Description
Celebrate Dad with a homemade lemon pound cake, perfect for a Father’s Day cake design. Sweet, buttery, and easy to decorate.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 ½ cups all‑purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup whole milk, at room temperature
- Zest of 2 lemons
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Optional: 1 tablespoon powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 9‑inch loaf pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper for easy release.
- Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl: sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
- Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3–4 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract.
- Alternate adding the dry flour mixture and milk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until just combined; avoid over‑mixing.
- Fold in lemon zest and lemon juice until evenly distributed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.
- Bake for 55–60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If the top browns too quickly, tent with foil.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Once cooled, you can decorate the cake with a simple dusting of powdered sugar, a drizzle of lemon glaze, or a custom Father’s Day message using fondant or icing.
Notes
- Use room‑temperature ingredients to ensure a smooth batter.
- Do not over‑mix after adding the flour; this keeps the cake tender.
- For a deeper lemon flavor, replace ¼ cup of milk with ¼ cup of lemon‑infused yogurt.
- To keep the cake moist, wrap it in plastic wrap and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- For a festive touch, add a few drops of green food coloring to the batter and swirl with a toothpick before baking.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Cooking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 8g
- Sodium: 420mg
- Fat: 14g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 24g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 24g
- Cholesterol: 70mg
Keywords: father’s day cake design