Cream Cheese Lemon Pound Cake
(This post may contain affiliate links at no extra cost to you. This is my way to keep this site afloat and free of ads. Read my full disclosure here.)
Don’t wait until life gives you lemons
(Post slightly updated with new pics, tips and recipe suggestions.)
I simply can’t resist lemon and cream cheese together, so naturally I needed to put them together in a cake! This lemon cream cheese pound cake is super soft and has lots of citrusy notes thanks to all the lemon zest in the batter and lemon juice in the cream cheese frosting. A bit of cream cheese in the actual cake batter makes this cake a bit lighter. It’s pure simplicity and pure perfection!
What I love about this pound cake, even more than its amazing taste, is that it’s so simple and yet people go crazy for it. Everyone loves a good lemon pound cake. Most people probably have a nostalgic story attached to one, no matter if it’s a family recipe or one bought at the local bakery. It brings vibrancy to your present. And people love that.
You know how much I love the concept of using the most simple and ordinary ingredients and turning them into something that you and everyone can’t get enough of it. It feels amazing knowing that something so good can also be so attainable. Like, in this cake, with the detail of adding a bit of cream cheese or just by using cake flour you’re doing something different enough to stand out. Two totally accesible ingredients that make a huge difference.
Cake flour has less protein than all-purpose flour. Less protein means less gluten formation, and that means a crumbly, soft and tender cake. The cream cheese brings a nice tang and also makes the batter richer and denser due to its proteins and fat content, bringing more substance to each bite of this pound cake. So don’t wait and go get your own lemons to make this !
Read below the steps that you will be following when making this cake so you can get organized before hand:
Steps to make this Cream Cheese Lemon Pound Cake:
Start by taking out the butter, cream cheese and eggs out of the fridge. They need to be softened and at room temperature. The butter and the cream cheese should be pliable but still a bit chill to the touch, not warm or oily. If your kitchen has a warm temperature (above 75°) take them out of the fridge after the next step.
Next, grate lemons for the zest (I used 2 medium lemons) and rub it with the sugar a few minutes. This is key in having a punch of lemon in every single bite!
Prepare your loaf cake pan by lining it with parchment paper or greasing with butter. I like to rub a bit of butter as a “glue” and place the parchement paper. Then spray a bit of baking spray, which is totally optional at this point.
I also like to sprinkle any coarse grain sugar such as turbinado or Demerara in the inside walls of the cake. The sugar creates a nice golden side. If doing this you definitely need to rub the sides with butter even if using parchment.
Sift the cake flour with the baking powder and salt over a bowl and gather the rest of the ingredients. This cake is put together pretty quickly so I like to have everything ready for me.
It’s important to follow the beating times as precise as you can. This type of cake uses very little baking powder so it’s important to incorporate the correct amount of air for proper rising but not too much that the batter could overflow in the oven before being cooked.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and distribute it evenly, making sure there are no gaps between it and the wall of the pan. Transfer to oven and see it rise!
When the cake is in the last 5 minutes of baking, make the lemony syrup.
You should soak the cake while still hot, but after that I like to place it in the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes. The cooled top will help the glaze start settling as soon as it makes contact with the cake. After that, leave cake at room temperature.
The pound cake can be left out the fridge for a few hours but after that it should be stored in the fridge because of the cream cheese glaze. When eating the next days, I like to cut the crust of the cake with the cream cheese glaze, warm the cake in the microwave and the put the crust “back”, that way I have warm or room tempeartire cake with a nice cream cheese glaze!
Shop the Post
My beautiful off-white ceramic loaf cake pan.
All my knives are from Schmidt Brothers. They have been with me for years, like my serrated knife I used here. They barely need sharpening and still the cuts are precise and perfect. I love that they’re an excellent value and of very high quality.
This set with 3 strainers, including a very large one like the one I used, is always a must in the kitchen.
I always use unbleached flours. This is the unbleached cake flour I used for this recipe. The one I use always, really.
These pre-cut parchment papers are exactly the ones I use. They make your life so much easier.
3 recipes I think you’ll love if you’re loving this one:
Gooey Apple Ricotta Cake
Lemon Yogurt Cake with Crunchy Sugary Glaze
Lemon Basil Olive Oil Cake
*
Can’t wait for you to bake this cake. I’m pretty sure you can’t wait to bake it either! No matter how gloomy or rainy is the day, a lemon cake will bring so much sunshine. That’s what a good lemon cake can do for you!
(Remember to leave your email when you make a comment to receive a notification as soon as I get back to you. Don’t worry, this will not add your email to my email list.)
Cream Cheese Lemon Pound Cake
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Lemon Pound Cake
◯ Lemon zest - 2 TBSP, about the zest of 2 medium lemons
◯ Natural granulated sugar - 1 ⅓ cup, 269g + ½ cup, 100g for the syrup, plus a bit more to sprinkle inside the pan (optional)
◯ Cake flour, preferably unbleached (NOT self-rising flour) - 1 ½ cup, 200g
◯ Fine sea salt - ¼ Tsp + a pinch
◯ Baking powder - ⅛ Tsp
◯ Salted butter European Style, preferably made of milk from grass-fed cows, softened- 14 TBSP, 199g, plus about 2 TBSP for greasing the pan
◯ Cream cheese, softened - 4oz (½ block), 113g
◯ Vegetable oil - 1 TBSP
◯ Vanilla extract - ½ TBSP
◯ Large eggs, at room temperature - 3
◯ Freshly squeezed lemon juice - ½ cup, 120g
◯ Water - 2 TBSPS, 32g
Lemon Cream Cheese Glaze
◯ Cream Cheese, softened - 4 oz (½ block), 113g
◯ Butter (salted or unsalted), softened - ¼ cup, 4 TBSP, 46g
◯ Confectioner’s sugar, sifted - 1 cups, 135g
◯ Freshly squeezed lemon juice - about 1 to 2 TBSP
◯ Chopped pistachios or fresh berries to decorate and serve
Details
Yield:
a 9” x 4 ½” or 9” x 5” loaf cake pan
Total time:
1.5 hour
Active time: 20 minutes to make the cake batter, 10 minutes to make the cream cheese glaze
Baking time:
60 to 65 minutes
Equipment:
9” x 4 ½” or 9” x 5” loaf cake pan, stand mixer or electric hand mixer, large strainers, pre-cut parchment paper (optional)
Steps
Making the cake:
Preheat oven to 325°. Grease a 9” x 5” loaf cake pan with butter or line with parchment paper. If desired, sprinkle some sugar on the inside walls of the pan. Finely mist the pan with baking spray if you have (this is more preventive since the pan is already buttered and/or lined).
Mix lemon zest with sugar and using your hands rub it with the sugar for two to three minutes, just until the zest looks evenly mixed and the sugar looks moist. Set aside.
Over a large bowl sift together the 1 ½ cup of flour, the ¼ teaspoon of salt and the ⅛ teaspoon of baking powder.
With a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or with an electric mixer with the beaters, beat butter in high speed (#6 in the Kitchen Aid) for 2 minutes to make it fluffy. Add the cream cheese in chunks and beat just to incorporate it with the butter. Add the tablespoon of oil and the ½ tablespoon of vanilla and mix in high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer running, add the sugar-zest mixture slowly until incorporated.
Stop mixer and scrap down the sides and through the bottom of the bowl to make sure there’s no sugar stuck on the sides or on the bottom. Bring speed to high again and beat for 3 minutes. Please take note that if you are using a hand electric mixer, you should add one to two minutes at each step. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until they are fully incorporated. Stop mixer and scrape down once more. Beat for 30 seconds to make sure everything is well mixed.
Bring speed to the lowest (#1 in the Kitchen Aid) and add the flour mixture until most of it is incorporated. Finish mixing by hand with a folding motion using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
Transfer batter to prepared pan, making sure there are no gaps between the batter and the walls of the pan. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until top is deep golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean when you insert it through the very center of the cake, which would be opened. Do not open oven door before 55 minutes of baking. If cake’s done, turn off oven and open oven door. Wait about a minute or two before taking it out completely. Let it cool down for 2 to 3 minutes before poking it and pouring lemon syrup (recipe follows).
After soaking, place it in the fridge to cool down for 10 to 20 minutes before glazing.
In the meantime, make the lemon cream cheese glaze (recipe below).
Making the lemon simple syrup:
When the cake is entering the last 5 minutes of baking, mix the ½ cup of lemon juice and the 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan and pour the ½ cup of sugar right in the middle to prevent it from sticking to the walls of the saucepan. Gently boil over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes until sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and brush over cake.
Place cake in the fridge 5 to 10 minutes before pouring glaze.
Making the glaze:
Beat together the ½ block of cream cheese and the 4 tablespoons of butter in medium speed until smooth and well blended, 4 to 5 minutes. Using a spatula scrape down any mixture creeping up in the bowl and mix, until there are no big lumps.
Place a large strainer over the bowl and sift over the cup of confectioner’s sugar. Mix until well blended. Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and mix. Taste flavor and consistency and add the extra tablespoon of lemon juice if desired or needed.
Pour over cake. You may sprinkle chopped pistachios, any other nuts or berries on top to serve.
