The Most Amazing Lemon Cake Ever!

Making a delicious pound cake is an art, and this Instructable will show you how to make the most moist, tender, decadent lemon pound cake ever. This cake has been a hit no matter where I have served it. I found the recipe on the Internet several years ago, and I have been modifying it over the years. If anyone decides to try this recipe and has some ideas to make it even more yummy, feel free to share!

Step 1: Step One: Assemble Ingredients for Cake

For this recipe you will need the following:

1 cup butter (the real thing, not margarine), softened
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour (I like King Arthur flour-it bakes the best)
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon lemon extract (be careful not to get this on your hands-it burns)
2 or 3 lemons for juicing, depending on how lemony you want the glaze to be
powdered sugar, which I just keep adding to the lemon juice until it is sweet enough

Step 2: Creaming the Butter, Oil, and Sugar

Put the softened butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until really creamy. Gradually add the oil, and mix until very smooth. Next comes the sugar, added slowly, mixed until it looks fluffy. You can't really overmix during this step. Remember to turn off the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl every so often, so that the ingredients all get incorporated into the batter. When in doubt, mix a little longer.

Step 3: Add the Eggs

Crack the eggs, one at a time into a separate container before adding to the batter, so that you can pick out any shell fragments. The eggs should be added to the batter one at a time, and mixed well after each egg. This step is where the light and tender texture is made, so the batter should be really well beaten. It should appear very light and fluffy when you are done mixing.

Step 4: Adding the Flour, Milk, and Lemon Extract

This is the step where you want to mix the batter as little as possible. With the mixer set on a slow speed, add 1 cup of the flour, and mix just until blended. Add 1/2 cup of milk, mix just until blended, then repeat with 1 more cup of flour, 1/2 cup of milk, and the final cup of flour. Add the lemon extract at the end, and mix it in gently.

Step 5: Bake the Cake

Use a 10 inch bundt pan. I use a pampered chef stoneware pan, as it cooks more evenly than other types of bakeware. Whatever you use, make sure it is well greased. This cake bakes in a cooler oven, so bake it at 300 degrees for 90 minutes, or longer if needed.

Step 6: Cool the Cake

Okay, this may seem like an obvious step, but it took me several tries to get it right. The cake is done when a cake tester or knife blade inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool the cake in the pan on the rack for 15 minutes, then remove from pan directly onto wire rack. Cool completely.

Step 7: The Lemon Glaze

This glaze is so easy and makes the cake even more yummy. Simply juice the lemons into a container (I use a gravy shaker, but a bowl and whisk works just as well), and add powdered sugar to taste. I like a tart glaze, but you may want it more sweet. Mix until smooth, then just pour the glaze over the cake, and enjoy!

Comments

[RondaM18]

Then how did you get it out if the pan? Mine fluffed up a little more than yours. I scraped all sides and inside. It finally released but the top brown tasty part struck to the pan. That was a lovey in the night snack. My family (and my wonderful in-laws) love anything lemon. This will definitely be a summer go to or any other day.

[Lemonbar_1]

Love this cake. Made this today and it turned out really good

[OtiliaD]

What exactly 1 cup means in ml/grams? I don't have a measuring cup like yours and have to measure all old fashioned way 🙃

[ChrisW212]

I love your lemon cake that does not use any chemical leavening. I made the cake as you instructed, but it was not as fluffy and tall as yours. Could you please mention how long and at what speed level to cream and butter, oil, sugar, and eggs using your kitchenaid stand mixer. I have the same unit, but I could not make it as voluminous as yours (using real butter, about 38% fat). I also encounter curdling when I added eggs in, the batter shrunk and deflated about 20% ( I warmed the eggs in a warm water bath to ensure there is not temperature change.) My final batter seems a lot less than yours. The cake still tasted good, but was not as fluffy and a lot shorter, only about 2" height, unlike yours that is about 4" tall. Please help! Thanks!

[Allisonthebaker]

Sounds like you needed to let the butter soften as well as warm the eggs more, and the milk needs to be at room temp. I would guess 2+ minutes of mixing on a higher setting (not more than 2 or 3, till it starts to look like it's thoroughly mixed-then increase to a speed that won't go air-born!), scrape the bowl well, like to the bottom and scrape the beaters too, a few times, not just once, before adding the eggs or most importantly the flour and milk. Use a thermometer to check doneness shouldn't be over 180, and also comes out clean. If you can try to check on the oven temp to be sure it's correct, 300 was the instruction for a reason, and could be why it sunk and burned. I hope this helps!.

[BettyE15]

I saw a post about cake sticking to pan. Here is a little something that you can do to prevent that from ever happening again.

When I bake a pound cake and any other type of cake, I use shortening to grease the pan, then flour about 1-3 tbls. according to what type of pan you are using! I am sure that everyone knows to tap it and dump out any flour that is left over once pan is coated. Then on top of that put 1-3 tbls. of cane sugar, do it the same way as the flour, once it has covered all of the inside of the pan, dump out excess. I have been doing this since mid '70's and I have never had one stic,. you can also tell if the shortening did not cover all of serface. If you have spots that need to be covered, once the flour is in there. I just put a little shortening on my finger and smear it over the spot, the cover with flour and then sugar.

Another tip that I learned back then is if you want your cake, say layer cakes, to come out level. Then you take an old terry towel and cut it into 1" strips that will fit around your cake pans. Get you a safety pin or two, according to how many layers that you are baking. You wet these strips and squeeze the excess water out, then wrap them around you pans, under the rim, and pin them tight enough that they don't fall off. Fill your pans then bake them. This way you won't have to cut off a raised top.

I hope that these tips are of help. If not let me know what happened. Happy baking!

[Allisonthebaker]

I make a mixture of equal parts flour and oil, and call it "Cake Goop" it works very well if used generously on Bundt cakes.

[Egneff]

To get the yummy lemon glaze into the cake, poke the baked cake in several places with a toothpick and pour the glaze onto the cake when it is still warm. The glaze will seep into the cake. Try it, you”ll agree it enhances the lemon flavor!

[fyremom]

Has anyone tried a tube pan for this recipe

[CrystalM95]

What is the best way to store the cake? Will it mold being left out?

[GloriaB47]

I made this cake the other day for some ladies that were coming over in the evening. I wanted a cake that was truly lemony in flavor but not artificial in taste. OMG! I was so pleasantly surprised. It was very light, lemony in taste and one of the best cakes I have ever made. All the ladies raved about it & how light & delicious it was. This one is definitely a keeper !

Incidentally, I had no problem with it coming out of the pan. I had greased it with Crisco & floured it. After 10 minutes, I turned it onto a rack until it was completely cooled.

[silm]

Very interesting recipe.

[mmbrennan279]

very good very delisioso!!! made it for a coworker's birthday...everybody loved it.
Only thing I was unhappy is that the cake stuck to the pan. I wasn't able to have the ridges around the cake. I used a metal 10" bundt pan and greased it alot...:-( any ideas, tips to make it come out shaped like the pan? Either way, It was very tasty and refreshing! THANK YOU for sharing!!!

[BettyE15]

Hi mmbrennan279

I posted a comment that might help you to prevent the sticking. I posted so that all could see and try. I hope they help.

[JanikaA]

I used a silicone bundt cake mould, doesn't leave a single crumb stuck in it :)

[MaryW2]

Use a flour spray instead of greasing and flouring the pan.. Mine never stick :)

[Queen.Diva.Liscious]

I use a generous amount of Crisco shortening and flour the pan. Also, i was having the same problem because I was leaving the cake in too long try removing the cake immediately it comes out easier

[mihi1975]

Try greasing your pan with shortening, covering all inside surfaces then dust lightly with flour, making sure all the insides are covered. After removing from oven let cake sit in pan on cooling rack about 10-15 min. Then loosen edges gently with butter knife, then turn entire pan over onto rack to finish cooling. It should come easily with a smooth golden surface.

[baker878]

I evidently did something wrong any I'm wondering if anybody can make some suggestions. I followed all the instructions and it looked great at 15m or so to be done baking. But when the timer went off it had fallen in on itself, pretty burnt on top and the inside was all gel :/ thoughts??? I just have your standard non stick bundt pan, but I don't think that should impact it like this.

[mihi1975]

Is your oven cycling heat properly, or did you open your oven door at any point during baking? This has happened to me too, and I've read its likely because the oven lost proper temperature at some point during baking.