I don’t mean to be dramatic, but I think I’m in love. With a cake. We’ve spent a lot of time together lately, tweaking our relationship until we’re both happy. This High Altitude Lemon Drizzle Cake is seriously the best I’ve ever had – and I’m pretty confident you’ll agree.
Sorry for the dorkdom, but I can’t help it. IT’S SO GOOD! I have been a little obsessed lately. Light and fluffy yet still moist and velvety, this easy loaf cake is bursting with sweet-tart lemon flavor and topped with a shatteringly delicious glaze that melts on your tongue.
Not quite a pound cake, but more refined than, say, banana bread, this recipe was tricky to get right. I’ve tested it on and off for months, making copious notes, and until now have almost despaired of ever getting it right. Previous versions were too dry, too heavy, sunken in the middle, or bland-tasting. I finally got the texture, flavor, and rise I was looking for with an extra egg, a little cake flour, sour cream, and a double punch of lemon flavor with a bit of lemon curd (a trick borrowed from the Great British Bake Off’s Paul Hollywood) and lots of fresh lemon zest. It’s a lovely, thick batter that you will probably be tempted to lick off the spoon. Whether you do or not is your business.
When the cake comes out of the oven, first enjoy the intoxicating scent. It will make your stomach gurgle a little. Then, once it’s had a few minutes to settle, start in on the glazing process. As with any drizzle cake, you want to poke holes all over the cake to allow the glaze to soak in. The more holes you poke, the more avenues the glaze has to soak its lusciousness into the cake, so don’t be shy. Really go for it. I use a cake tester for poking, but you can use a fine skewer, a bamboo cocktail stick, or any other fine, sharp item you have in your kitchen.
After I drizzle on the glaze, I like to spread it with a brush, so it really gets into all the nooks and crevices. Then – and this is optional, but recommended – I let the coating set, and drizzle a second layer on top, Jackson Pollack-style.
Essential Tips for success
Lemon cakes are particularly finicky at altitude. These tips will help ensure yours comes out lofty and perfectly baked.
- Correct whipping is important for getting the right texture and rise. Make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature, and beat the sugar and butter together very well, until the mixture is very light and fluffy. The eggs should be beaten in one at a time, until they’re thoroughly integrated. Then, stop! Too much whipping of the eggs will make the batter too airy and fragile.
- Check your oven temperature with an oven thermometer. That can make or break this recipe. If your oven is not calibrated, chances are the temperature is off from what its display says. Mine, for example, often (but not always) runs about 25 degrees hot. If I baked this cake at the displayed temperature, it would be way too brown on the bottom and sides and likely come out a little dry. So I set my oven about 25 degrees cooler than the temp I’m going for. And I always double-check the reading on my oven thermometer. Also – once the cake is in, DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN. She’s a delicate flower, and temperature disturbances can make her collapse.
- Make sure you have the right size pan. When I tried this recipe in my trusty USA 8″ x 4″ loaf pan, it spilled over the sides and sunk in the middle. So I pulled out my 9″ x 5″ loaf pan – and lo, that little extra room made all the difference. The cake rose nice and high, and didn’t cave in.
There she is, my lemon cake soul mate. Be gentle with her, and she’ll treat you right.
Looking for more fruit-y desserts and tea-friendly fare? Give one of these a try:
- High Altitude Lemon Blackberry Breakfast Cake
- Orange Scones with Cinnamon-Vanilla Glaze
- High-Altitude Autumn Plum Torte
- High Altitude Pistachio-Apple Scones
Moist and Easy High Altitude Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 60 mins
- Total Time: 1 hour, 10 mins
- Yield: 10–12 slices 1x
Description
Zingy, velvety, and light, this Moist and Easy High Altitude Lemon Drizzle Cake features a robust sweet-tart flavor with a meltingly delicious citrus glaze.
Ingredients
CAKE
1/2 lb (1 cup, 2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup + 2 TB granulated sugar
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
2 TB fresh lemon zest from about 2 lemons (reserve the lemon juice for the glaze)
1 TB lemon curd
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
GLAZE
1 1/2 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice (avoid bottled juice which can have an “off” flavor)
2/3 cup confectioners sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F – double check the temperature with an oven thermometer.
- Butter a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or a separate large bowl, using a hand mixer), cream the room-temperature butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until very light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Add eggs, beating after each until they are thoroughly incorporated. Don’t beat further – you don’t want to add too much air.
- With the mixer on low, stir in the sour cream, lemon curd, and lemon zest. Mix just until incorporated.
- Carefully stir or fold in the flour mixture, mixing only until you can no longer see any dry flour.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top with a spoon.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 60-65 minutes, until the edges are golden and a cake tester comes out with no signs of raw batter. Avoid over-baking which will lead to a dry cake. Also avoid opening the oven during the bake, which can cause the cake to collapse.
- Let the cake cool for 10-15 minutes, then poke it all over with a cake tester, cocktail stick, or other fine, sharp tool, poking all the way to the bottom of the cake. Make lots of holes to allow for maximum seepage!
- While the cake is cooling, make the glaze: simply whisk together the fresh lemon juice and confectioners sugar in a small bowl. The glaze should be thin enough to drizzle, so add extra juice or sugar as needed to achieve the right consistency. If the glaze hardens a bit while you’re waiting, just re-stir it until it’s liquid again.
- Pour about half the glaze all over the top of the cake and use a pastry brush or the back of a spoon to distribute it across the cake. If desired (and you really should do this), let the first coat set for a few minutes, then drizzle the remaining glaze over the top. You can glaze the cake in or out of the tin; I like to (carefully) lift the cake out of its pan using the parchment paper and then drizzle so the glaze drips pleasingly down the sides.
- Slice and serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Leftovers can be tightly wrapped or stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
… it’s important that your butter and eggs are at room temperature to ensure the right texture of the batter. If you’ve forgotten to take them out early, you can immerse your eggs in warm water for a few minutes to bring their temperature up.
… if you’re subbing Greek yogurt for sour cream, be sure to avoid flavored varieties, which contain sugar and will upset the ratio of the batter.
… if you don’t have or don’t wish to buy cake flour, sub an equal amount of all-purpose flour.
… If your loaf pan is smaller than 9″ x 5″, fill it no more than 3/4 full. The remaining batter can be discarded or baked in a mini loaf pan (which will need to be baked for less time than the large pan so watch it carefully).
… this cake can be frozen; however, I recommend glazing it after freezing rather than before. Simply bake the lemon cake as instructed, allow to cool completely, then wrap tightly in plastic and freeze in a sealed plastic bag for up to a month. When you’re ready to serve it, defrost the cake at room temperature (you can even warm it in a moderate oven), then poke it all over and glaze as instructed above.
Hi Robyn! I can’t wait to make this! Lemon cake is one of my favorites! Thank you for the endless calories consumed to make the recipe perfect for us high altitude bakers. Hope you are safe and well!
Can you add poppy seeds to this recipe for a little texture?
Hi Mariel, yes, you could definitely add poppyseeds (I’d recommend about a tablespoon).
Hoping this works. My last 2 Lemon Drizzles have been delicious – just totally sunken in the middle. Need for a book club meeting on Thursday so hoping my high altitude (5,000 ft) is the reason and your recipe is the trick! Wish me luck!
Hi Robyn,
I really want to try making this cake and I was wondering if you think it will be just as perfect at 5869 feet (Parker, Colorado). Should I make any adjustments that you can think of?
Hi Marianne, the recipe should work as written at your altitude.
Good evening what can I use if can’t find lemon curd?
It’s really easy to make! Here’s a recipe that takes just a few minutes: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipes/easy-microwave-lemon-curd-recipe