose flour - 2 cups of all-purpose flour will give your cake the right structure. Whole wheat flour could work but the texture will not be as light and fluffy.
- Baking powder - Add ½ teaspoon of baking powder to help the cake rise. Make sure it’s fresh!
- Baking soda - ¼ teaspoon of baking soda is also needed for added leavening.
- Salt - Use ¼ teaspoon of salt to enhance all the flavors in the cake.
- Buttermilk - ½ cup of room temperature buttermilk keeps the cake moist and tender. You can make your own by mixing milk with a little lemon juice.
- Plain greek yogurt - Add ½ cup of room temperature Greek yogurt for extra moisture and a slight tang.
- Lemon zest - The zest of 2 lemons gives the cake a zesty, vibrant flavor—use plenty for a strong lemon punch!
- Fresh lemon juice - fresh is best!
- Lemon extract - This enhances the lemon flavor even more. Don't skip!
- Vanilla extract - A teaspoon of vanilla extract rounds out the flavor profile.
For the Lemon Icing:
👩🍳 You'll find the complete list of ingredients below the recipe card.
🥣 How To Make Iced Lemon Pound Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, cream the softened butter, then add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, mix the buttermilk and Greek yogurt.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon extract, and vanilla.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan, smooth the top, and bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the glaze, whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice (start with 1 tablespoon), milk, and lemon extract until smooth. If needed, adjust the thickness by adding more powdered sugar or liquid.
- Once the cake is cool, drizzle the glaze over the top and set it for 15-20 minutes. Slice and serve!
Tips & Tricks for how to soften butter
Use Indirect Heat from the Microwave
Put the butter in a microwave-safe dish and heat it on low power for 10-15 seconds until soft but not melted.
2. Cut Butter into Smaller Pieces
Slice the butter into small cubes and spread them on a plate to help them soften faster.
3. Flatten the Butter by Pounding
Place the butter between two sheets of parchment paper and gently pound it with a rolling pin to flatten it and speed up softening.
4. Use Hot Water in a Glass or Container
Fill a glass with hot water, let it warm up, pour it out and quickly place the glass over the butter to soften it.
📋 Tips
- Room temperature ingredients. Make sure your eggs, yogurt, and any other dairy are at room temperature for a smoother batter and better mixing.
- Creaming butter and sugar. Beat the butter and sugar together well to incorporate air, which helps create a light and fluffy cake.
- Add dry ingredients gradually. Mix the dry ingredients in gradually, alternating with the yogurt mixture to avoid overmixing and ensure everything is evenly combined.
- Measuring flour. Accurate flour measurement is key; use a kitchen scale if you can. If measuring with a cup, spoon the flour in gently and level it off with a flat edge to avoid packing it down, which can lead to a dry cake.
- Gentle mixing. When mixing the batter, keep the speed at medium and stop mixing as soon as the ingredients are combined to maintain a tender texture; a quick burst at higher speed at the end can help smooth out the batter.
- Add blueberries. Fold in 1 cup (about 140g) of fresh blueberries, but avoid frozen ones if possible, as they can make the batter look grayish. You don’t need to coat them with flour, but you can if you want!
👨🍳 Equipment Needed to Make This Air Fryer Chicken Skewers Recipe
🍱 Storage Instructions
- 🍱To Store. Keep the cake in an airtight container for up to 2 days for the best flavor and texture.
- To Store in the Refrigerator. Place the cake in the fridge if you need to store it longer. It will stay fresh for about a week.
- To Reheat. If you prefer your pound cake warm, you can gently reheat individual slices in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds, or in a toaster oven until warmed through.
Can this loaf pound cake be made ahead? Yes, you can bake the cake a day in advance, let it cool, wrap it tightly, and refrigerate it until you're ready to serve. Just add the icing on the day you plan to enjoy it.
🥶 How To Freeze
- Prepare the Cake: Allow the cake to cool completely before freezing.
- Wrap it Up: Skip the glaze and wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil.
- Freeze: Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Thawing: When ready to enjoy, let the cake sit at room temperature for about 8 hours. After thawing, add the icing before serving.
Can I Use Lemon Juice Instead of Lemon Extract?
YES! However, I recommend using both for the best flavor. If you only have one, use what you have.
Lemon Cake Tips: roll each lemon on a hard surface before cutting it. This will help you get more juice without straining too hard!
🍋 More Quick Bread and Muffin Recipes: Zucchini Nut Bread, Monkey Bread Muffins and Apple Bread.
More Lemon Desserts
📖Recipe
Iced Lemon Pound Cake
Ingredients
For Lemon loaf Cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup buttermilk, room temperature
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt, room temperature
- zest of 2 lemons
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon milk
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
- In a large bowl, cream the softened butter, then add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.1 cup unsalted butter, 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar, 3 large eggs
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, mix the buttermilk and Greek yogurt.2 cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ cup buttermilk, ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon extract, and vanilla.zest of 2 lemons, ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan, smooth the top, and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the glaze, whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice (start with 1 tablespoon), milk, and lemon extract until smooth. Adjust the thickness if needed by adding more powdered sugar or liquid.1 cup powdered sugar, 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon milk, ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- Once the cake is cool, drizzle the glaze over the top and let it set for 15-20 minutes. Slice and serve!
Notes
- To Store. Keep the cake in an airtight container for up to 2 days for the best flavor and texture.
- To Store in the Refrigerator. Place the cake in the fridge if you need to store it longer. It will stay fresh for about a week.
- To Reheat. If you prefer your pound cake warm, you can gently reheat individual slices in the microwave for about 10-15 seconds, or in a toaster oven until warmed through.
Nutrition
🤷 Iced Lemon Pound Cake: FAQs
Absolutely! If you don’t have lemon zest or prefer to use lemon juice, you can easily swap it out. Remember that for every teaspoon of lemon zest, you can use 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. It’s that easy!
I like using Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour for this lemon loaf pound cake flour. It works well for all kinds of baking, including this cake.
A good baking time for loaf cakes is usually between 55 and 60 minutes. After the 40-minute mark, start checking the loaf to see if the top is getting too brown and to ensure the inside is cooking properly.
Baking Tip: I like to poke tiny holes around the raw top of the cake with a toothpick or cake tester. This helps the heat get through better, especially in the center.
Use a toothpick or cake tester to poke the center to check if your cake or loaf is ready. If it comes out clean, your cake is done!
You can also do the "jiggle" test by gently shaking the pan. If the cake doesn’t jiggle, it’s solid and ready to come out. Just remember to use oven mitts when handling hot pans!
You don’t need to refrigerate lemon loaf right away; just wrap it tightly and store it at room temperature for up to 5 days. However, it's best to refrigerate it around day 3 to keep it fresh and prevent the icing from becoming soggy.
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