Fresh Lemon Cake

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Rebecca Firth
February 22, 2020 (Updated February 23, 2024)
44 Comments
4.86 from 7 reviews

Grab your very favorite citrus (I used lemon here) and make this bright, fresh citrus-y cake! Tested with lemon, blood orange, cara cara and lime (one of my favorites!). It comes together quickly and can be casual with just the glaze or load it up with jazz hands and candied lemon peel. I hope this becomes your new favorite, go-to lemon cake!! xo

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Consider this Fresh Lemon Cake a dazzling celebration of the humble lemon, that most-frequently used citrus that adorns our kitchen counters. I don’t know this for fact but I do on instinct.

I put lemon in everything from warm water, to savory dishes that need brightening up to baked goods that need some sunshine. Yes, the humble lemon is a kitchen workhorse.

Fresh Lemon Cake | DisplacedHousewife Fresh Lemon Tea Cake DH (2)

In regards to this cake, lemon is the star of the show with lots of flavor layered into the cake base, the soak, as well as the glaze that perfectly coats the top. But what makes this cake ever-so dazzling, is her chameleon-like abilities as she’s here to serve your every citrus whim.

Think of her as a choose your own adventure cake having been tested with blood oranges, limes (SO GOOD) and cara cara oranges. Let your citrus freak flag fly here my friends…let her fly.

This cake uses zero butter, a modest amount of delicious olive oil and heaps of lemon flavor to make a cake that is both hella good and ridiculously easy to make.

She also uses my olive oil + almond extract exacta of flavors that I’m obsessed with right now. So freaking good. You can see some a recent example of this with these Cherry Jam Muffins.

Before you get started, take a peek atmy Top 10 Cake Tips for perfect cakes, every time!

Fresh Lemon Cake | DisplacedHousewife Fresh Lemon Tea Cake DH (3)

If you’re feeling especially frisky and want to dazzle your friends, I highly recommend going the extra mile and candy-ing your lemon peel. It’s stupid easy and turns this casual beauty into a showstopper.

If you’d like some more bright citrus flavor, check out these Margarita Cupcakes With White Chocolate Lime Buttercream, these Blood Orange Scones or this Lemon Raspberry Cake…which leads me to my other note which is (drumroll) that I’m going back and revamping old recipes, adding in more tips and re-photography them!!

Before We Get Started

PANS. You’re going to need a 1.9 quart (9 x 5-inch) loaf pan. I tested the cake in this Ikeaone(which I think is pretty, but it browns up the sides of the cake a bit more than I’d like). I also tested it in a pan similar to thison Amazon + an old battered loaf tin from my mom. To make sure the pan you’re using is the correct size, pour 5 cups of water in there…it should roughly fill it 3/4s of the way full. That is the perfect-sized pan. If the water fills it up higher or significantly lower, you’ll need to find a better sized pan for the cake. One last pan note: the battered lighter-colored pan and the darker, second-linked pan (on Amazon) produced the prettiest cakes. The Ikea pan let the sides get a little too done (scroll down to the last photo and you’ll see the far-right cake was baked in the Ikea pan).
MIXER. As usual, I give instructions with an electric stand mixer. HOWEVER, feel free, as always, to use a bowl, whisk and your well-sculpted arms to get the job done.
CITRUS. I tested this cake a ton over the past several weeks. I made this lemon version several times over, a lime version (that I absolutely love), several blood orange as well as cara cara cakes too. They all work beautifully! You can use one specific type of citrus in the recipe or use a combination of whatever you have lying around.
ZEST. Use 4 lemons for the lemon zest to get that big bright pop of lemon flavor we’re looking for. Use those same lemons to get the fresh lemon juice you’ll need for the cake soak as well as the lemon glaze. You’ll need one additional lemon if you decide to candy the lemon peel for the top of the cake. A note on zesting: make sure to use a light hand and only zest the top, colored rind of the citrus and avoid the second layer of white pith, which is bitter.
JUICING. A quick way to get all of the juice out of your citrus is to use a fork. Cut the fruit in half and press the tines of the fork into the flesh in a twisting motion. Amazing, right? PS Always zest your fruit before juicing.
OLIVE OIL. When baking with olive oil reach for an olive oil that you could drink by the spoonful — you want it to taste delicious! I’m a huge California Olive Ranch and Lucini fan. While we’re baking with olive oil, check out my Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies Made with Olive Oil.
REST. I want you to rest your batter for a minimum of 30 minutes before baking it. This helps the flour absorb some of the moisture and allows the cake to bake up nice and puffy.
SOAK. I wanted to add a soak to this cake to reinforce all of those delicious lemon flavors — and it delivers. Bonus it also keeps this cake hella moist!
CANDIED. I’m always looking for jazz hands and for this cake, it comes to us in the form of candied lemon peel. I give you directions below (it’s super easy to do). You will need to make it the night before serving to give it time to dry out a bit before adding to the cake. As an alternative, you could put fresh lemon zest over the top of the cake just prior to serving, if you can’t be bothered with candying things this week.

Fresh Lemon Cake | DisplacedHousewife Fresh Lemon Tea Cake DH (5)

The Baker’s Guide to Measuring Flour

One of the biggest (and most common) mistakes in baking is how we measure flour. If you find yourself without a scale, see my top tips on how to properly measure flour for the perfect amount every time!

Fresh Lemon Cake | DisplacedHousewife Fresh Lemon Tea Cake DH (6)

More Citrus Recipes

Mega Delish Lemon Olive Oil Cake

Perfect French Meringues with Blood Orange Curd

Foolproof Vanilla Orange Madeleines

Chocolate Orange Meringue Cookies

Chocolate Lemon Tart

Lemony Brussels Sprout Pignoli Pizza

Fresh Lemon Cake | DisplacedHousewife Fresh Lemon Tea Cake DH (7)

Let’s make some delicious Fresh Lemon Cake, shall we?

4.86 from 7 reviews

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Prep Time: 50 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes minutes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Cake

Keyword: Citrus, Lemon, Loaf, Cake, Tea Cake

Servings: 1 9×5 Loaf Cake

Author: Rebecca Firth

Ingredients

For the Cake

Zest of 4 lemons (about 1/4 cup (8 g))
3/4 cup (144 g) granulated sugar
½ cup (120 ml) olive oil
2 large eggs (room temperature)
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups + 2 tablespoons (289 g) all-purpose flour (how to measure flour)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup (250 ml) milk, room temperature

For the Lemon Soak

¼ cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice
¼ cup (48 g) granulated sugar

For the Lemon Glaze

1 1/2 cup (180 g) confectioners' sugar (sifted)
2 tablespoons (30 ml) heavy whipping cream or milk
2 tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice

For the Candied Lemon Peel

1 lemon
1/2 cup (96 g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (120 ml) water

Instructions

For the Cake

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment add the lemon zest and sugar. Run the machine for 1 minute on low to completely combine the two. If you're feeling it reach in there with your hands and massage the lemon zest into the sugar to really infuse the lemon flavor in there. With the mixer on low, slowly stream in the olive oil until it's completely blended with the sugar. Add in the eggs, one at a time, making sure the first is well blended before adding in the next. Scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is well blended. Add the almond extract and run the machine on medium for 1 minute more.
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt. Add to the sugar mixture in two batches, alternating with the milk. Again, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is well incorporated. Let your batter sit for a minimum of 30 minutes.

For the Lemon Soak

To prepare the Lemon Soak, combine the lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan and stir over medium-low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved. Set aside to cool a bit.
When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan (23×13 cm) and line with parchment paper. Let some excess hang over the sides so that it's easy to get the cake out of the pan when it's done baking. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap several times on the counter to release any trapped air bubbles. Bake in the center of the oven for about 40-50 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick pressed in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let sit for 10 minutes and then brush the Lemon Soak over the top of the cake. If you don't have a pastry brush, then just slowly pour it all over the top giving it time to absorb into the cake. After another 10 minutes use the parchment overhand to lift the cake out of the tin and finish cooling completely on the rack. Set a baking sheet underneath the cooling rack.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, cream and lemon juice until smooth. Pour all over the top of the cake; tap the baking sheet on the counter several times to settle the glaze and have it drip down the sides.

For the Candied Lemon Peel

Use a sharp knife or vegetable peeler to cut the top layer of peel away from the lemon. If you get some pith that’s ok, because we’re going to sweeten the heck out of it. I like to try and cut long, wide pieces. Fill a small, heavy-bottommed saucepan with the lemon peel, sugar and water and bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. After 30 minutes, flip the pieces over and cook for 20 minutes more. Set them on a layer of parchment paper to dry out (ideally overnight) before using. When dried, arrange over the top of the cake. Store the cake in an airtight container at room temperature.

Notes

*I like to give a larger bake-time range with loaves because you have a larger mass of cake batter in a smaller container. If your oven runs hotter yours will be done on the lower end of the range; if cooler, your cake may take a bit longer.

Thanks for baking with me! Please rate + comment this recipe and tag me on social @displacedhousewife #displacedhousewife so I can see your beautiful treats! xo