Recipes · Baking · Summer
Lemon Cake moist, easy and always a good idea
This lemon cake is my most-baked recipe. Not because it is particularly elaborate – quite the opposite. It is ready to go in the oven in 15 minutes, needs no special ingredients and almost always turns out perfectly. But it tastes like a holiday. Like a terrace. Like an afternoon with nowhere to be. I make it for every friend's birthday, for Sunday coffee, for the moment when someone rings the doorbell unexpectedly. It is my most reliable baking companion.
Last updated: 2026-06-03
The recipe for a 30 cm loaf tin
Ingredients: 200 g butter (softened), 200 g sugar, 4 eggs, 250 g plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, zest of 2 unwaxed lemons, juice of 1 lemon, pinch of salt, 2 tbsp milk. For the glaze: 150 g icing sugar, juice of 1 lemon.
Method: Beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Sift flour with baking powder and fold in alternately with the milk. Stir in lemon zest and juice. Pour into a greased loaf tin and bake at 170°C fan for approx. 50-55 minutes (skewer test). Leave to cool. Mix icing sugar with lemon juice to a thick glaze and pour over the cake.
Tips for the perfect lemon cake what I have learnt over the years
Room-temperature butter is crucial – cold butter will not beat to a fluffy consistency. My tip: rub the lemon zest directly into the sugar before mixing with the butter – the essential oils dissolve better and the lemon flavour becomes more intense.
For an extra moist cake: brush immediately after baking while still warm with lemon juice, then add the icing sugar glaze once cooled.
Variations how I vary it
With poppy seeds: stir in 3 tbsp poppy seeds. With lavender: rub 1 tbsp dried lavender into the sugar first. With buttermilk: replace the milk with buttermilk for an even more tender crumb.
Frequently Asked Questions quick and clear answers
How do you make lemon cake moist?
Use room-temperature butter, brush the cake immediately after baking while still warm with lemon juice, and replacing milk with buttermilk makes the cake even moister.
How long does lemon cake keep?
In a cake tin, kept cool, 3-4 days. In the fridge up to a week. It also freezes very well (without the glaze).
About the author
Jona · Villa Bloom & Co.
I write about country house style, garden, terrace and cosy living – from genuine conviction and personal experience. Everything I recommend here I have tried myself. More about me →