Lemon Loaf Cake

This lemon loaf cake is wonderfully moist, slightly dense, bursting with tart and sweet lemon flavor. Moist lemon pound cake is made completely from scratch with everyday ingredients and topped with a delicious lemon icing.

Baked in a cast iron loaf pan, this moist lemon cake recipe is so much better than Starbucks lemon loaf and gets even better the second day! Ready in about one hour using everyday ingredients.

Lemon loaf cake is probably one of our most favorite cake recipes. It has incredible lemon flavor and topped with the most delicious lemon icing. If you love lemon desserts as much as I do, you must try this copycat Starbucks lemon loaf!

Lemon pound cake was one of my most requested cake recipes from my mom. And make sure you try my Lemon Crinkle Cookies, Lemon Blueberry Cake and Lemon Bundt Cake.

This recipe makes two loaves of lemon loaf cakes. They’re freezer friendly and absolutely delicious. Soft crumbs, moist and the perfect easy dessert for any occasion.

It took several years to develop the perfect copycat Starbucks lemon loaf cake, but I’ve finally done it! And, oh my goodness is this lemon cake super moist and full of intense lemon flavor.

Why this recipe works

• Made with simple ingredients – This pound cake recipe uses ingredients readily available at most grocery stores.
• Prep ahead of time – Pound cake is one of the type of cake that’s better the second day!
• Ease – Simple steps ensure the perfectly baked cake each and every time. Made in one bowl with either an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer.
• Flavor – Full-fat sour cream, along with pure lemon oil and lemon juice give this lemon cake incredible flavor. Lemon oil is made from the rinds of lemons. It does not contain any alcohol. (Do not substitute lemon extract! It’s not the same product!)
• Easy dessert – Loaf pound cake is the perfect lemon dessert recipe for any occasion.

What you’ll need

• Oil – This pound cake recipe uses a either canola or vegetable oil. Oil or shortening helps the cakes stay more moist.
• Sugar – Combine with the oil.
• Eggs – With all of our baking recipes, we use large eggs. Be sure and bring eggs to room temperature for this cake recipe, as they will incorporate into the batter better.
• All-purpose flour – We prefer a good-quality unbleached all-purpose flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur Flour. It really makes a difference in baking recipes. You can also use cake flour if desired.
• Sour cream – Use full-fat sour cream. This helps the pound cake stay super moist and have a tangy flavor. (You can substitute full-fat buttermilk or Greek yogurt if you prefer.)
• Baking powder, soda and salt – Salt is always added to baking recipes to enhance flavor. Baking powder and soda reacts with the sour cream or buttermilk to help the cake rise properly.
• Lemon juice – Use either fresh or bottled. Either works just fine.
• Lemon oil – We highly recommend using a high-quality brand of pure lemon oil. Boyajian pure lemon oil is our preferred brand. Unlike lemon extract which has a large alcohol content, lemon oil is pure from the rinds of lemons. It adds incredible lemon flavor to this pound cake recipe.

I used cast iron loaf pans from Lodge for this lemon loaf cake recipe. Regular loaf pans will also work. Banana bread is incredible baked in cast iron loaf pans and we LOVE Buttermilk Biscuits baked in a 9×13-inch cast iron baking pan!

While I prefer to bake in cast iron, either will work fine. (Baking in cast iron helps distribute the heat better, which helps cakes and baked goods rise better and bake more evenly!)

How to make Lemon loaf cake

• Mix dry ingredients – In a large mixing bowl, combine sifted flour, salt and baking powder.
• Combine oil and sugar – In either a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer on low speed.
• Add the eggs – Add the eggs one at a time, be they are at room temperature so they easily incorporate into the cake batter.
• Add sour cream, lemon oil, lemon juice and dry ingredients – Mix only until the batter is smooth and combined. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl occasionally. (If adding lemon zest, add here too)
• Place into baking pans – Scoop cake batter evenly into two prepared 9×5-inch loaf pans.
• Bake – Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven for 55-60 minutes. Use a toothpick when inserted comes out mostly clean, with only a few moist crumbs the cake is done.
• Remove cakes from baking pans – Let the cakes cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Remove from baking pans and let cool on a baking rack.

How to keep Lemon loaf cake moist

• My secret ingredient to keeping pound cake moist and super fresh is dough conditioner. Professional bakers, such as my mom add this to all of their baking recipes. Add 1 teaspoon of dough conditioner to 1 cup of flour.
• Combine oil and sugar. Canola or vegetable oil is a key ingredients to helping cake recipes stay moist.
• Don’t over mix the cake batter. Overmixing cake batter can cause cakes to be tough.
• Add room temperature eggs one at a time and only until combined.
• Use full-fat sour cream or buttermilk and fresh ingredients.
• Don’t overbake the pound cake! Check if your cake is done with a toothpick when inserted comes out mostly clean, with a few moist crumbs.

Dough conditioner can be added to baked goods, including cakes and bread recipes to keep them moist, fresh and last longer. Be sure and try adding it to Pound Cake, Lemon Bundt Cake, Coffee Cake, Sourdough Bread and White Bread.

To keep loaves of bread, banana bread, quick breads and pound cakes fresh, once cooled I always use a Poly bread bag with a twist tie. Here is the one I love! This makes storing bread and cakes super convenient and helps keep them very fresh.

Paper loaf pan liners are an essential tool in my kitchen. They help cakes and quick breads easily remove from cast iron loaf pans, making cleanup a breeze.

Recipe FAQs

More Baking Recipes

• New York Cheesecake
• Banana Bread
• Buttermilk Biscuits
• Chocolate Layer Cake
• Old-fashioned Pound Cake
• Lemon Bundt Cake
• Raspberry Bars

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