Lemon Drizzle Cake

This lemon drizzle cake is a 9X9 lemon cake. It has poked holes filled with a lemon drizzle and topped with a lemon cream cheese frosting. It is packed with lemon flavor all the way through.

This lovely lemon drizzle cake is so easy to make and SO delicious. It has a soft and moist texture throughout and a delicious cream cheese frosting on top to make it smooth and irresistible. This moist lemon drizzle cake is perfect if you want to bring the most delicious cakes for special occasions, but don’t want to bake all day.

For other spring recipes, try Peach Cheesecake, Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies, and Fluffernutter Cookies.

Why This Lemon Drizzle Cake Recipe Works

• Easy recipe- This easy lemon drizzle cake recipe is very simple and works for any skill level including first time bakers.
• Fresh Lemon flavor- This homemade lemon drizzle cake is FULL of lemon flavour, with a lemon drizzle soaked into the centre of the cake to pack even more flavor in.
• Cream cheese frosting- This recipe has a lemon cream cheese frosting that tastes amazing for the perfect lemon drizzle cake.

Ingredient Notes for Best Lemon Drizzle Cake

Here are some notes on the ingredients. For a full list of ingredients, check out the recipe card below.

• Unsalted butter- Pull this out 2 hours before baking.
• Sour cream- Pull this out 2 hours before baking to get to room temperature.
• Eggs- Pull the large eggs out 2 hours before baking to get to room temperature.
• Buttermilk- Pull this out 2 hours before baking.
• Powdered sugar- Make sure the icing sugar is sifted to avoid gritty frosting.
• Cream cheese- Pull this out 2 hours before baking.
• Lemon juice- After you zest lemons you can juice them for fresh lemon juice. It takes approximately 3 lemons for all of the lemon juice needed.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Dairy free- You can use your favorite dairy free options for this recipe!
• Gluten free- I haven’t tested this gluten free. Let me know if you do.
• Buttermilk- You can also do 1 cup of milk with 1 Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Let it sit for 10 minutes before using.

Step By Step Instructions – Lemon Cake

Here is how to make and bake this lemon drizzle cake.

STEP 1: Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Meanwhile, spray a 9X9 square cake pan with baking spray. Line the bottom with parchment paper coming up 2 sides of the pan. Spray it again.

STEP 2: Dry ingredients. Sift the all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set it aside.

STEP 3: Beat butter, oil, and sugar. Use a mixer and large mixing bowl to beat the butter, oil, and sugar together on high speed for 2 minutes. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

STEP 4: Wet ingredients. Add the fresh lemon zest, lemon juice, and sour cream. Mix them on medium speed until combined. Add the eggs and mix until combined. Do not worry if the batter looks split due to the acid from the lemon juice.

STEP 5: Combine. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk. Mix them in on low speed until combined. Add the rest of the flour mixture and buttermilk to the cake mixture. Mix them in on low speed until combined.

STEP 6: Pour. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan.

STEP 7: Bake. Bake the cake for 24-27 minutes. It is done baking when a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Start the drizzle while the cake bakes.

Step By Step Instructions – Lemon Drizzle and Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

Here is how to make the lemon drizzle and lemon cream cheese frosting for the lemon drizzle cake.

STEP 1: Heat lemon drizzle. Heat a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the sugar and lemon juice and continue heating until the sugar dissolves.

STEP 2: Apply drizzle. When the cake is done baking, poke holes into it with a fork all over. Pour the drizzle over top of the cake and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. Then, transfer the cake to a cooling rack to let the cake cool completely before decorating.

STEP 3: Sift powdered sugar. Sift the powdered sugar for the frosting into a medium bowl. Set it aside.

STEP 4: Beat cream cheese and butter. Use a mixer with a large bowl to beat the butter and cream cheese together on high speed for 2 minutes.

Make sure you have the butter and cream cheese at room temperature before beating them or it can split the frosting.

STEP 5: Mix frosting. Add half of the powdered sugar to the butter mixture and mix it in on low speed. Next, add the remaining powdered sugar and mix it in on low speed. Finally, add the lemon zest and a pinch of salt. Mix on high speed until it is creamy.

STEP 6: Frost cake. Spread the frosting over the cake.

Expert Baking Tips

• Properly measure the flour- Make sure the flour is spooned and leveled. If you stick the measuring cup directly into the flour, it will compact the flour. Compacted flour can cause the cake to be dry.
• To easily remove the cake from the pan, make sure to first spray the pan with baking nonstick spray. Then, line bottom with parchment paper and spray it again to make sure that the paper does not stick to the bottom of the cake too much. If you miss any spots with the spray they can stick and tear the cake so be thorough.
• Make sure the parchment paper comes far up the sides enough to use the edges as handles to help pull the cake out of the pan smoothly.
• For high altitudes add 2 Tbsp of flour to the cake batter.

FAQ

Recipe Variations

• No drizzle- You can skip the lemon drizzle for the cake. It is still a delicious lemon cake!
• Alternative icing- You can use the icing from this lemon donuts recipe for a easy lemon glaze instead of cream cheese icing.

Special Tools

• 9X9 pan: I use metal square pans for baking. I don’t recommend glass pans.
• Parchment paper: I use premade sheets of parchment paper vs the roll of parchment paper. It makes baking a lot easier!
• Baking spray: I use the nonstick spray that has flour in it.
• Offset spatula: I use this to easily spread the frosting or fillings.

Storing and Freezing

Store this lemon drizzle cake in an airtight container like a cake carrier. Store in the fridge up to 5 days.

You can freeze the lemon drizzle cake in individual slices. Place the cake slices in an airtight container and freeze up to 30 days.

Other Cake Recipes To Try

Try these lemon desserts recipes too!

• Lemon Raspberry Rolls
• Lemon Crinkle Cookies
• Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake
• Lemon Donuts
• Lemon Blackberry Cookies

Make sure to leave a STAR REVIEW if you loved this recipe! Make sure to tag me on Instagram @stephaniesweettreats. To get more ideas follow me on Pinterest.