Italian Lemon Pound Cake is the only lemon cake recipe you will ever need! You are going to love the super moist texture and the rich citrus flavor.
The Italian Lemon Pound Cake is sure to have you hooked after just one bite. It really is that good! Every time I take this cake to a party it is always a huge hit.
Have you ever bit into a lemon dessert and instantly pucker up because the lemon flavor is so overpowering? You don’t need to worry about that with this recipe. It has the perfect balance between sweet and tart, so it is pucker free.
If you have a chance, try making the cake the day before you are going to serve it, because It tastes even better the next day!
Serve this Italian Lemon Pound Cake at a baby or wedding shower or enjoy it while sitting on the back porch on a quiet summer evening.
Who am I kidding, this cake would be amazing no matter where you are or who you serve it to.
With love from my kitchen to yours,
Carrie
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Here are some of the items that I recommend for making this cake.
*UPDATE: I added 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger to the cake batter, because I felt like it needed a little bit of kick to the lemon flavor. It’s amazing how much of a difference it makes. Then I omitted the butter from the glaze, because the butter is very temperamental and can curdle. I brush the glaze on the warm cake and once it has cooled down, drizzle the lemon cream cheese frosting over the cake.
Italian Lemon Pound Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup of sour cream
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tsp. of fresh ginger, minced
Zest of 2 lemons ( about 2 tbsp.)
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees
1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in the sour cream, lemon juice, vanilla, ginger, and lemon zest.
2. Mix half of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Mix in the buttermilk and then add in the remaining flour mixture. Mix just until the flour disappears. Pour the cake batter into a bundt pan that has been generously sprayed with baking spray.
3. Bake for 70 to 80 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Turn the cake over on a cake platter. Spread the lemon glaze over the warm cake so that the glaze can soak into the cake. Let the cake cool completely and drizzle the lemon cream cheese frosting over the cake.
Lemon Glaze
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoon lemon juice, at room temperature
1. Whisk the powdered sugar and lemon juice together and mix until the glaze is smooth.
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
4 oz. of cream cheese, softened
1 tbsp. of lemon zest
1/4 cup of lemon juice
2 cups of powder sugar
- Mix the all the ingredients together until smooth and creamy.
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lara says
I added some dried cranberry to my cake , and turned amazing , thank you for the recipe ???
Betty Evans says
I baked the ITALIAN LEMON POUND CAKE today July 6, 2019.
It was just as delicous as it looks in the phot.
Thanks for sharing,
Betty
Reina says
My daughter made this for my birthday. SOO yummy!
Kay says
This cake was amazing! So lemony and delicious. Some mentioned their apprehension about adding the ginger. Don’t be! The ginger did not stand out and was not spicy/hot, I think it enhanced the flavors. The cake was dense, but very moist! I did not add the frosting, because like other reviewers, I don’t think it was necessary and would have been way too sweet. It was delicious with just the glaze. It was a wonderfully lovely cake and I will make this again!
Diana Colombo says
I made this the other day, (added a little ginger spice instead of fresh since that is all I had) it came out so good!!! We ate it all!!! I am ready to make another one and my excuse is I need to use the rest of the sour cream and buttermilk before it spoils!! If you love lemon and haven’t made this yet, definitely try it, you will be hooked!! It’s a great dessert to take to a cookout /party!! Fresh lemons in a dessert makes a world of difference!
Stephanye says
This recipe was absolutely delicious. Big hit in my household.
LORETTA SUSEN says
I’ve made this cake several times and always delicious. Never used ginger or the icing. Only the glaze. I do like the idea of omitting the butter from the glaze. Last time it did curdle.
Cheryl says
I agree, the ginger really makes the lemon flavor pop. This is a delicious cake. Thank you.
Lin says
This is the best cake I have ever baked! I made it for my mother in law’s birthday and she raved about it. It won me major DIL points and made her very happy during a difficult time. Can’t wait to make it again!
Kristina says
Great recipe! It can’t go wrong 😉