Lemon-Drenched Lemon Cake.
For this cake, simple loaf pans just don’t measure up. After one slice of the perfect, absolutely perfect cake, it became clear that when I next bake this cake (tomorrow morning), I’ll need to devise some sort of pillow shaped cake pan.
This cake is going to be my new pillow. Forget goose feathers, cotton fluff, memory foam… I want, I need, I’m not sure how I’m going to live without a Lemon-Drenched Lemon Cake Pillow.
For serious.
Lemon Drenched Lemon Cakes
adapted from Dorie Greenspan
Think of this cake as a classy version of the store bought, chemical filled version of Sara Lee pound cake. The density is only matched by the soft, moist and lemony crumb. Sara Lee? Yea, I had my suspicions too, but this cake is without a doubt, the best pound-type cake I’ve ever encountered. Love. Love. Love.
I doubled the ingredients for the syrup and spread them between the two cakes. I liked lots of syrup.
For the Cakes:
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
2 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 plump, moist vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped out and reserved, or 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
6 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
2/3 cups heavy cream
zest of two lemons, finely grated
1 stick, plus 7 Tablespoons (15 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
For the syrup:
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
juice of two lemons
Making the cakes:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 8 1/2-4 1/2-inch loaf pans, dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. Even if the pans are nonstick, it’s a good idea to butter and flour them. Place the pans on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular sheets stacked one on top of the other.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Put the sugar and the lemon zest in a large bowl, working with your fingers, rub them together until the sugar is moist and thoroughly imbued with the fragrance of lemon. Add the vanilla bean seeds and work them into the sugar. If you are using vanilla extract, add it later, after you have added the eggs.
Add the eggs and whisk them into the sugar, beating until they are thoroughly incorporated. Whisk in the extract (if using), then whisk in the cream. Continuing with the whisk, or switching to a large rubber spatula, gently stir in the dry ingredients in 3 or 4 additions; the batter will be smooth and thick. Finish by folding in the melted butter in 2 or 3 additions. Pour the batter into the pans, smoothing with a rubber spatula.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. As soon as the cake goes into the oven, make the syrup. After about 30 minutes in the oven, check the cakes for color- if they are browning too quickly, cover them lightly with foil tents.
Making the syrup:
Stir the water and sugar together in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the sugar melts, then bring to a boil Remove the pan from heat and stir in the lemon juice. Pour the syrup into a heatproof bowl and let cool.
When the cakes test done, transfer them to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes before unmolding them and turning them right side up on the rack. Place the rack over a baking sheet lined with wax paper and, using a thin skewer, cake tester or thin-bladed sharp knife, poke holes all over the cakes. Brush the cakes all over with the syrup, working slowly so that the cakes sop it up. Leave the cakes on the rack to cool to room temperature.
Vox Pbx
Hi Lecretia! The sour cream is an acidic ingredient necessary to react with the baking soda and give lift. I m sorry that I don t know of a non-dairy substitute ?? If you google to find a dairy-free lemon cake recipe, I m sure it d be delicious dressed up like this one.
Cilla
I thought this looked so lovely so had a go and it was delicious. The only problem with this and other recipes is making the conversions – I’m a Brit living in Italy and I really didn’t know what ‘a stick’ measurement was. Found great discrepancies on online conversion charts and blogs and would greatly appreciate knowing what the measurements are in metric..
benita wheeler
lemon cake….lemon centerpieces with little jewels glued to the lemons in clear vases. white shirt, yellow skirt, white and yellow plaid shoes.
joythebaker
you’ll have LOTS of cake… but yes. i do believe you can double this recipe.
Jackie
Joy, I am a self declared chocoholic. But oh, this cake is SO GOOD! A lemon pillow is the perfect way to describe it. I just made it for my lemon loving neighbors and his exact quote was “the people at Entenmanns are ashamed and crying.” HAHA! Thanks so much for giving me a perfect spring favorite!!
judyjones
The cake looks very tempting and I intend to try the weekend
cami stewart
i made this yesterday in a bundt and it turned out great. my husband gave it 5 stars. thank you so much! every recipe of yours i make turns out wonderful!
Sandra
After converting the recipe to metric measurements, I made this yesterday. It turned out wonderful! I love lemon, and I love, love, love this cake!
I’ve been reading your blog for a while, but I’ve never tried any of your recipes until now. Now I wonder what I shall try next :)
Megabite
I’m making these right now and my house smells amazing. I can’t wait to taste it!
Nancy
After having this recipe bookmarked for months, I finally got around to baking this cake. It was delicious! I couldn’t believe how well it turned out. The cake was moist and fluffy, and the syrup gave it a sweet, lemony tang. Thanks for the recipe. It’s a keeper!
Mui Mui
Hi,
I’ve made this cake last night, using the original vanilla recipe shown in the book. But the cake texture turns out chewy. Any idea why? It is definitely not like yours. The cake batter was watery. “Whisk eggs into sugar till well incorporated” means to whisk till ribbon stage? or stop once both are blended. Appreciate your tips.
Thanks.
Mui Mui
Cdntheorygirl
This was a hit! Thank you! I took the this to a tea party this afternoon and the little girl who was there ate 4 large slices all by herself (her mom wasn’t watching :-).
For anyone who had concerns about the loaf getting soggy be sure to go slowly and carefully when you add the lemon drizzle. . .it sets up and drys a bit with time and although it appeared a bit soggy at first by the time I served it it was excellent.
Sonu
I baked this cake last it and it turned out awesome!!!!! Since I batter was good enough for 2 loaf pans, one version I tried with the syrup, the other I drizzled lemon icing on it. Perfecto!!!!! Thanks a ton for sharing the recipe!!!!!
Elizabeth
Amazing! I had a couple of Meyer lemons left over from a recipe off of Tartlette’s blog and was happy to find this lemony goodness loaf that will be eaten with my family’s coffee for mornings to come! Your recipes are so easy to follow, with common ingredients that don’t have you combing the specialty shops for yuzu or lavender sugar, I love it! I wanted to splurge and use the vanilla bean but at five bucks a pod, I save those for when no substitution is necessary. Thanks again Joy, you bring so much joy to my baking woes and keep my family’s bellies full.
Amy
mmmm…we love lemon in this house! Making these tomorrow!
Jenny
I made this for little train cars for my son’s birthday and it turned out great. I did miss read the recipe and only put 1 stick of butter. Even though I did only put one stick it turned out great. Even my mother in law loved it. She had 6 pieces.
Whitney
I just made this and it completely collapsed in the middle 25 minutes into the baking. What did I do wrong!?!?!
Geraldine
Hello, I made this cake in a bundt pan and it was so pretty. syrup didn’t taste very nice to me so I just sprinkled with powdered sugar.
emma
hi there. I baked this cake over the weekend, used Cederberg Lemons, we picked on the way back to Cape town.
and..
it was amazing, soft and lovely with hot custard (as it is winter here) ..infact there was almost a riot when it came to the left over batter in the bowl.
thanks for the inspiration :)
Katie
I made these a few days ago and they are delicious!!! I love lemon and these hit the spot. After eating the first loaf I decided to make more lemon syrup and drench the second again. Then I served with vanilla bean ice cream and served to my guests. Everyone loved it. Thanks for a wonderful recipe.
P.S. the batter is phenomenal ;)
Kathie
Wow, I needed to find this website in the middle of WINTER to fill those long dreary days.
Love looking and reading all the neat recipes on here. Thanks for the website. Hope to come back often.
YUMMO!!
Thanks from Michigan
Paul
Oh wow. This looks soooo good.
I was actually searching for a recipe with fava beans. Not quite sure how I ended up on this site, but Im glad I did :D
Jacquie
Delicious!
I’ve just discovered this blog and so glad I have.
This cake was fantastic.
Thanks.
Millie
Okay, I can’t believe I haven’t commented on this yet! lol. I’ve had this on my list of “NEED to make” since you got it posted. I finally made it tonight and, at my three year old’s insistence, added the zest and juice of a lime as well “Because I like green, Momma! It HAS to have a lime!” My husband couldn’t wait for them to completely cool and promptly devoured one of them. hehe. I *was* going to take one in to work on Monday, but oh well. It’s too good to really share anyway. ;)
Joy, as always, you rock. My mouth was watering the whole time I had this in the oven. lol. Thanks for sharing!
Rajesh
Me from Malaysia, Asia. Tried this cake on Friday. This was the best cake I ever made. Replaced the cream with Evaporated Milk. For the syrup added juice of one lemon only. It’s was good. Thanks.
Sarah A
This looks way too awesome. will definitely be trying this recipe out.
i’m a new follower of your blog and I think you’re awesome! ;-)
cheryl
I am going to try this as a bundt cake, I just order the Heritage Bundt Pan from Williams – Sanoma, and I think this would be perfect. If you haven’t seen this pan go to their website and take a look. One of the coolest, chic pans I’ve seen. I have a pan fetish I guess.
Larry Burns
Love this site!
Have you ever cooked or made ice cream using the syrups that coffee shops use? They come in a zillion flavors but I don’t have a clue how
they might be used in the kitchen. Some of the more exotic flavors would be dynomite in your basic pound type cake recipe.
Andrea [bella eats]
Joy! I made these cakes last weekend while visiting family in Florida. They were delicious!!! I will surely be making them again, very soon.
Jeff Stern
Now I just hope I can get this to work at altitude…any tips? I´ve got a lot of experience at this, but the first time is always a shot in the dark! And Meyer Lemons grow here all over the place!
Marti
I tried this cake yesterday and it sank in the middle but the syrup made everything wonderful. It has that eggy poundcake flavor and the density that comes only with artery-clogging amounts of butter. I used regular lemons, not Meyer, which require a second mortgage to buy up here in Canada…luckily I have a brother in the Bay Area who grows them!
Sheila Brown
Hi, I couldn’t wait to try this recipe, and was so disappointed with the results. The cake was heavy and coarse, and a complete waste of my time and costly ingredients. I bake regularly, and with great success, and the only thing I can think of that I did not follow to the letter was that I baked the cake in a large, square heavy pan instead of two loaf pans. The lemon syrup was a lifesaver, as the actual cake was a sodden, flavourless mess and not recognisable when compared to the pic’s on the website. We ate the cake served with custard, fresh cream and fruit, to disguise the flopped results. Any comments from those of you who made this cake successfully?
Stephanie
This lemon cake looks amazing. I’d like to try amaretto as a substitute too, similar to your recommendation of dark rum. Your site is now in my favorites for baking ideas and recipes!
Irene
Joy, I made the lemon- drenched much to the delight of my neighbors who were begging for more! This is definitely the best lemon cake ever and I have been baking for 35 years. Love your blog.. so glad I found it.. going to try more of your recipes as soon as I make another round of lemon cake :)
mharper
Joy,
Do you think I could make these as cupcakes? My triplets are wanting it for their 9th birthday next week and I thought cupcakes would be cute. Do you think it would work?
Jennie
I made this last night for a barbeque. It was amazing and dissapeared quickly! Thank you!
Casie
I made this last night and brought it to work – Wowzers! So many compliments! Thanks for the great recipe, it helped me get rid of my basket of Meyer Lemons.
Linda
I forgot to say a BIG thank you for making this cake. It’s definitely going into my baking repertoire.
Heehee!
Linda
I made this on Saturday to make cake pops. The cake’s lemon tartness was a perfect compliment to the sweetness of the chocolate I used to cover the pops.
It was SOOOOOO good. I wish I made extra to eat is as it is… AND I will do so. With extra lemon syrup to drench.
*yum*
Avi
The cake looks great!!!
BUT…. before I jump head first into the oven is it possible to mention the measurements in oz/kg? Your overseas fans (me!!!) find it difficult to measure tsp of butter and un/furtunatly Isrealies don’t sell it by the sticks ;-)
Thanks a bunch!
Gigi
Just made this today while looking for the zucchini sweet potato bread to make again (delicious). This was fabulous, in fact, we didn’t even wait till it cooled. Thanks
Bunny
Your recipes look soooo good. I can’t wait to try the lemon cake. Do you publish a cookbook ?
Darlene
I just found your blog. Your recipes look deliciously tempting.!
Angela
I baked this last night and took it to work this morning…all of the ladies in the office loved it and asked me where a got the recipe. After translating a few things into Russian (I live in Moscow, Russia)- the recipe quickly made it’s way around our office. Thank you for your wonderful pictures, recipes and stories!
Jo
Hi there from Australia! I loooooooooove your website!!! Although I am currently on a diet (gave birth 4 months ago, have lost the baby weight and now need to lose all the pregnancy craving weight!!) but I am having my Mum’s Group at my house next wednesday and am going to make your chocolate buttercream frosting on cupcakes, ad maybe a few more delectable recipes! Thankyou!!!
Dana
I made these cakes yesterday with lemons from my Meyer lemon tree. Good thing I put one in the freezer as soon as it was cool…my BF ate almost the entire second cake in one sitting! He said it was the best cake ever! I agreed, but I skimped a little on the syrup (I thought doubling it was too much), but I should never have doubted Joy! Twice the syrup would have been better…
Ngoc
Just made a variation of this cake tonight, and it turned out lovely! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe, and huge thanks for bringing back childhood memories of Sara Lee pound cake! :)
Aysegul - NY's Delight
Ahhh – The fancy food show! Isn’t heaven? Oh my god! I have a ball every year I go here in NY @ the Javitz Center – held in the middle of July. Oh the food the fun the FOOD and tasting of everything..it sort of overwhelms a person. I am looking forward to going this year again!
Love the cake recipe – will try it – been baking to much lately! Buts thats a good thing right!
Great site!…Aysegul – NY’s Delight
Zoe
I made this recipe, but I didn’t have most of the ingredients so it turned out to be ginger cake! Instead of lemon anything I used 2 heaping tsp of dried ginger, chopped up some pickled ginger because it’s pink and used vanilla yogurt instead of vanilla and cream…
Close enough, right? It was delicious!
Tammy
Made this cake, and everything you said about it is true. It is absolutely perfect. Thanks for sharing the recipe and photos. I love your blog, your writing, recipes, photos. What a precious person you are.
The Duo Dishes
We’re tearing up! All this lemon in one cake CAN’T be wrong.
Lorelei Craig
This looks so good. I just made a lemon cake myself – although it was a layer cake. But not liking chocolate, crazy I know, I love citris desserts, I am bookmarking this one. P.s. LOVE your blog, one of my favorites. I hope you do come to San Francisco and bake with me someday =)
Jude
Oh yeah it’s all about the citrus fruits… Stumbled :)
maryann
it works in bundt form, i did it with my pretty williams sonoma bundt pan (see here). it was light and delicious, surely not heavy like most pound cakes!
i agree with peabody though — it’d be delicious with whipped cream, or maybe even a lemon glaze. :)
peabody
Love me a good lemon cake. This looks lovely.
Claire Mason
Mmm, those look delectable. JachiCue is right, some fresh whipped cream would be heavenly.
Aimee
I recently made The.Most.Disappointing. pound cake. Oh so dry, it’s been sitting around here for ages. I think I’ll give this recipe a shot so that pound cakes can redeem themselves in my eyes. Looks superb!!
Sonal
Joy, I’ve been following your blog for some time now. You are truly inspirational! Your photography, culinary skills, and writing skills are all outstanding! Keep up the great work!
So, I tested out your lemon cake over the weekend. It was delicious!! I made one in a loaf pan, and tested one in an 8 inch cake pan. My plan to make it in two round cake pans, and make a layer cake with raspberry mousse. I think it’s going to work!!! The cake worked nicely in a round pan and sliced very easily for the layers. So, I’ll drench it w/ the syrup, and layer it w/ raspberry mousse…maybe a plain whipped icing. I’m super excited!
doll
Hi Joy! The lemon cake looks absolutely heavenly :) Am wondering if it’s alright for me to substitute cream cheese for the heavy cream? and self raising flour for AP flour+salt+baking powder? thanks! xx
Hayley
These cakes look so wonderful, and I was wondering if you were willing to share? I’m having a Meyer lemon week over at my blog, and was hoping to finish it off with a round-up of Meyer (or regular) lemon recipes around the web. I would love to post a link to this recipe if that would be alright with you. The round-up won’t be posted for another week or so, so let me know what you think. Thanks Again!
kickpleat
mmm, my mom used to make a very low fat version of this! i think i’m going to try and dig it up. i love lemon drenched cakes. yum.
Paula
I was looking for a dessert to use up the rest of my Meyer lemons. This is it! Cake pillows…yummm!!
Gretchen Noelle
You make these sound just delicious! I love tart desserts (er, pillows!) and am a huge fan of the limes here in Peru.
Miri
Love lemon cakes and this one sounds so very awesome. Will try, thanks!
Megan
That cake looks beautiful-not to mention delicious! I can’t wait to try this!
Lisa
Love, love, love your blog! You have an amazing way with words and make some delicious looking food! :O) I’ve nominated you for a 2009 bloggie award and hope you’ll get picked to win!
Have a great rest of the weekend,
Lisa
bensbaby116
I just stumbled across your blog, and I’m so glad I did! This looks like a fantastic cake.
Nicole
Those look delicious! I love anything with lemon. I made lemon meringue tartlets this week and doubled the lemon curd just so I could have extra for other things.
sarah
loving this cake and just reading ur description of it im off to baking two of these pillowy cakes with an orangey twist.hope it works as wel as lemons!
thank u so much ,u might ve finaly ended my long on goinin search for a yummy pillwoy pound-y cake. wil get back n tel u how blissfuly they turned out…fingers crossed.. hope i do justice to em
lisa (dandysugar)
I just got the ingredients together for a meyer lemon cake to bake this afternoon! This looks super amazing. I love Dorie’s book and I love how you doubled the syrup. I’d do the same! Mouthwatering.
Harley
These look so yummy. I’m a sucker for a good lemon cake :)
Dani
lemon with lemon…. YUM!
HoneyB
Oh, so luscious looking! I do have lemons in the house and I may have to splurge this weekend!!
snooky doodle
wow this cake looks so plain and so delicous. I like lemons and this one is explosive :)
Cheri
Joy, these cakes look so good…I am wishing I had lemons in the house!
Natasha - 5 Star Foodie
Beautiful lemon cakes!
kellypea
It isn’t too often that my tastebuds actually sting with longing when reading and you’ve accomplished that. Jeez. This is one heavenly recipe…
Shari
Ooh, I love lemon. Lemon soaked lemon cake is even better!
Pam
You have a beautiful blog! This is a must try recipe for me. I love lemon anything so this cake is calling my name. Lovely.
Joie de vivre
What gorgeous photos you have! Thank so much for your friend request on Foodbuzz. You have a beautiful site!
cyndi
Love at first sight! This is definitely going in my pile of goodies that must be baked…and soon. As always, thank you for sharing :-)
Terry
You have a wonderful blog. Keep up the good work.
Shauna
I make a very lemon-y lemon glaze cake similar to this, but it calls for far fewer ingredients, key of which being Lemon Jello. It is quite possibly the most moist, squishy, gooey lemon cake ever. I still have friends from my Navy days who drool about it when we talk on the phone. Ahh, the good ol’ days!
ingrid
I love the tart and tangy taste of lemon desserts. I finally bought some meyers lemons and have been search for just the right dessert to showcase them perhaps this is just the one. (I’ve never tried meyer lemons so don’t know how they differ in taste to regular ones)
~ingrid
Carol
Looks fantastic! I love lemon anything!
joythebaker
Phoo-D- These cakes would be absolutely lovely with Meyer lemons!
Michelle- This cake might just work as a Bundt. Give it a shot and let me know!
Alison- I understand not liking lemon! If you’d like to leave the lemon out, instead use 2 plump vanilla beans to rub into the sugar instead of the zest, or 1 1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract. You might also want to add 2 1/2 Tablespoons of dark rum into the batter. You’ll also leave the lemon out of the syrup and instead at 1/4 cup of dark rum after you dissolve the sugar over the fire. Or you could just leave the rum out and go nutty with a pure vanilla cake.
Alison
OK…I will probably say something blasphemous…but I don’t do lemon baked goods. I don’t know why…they are just icky to me and I just can’t. Would everything be allright if I left out the zest and the syrup?
Michelle
do you think this would work as a bundt?
Michelle
OMG! I’d like a pillow of that cake too! Count me in…
Amanda
Dorie can do no wrong. Seriously. That woman is like Jesus in the kitchen.
JachiCue
wow, I want some! I really really want to devour that with some fresh whipped cream.
OK hungry now. :)
Jaina
That looks absolutely mouthwatering.
Phoo-D
Okay, so I’m now drooling on my keyboard! That looks amazing. Do you think that Meyer lemons would be too subtle in flavor for the cake? In case you haven’t stopped by, I’m working my way through a big box of them now!
Phoo-D