Lemon Pound Cake

The very best lemon pound cake is a classic Southern dessert that has been loved for generations!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword lemon cream cheese pound cake, Lemon Pound Cake, lemon pound cake recipe, recipe for lemon pound cake

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 2

Cooling Time 2

Total Time 4 20

Servings slices

Calories 457kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

Grease and lightly flour a tube pan or Bundt pan; set aside. Do not preheat oven.
In a large bowl, use the paddle attachment on an electric stand mixer to cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the cream cheese; beat until smooth, about 30 seconds. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl periodically.
Gradually add the flour, mixing on low speed after each addition, and scraping the bowl as needed. Mix just until combined, about 1 minute total.
Add the salt, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and lemon juice; beat until smooth.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Tap it a couple of times on the counter to release any big air bubbles.
Place the pan on a rack in the lower third of the cold oven. Shut the oven, and turn the temperature to 300°F. Bake the cake until a wooden toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour and 50 minutes – 2 hours.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert on a serving plate or wire rack to cool completely.
Dust cake with powdered sugar, or drizzle with lemon glaze.

In a small bowl, whisk together confectioners sugar, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and vanilla extract until a thick, pourable glaze comes together. If the glaze seems too thick, add more lemon juice, one teaspoon at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency. If the glaze is too thin, gradually add more confectioners sugar.
Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. Slice and serve.

When zesting the lemon, be sure that you’re only scraping off the outer layer of the peel (this is where the essential oils and delicious flavor can be found). Be careful not to grate any of the white pith from the fruit, because that is bitter and definitely not what you want in your cake.

Grease the pan really well and then coat with flour, or use a nonstick baking cooking spray.

Use a block of full-fat cream cheese. Do not use spreadable cream cheese from a tub or whipped cream cheese for this recipe.

Properly measure the flour by spooning the flour into the cup and lightly leveling with the straight edge of a knife. Packing the measuring cup too tightly and using too much flour will result in a dry cake.

Make sure that all of your ingredients are at room temperature so that they blend together smoothly, resulting in a pound cake with maximum volume.

Cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, at least 3-4 minutes. Whipping this air into the batter will help the cake rise during baking.

Don’t leave the cake in the pan for too long after baking — about 10-15 minutes is plenty. After that, condensation will start to form and the moisture will negatively impact the crust.