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    Home » Recipes » Cakes and Cupcakes

    Lemon Pound Cake Loaf

    Published: May 14, 2021 Modified: June 28, 2021 by Nina

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    This lemon pound cake loaf is tangy, sweet and full of lemon flavour! A moist, sweet loaf is brushed with lemon syrup, and a lemon glaze is poured on top.

    Two slices of lemon loaf on a plate with a lemon in the background.

    Lemons go with recipes so, so well! This lemon pound cake loaf is one of the best lemon recipes I have on this website. It's such a great recipe that the loaf gets better the next days after baking it!

    This lemon pound cake loaf is moist, spongy, and is a bright yellow colour. The tangy lemon glaze is the perfect topping for this loaf. This is one of my favourite loaf recipes, and I hope you enjoy it too!

    For more sweet breads, try blueberry lime loaf, gingerbread latte loaf, triple chocolate pecan loaf, or apple butter cinnamon swirl bread.

    Jump straight to the recipe!
    • Ingredients
    • How do I make this lemon loaf?
    • Lemon syrup
    • Lemon glaze
    • Frequently asked questions
    • Tips
    • 📋 Recipe

    Ingredients

    • Cake flour & all purpose flour - This recipe uses a combination of the two flours to make a nice light crumb. Don't have cake flour? Make your own: Measure out 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour. Remove 1.5 tablespoons of flour and add 1.5 tablespoons of cornstarch to the flour. Sift the flour and cornstarch together twice to aerate the mixture to make it similar in consistency to cake flour.
    • Baking powder & baking soda
    • Salt
    • Granulated sugar
    • Large eggs - you will need 4 for this recipe.
    • Lemon zest & lemon juice - you will need approximately 2 lemons for this recipe.
    • Unsalted butter - You can substitute salted butter instead, but omit the added salt to the recipe.
    • Sour cream
    • Vanilla extract
    • Icing sugar
    Two slices of lemon loaf on a plate with a lemon and the rest of the loaf.

    How do I make this lemon loaf?

    Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line a standard loaf pan with parchment paper on the bottom.

    Whisk the dry ingredients together. Combine sugar, eggs, lemon zest and juice in a large bowl. Mix in the melted butter. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix to combine.

    Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and gently fold it in until just combined. Sprinkle in the remaining dry ingredients and fold until just combined.

    Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325°F and bake for another 30-35 minutes. Let the loaf cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning in out and letting it cool further.

    Lemon syrup

    Once the pan has cooled to room temperature, you can brush on the syrup. Make the syrup by combining lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook until the sugar has dissolved, and then cook for another 3 minutes. Use a toothpick and poke holes all over the top of the loaf. Brush the syrup over the loaf.

    Lemon glaze

    Whisk the icing sugar and lemon juice together, a bit at a time, until you get the right consistency. You want the glaze to be slightly runny, but not too much that it will run down the sides of the loaf.

    Dry ingredients in a bowl.
    Sugar, eggs, lemon juice and lemon zest in a bowl.
    The rest of the wet ingredients added to the bowl.
    The wet ingredients mixed with the dry ingredients in a bowl.
    loaf batter in a loaf pan.
    Syrup ingredients in a saucepan.
    Lemon loaf with the syrup on it.
    The glaze in a bowl with a spoon showing the consistency of it.
    A glazed lemon loaf.

    Frequently asked questions

    Can I make this in mini loaf pans?

    Absolutely, just keep in mind that the bake time will vary depending on the size of pan you use.

    Can I double this recipe?

    Yes, this recipe doubles very easily.

    Can this be frozen?

    You can freeze the loaf after it has been baked and before you have added the syrup and glaze. Freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and then add the syrup and glaze.

    What size is a standard loaf pan?

    A standard loaf pan size is 8.5"x4.5"x2.5".

    Can blueberries be added to this?

    I have not tried it, but I would dust approximately 1 cup of blueberries with flour before adding them to your batter. The bake time will stay the same.

    Can poppy seeds be added to this?

    Add in 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds if you like.

    Slices cut out of a lemon loaf.

    Tips

    • Don't have cake flour? Make your own: Measure out 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour. Remove 1.5 tablespoons of flour and add 1.5 tablespoons of cornstarch to the flour. Sift the flour and cornstarch together twice to aerate the mixture to make it similar in consistency to cake flour.
    • Take out the eggs and sour cream 30-60 minutes before starting this recipe.
    • Lemon zest is the bright yellow layer of the lemon peel. Use a micro plane or box grater to grate. Make sure you don't get the white pith layer. It is very bitter.
    • Store the lemon loaf at room temperature in an air tight container. Do not store it in the fridge as it would dry out the loaf.
    • You can freeze the loaf after it has been baked and before you add the syrup and glaze. Freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the loaf to thaw at room temperature and then add the syrup and glaze.
    Two slices of lemon loaf on a plate with a lemon and the rest of the loaf.

    Other fruit recipes you might enjoy

    • LEMON MERINGUE CHEESECAKE
    • LEMON LOVERS TRIFLE
    • TRES LECHES CAKE RECIPE
    • PEACH CREAM PIE WITH ALMONDS
    • STRAWBERRY CREPE CAKE

    📋 Recipe

    Two slices of lemon loaf on a plate.

    Lemon Pound Cake Loaf

    Nina
    This lemon pound cake loaf is tangy, sweet and full of lemon flavour! A moist, sweet loaf is brushed with lemon syrup, and a lemon glaze is poured on top.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Cook Time 55 minutes mins
    Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine North American
    Servings 1 loaf
    Calories 4069 kcal

    Equipment

    • one 9 inch loaf pan

    Ingredients
     
     

    lemon cake

    • ¾ cup cake flour
    • ¾ cup all purpose flour
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 cup granulated sugar
    • 4 large eggs room temperature
    • 2 tablespoons lemon zest
    • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
    • 1 cup unsalted butter melted
    • ¼ cup sour cream room temperature
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Lemon syrup

    • 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice
    • 1 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar

    Lemon glaze

    • 1 cup icing sugar
    • 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a loaf pan and put parchment paper on the bottom of the pan.
    • Whisk flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl.
    • Combine sugar, eggs, lemon zest and lemon juice in a large bowl. Stir in the butter. Add sour cream and vanilla. Mix well to combine.
    • Sprinkle half the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Fold gently until just combined. Fold in the rest of the flour mixture until just combined.
    • Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes and then reduce heat to 325°F and bake for another 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the loaf to cool in it's pan for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan.
    • For the lemon syrup, heat lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan until the sugar dissolves. Once dissolved, cook for another 3 minutes.
    • Use a toothpick and poke holes all over the top of the loaf. Brush the lemon syrup over the loaf.
    • For the lemon glaze, whisk icing sugar and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice together. Add more lemon juice if needed until you get the right consistency. You want the glaze to be just a bit runny, but not too much that it will all fall down the sides of the loaf.
    • Store the lemon loaf in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

    Notes

    1. Don't have cake flour? Make your own: Measure out 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour. Remove 1.5 tablespoons of flour and add 1.5 tablespoons of cornstarch to the flour. Sift the flour and cornstarch together twice to aerate the mixture to make it similar in consistency to cake flour.
    2. Take out the eggs and sour cream 30-60 minutes before starting this recipe.
    3. Lemon zest is the bright yellow layer of the lemon peel. Use a micro plane or box grater to grate. Make sure you don't get the white pith layer. It is very bitter.
    4. Store the lemon loaf at room temperature in an air tight container. Do not store it in the fridge as it would dry out the loaf.
    5. You can freeze the loaf after it has been baked and before you add the syrup and glaze. Freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the loaf to thaw at room temperature and then add the syrup and glaze.

    YOUR OWN NOTES

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    Nutrition

    Serving: 9gCalories: 4069kcalCarbohydrates: 496gProtein: 47gFat: 218gSaturated Fat: 130gPolyunsaturated Fat: 12gMonounsaturated Fat: 58gTrans Fat: 8gCholesterol: 1184mgSodium: 2164mgPotassium: 686mgFiber: 6gSugar: 346gVitamin A: 7081IUVitamin C: 48mgCalcium: 502mgIron: 9mg
    Tried this recipe? Follow me on Instagram!Mention @ninakneadstobake or tag #ninakneadstobake!

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    Hi, I'm Nina! I am a self-taught baker and have a love for baking and trying new techniques. Here you will find easy step-by-step sweet and savoury recipes, with lots of tips.

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