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Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake! – Back to Basics!
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This classic lemon drizzle loaf cake features a melt-in-the-mouth lemon sponge, a deeply soaking sugar-and-juice drizzle, and a vibrant icing glaze. Prep takes 15 minutes, it bakes in 55 to 65 minutes, and it stays perfectly moist for days without dropping or sinking.
Notes from The Patisserie
Welcome to the next instalment of my “Back to Basics” series! While I have shared countless creative flavour combinations over the years, including my popular lemon and lime drizzle variant, it became clear that my readers wanted a definitive, master-class guide to the ultimate pure lemon loaf cake.
A classic lemon drizzle is a foundational pillar of British baking, loved for its signature sweet-yet-sharp punch. This foolproof recipe is uncomplicated, highly reliable, and guaranteed to become your new go to afternoon treat.
Ingredients notes and tips
This sponge is built upon the traditional equal-weight structure where the fat, sugar, flour, and eggs balance each other perfectly:
- Butter – 250g of unsalted butter
- Sugar – an equal weight of caster sugar as it will provide that soft texture
- Flour – self raising flour creates the rise required to fill the loaf tin
- Eggs – I use medium eggs, more on that below
- Lemon zest – I use the zest of two lemons but you could use 2tsp lemon extract
Because domestic egg sizes vary considerably, the most accurate way to guarantee a flawless rise is to weigh your eggs in their shells first, then match that exact weight in butter, caster sugar, and self-raising flour. As a general rule of thumb:
- Medium eggs: 5 medium eggs weigh approximately 250g, which aligns perfectly with the standard quantities listed in the recipe card below.
- Large eggs: If you only have large eggs in your fridge, 4 large eggs usually weigh around 240g. If using large eggs, adjust your butter, sugar, and flour down to 240g each to keep the chemical balance perfect.
Selecting and lining your loaf tin
So… when you are starting with a loaf cake, you need the right tin. Loaf tins can vary greatly in size, even if they are described as being the same tin. For example, I have three different 2lb loaf tins, but they are all slightly different in how much water they can hold. Usually, this is okay as long as they are similar enough! For reference, this is the 2lb loaf tin that I use! If it helps, the exact measurements are – 24.4 x 14.4 x 6.9 cm. This may help you if your’s varies slightly!
Some loaf tins are still 2lb, but they are slightly wider and shallower, which means the bake time can vary – but baking a loaf cake is quite similar to baking a Bundt Cake. They can vary dependent on tin, just like a Bundt Cake, but usually they work out the same!
When I line the tin, I usually grease it slightly and then add parchment paper on top. I don’t then grease on top of the paper. I don’t feel the need, and if you use the correct type of baking parchment, then you definitely don’t need to do it!
Maximising the zing of lemon
To get that spectacular, mouth-puckering contrast of sweet and sharp, this recipe treats the drizzle and the decoration as two entirely separate elements:
The decorative glaze: Once the cake has cooled completely to room temperature, a separate thick mixture of icing sugar and lemon juice is drizzled across the top. This provides a sharp, visually striking white finish that prevents the cake from looking plain.
The soaking drizzle: This is a simple, cloudy syrup made from fresh lemon juice and caster sugar. It must be spooned generously over the cake while the sponge is fresh out of the oven and still piping hot. The heat opens the pores of the cake, allowing the liquid to completely saturate the crumb, locking in moisture and creating a gorgeous, crunchy sugar crust as it cools.
FAQs
Can I use plain flour if I don’t have self-raising flour?
Yes, you can make your own substitute easily. For this specific recipe, weigh out 245g of standard plain flour and thoroughly sift it together with 3 level teaspoons of baking powder before mixing it into your batter.
Why did my loaf cake split down the middle while baking?
A distinct, central crack is actually the hallmark of a traditional British loaf cake! Because the outer edges of the batter set first in the narrow tin, the expanding gases inside the cake force their way up through the weakest, wettest point in the centre as it continues to rise. It is completely normal and looks beautifully rustic.
Can I scale this recipe down for a smaller 1lb loaf tin?
Absolutely. To adapt this for a smaller 1lb tin, simply reduce the ingredients down by a two-egg ratio: use 3 medium eggs and scale the butter, caster sugar, and self-raising flour down to 150g each. This smaller volume will bake much faster, so start checking it around the 35 to 40-minute mark.
Why did all the lemon drizzle sink to the very bottom of my tin?
This happens if you poke deep holes into the cake with a skewer before pouring the drizzle over it. While many recipes advise doing this, it creates direct channels that allow the liquid to bypass the crumb entirely and pool at the bottom, making the base soggy. Simply spoon the drizzle directly onto the intact, hot surface; the hot sponge will naturally draw it in like a sponge.
Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake Recipe
An easy lemon drizzle loaf cake – lemon sponge, lemon drizzle, lemon icing… what more could you want?!
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Servings: 12 Slices
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 250 g unsalted butter
- 250 g caster sugar
- 250 g self raising flour
- 5 medium eggs
- Zest of 2 lemons (2tsp lemon extract)
Drizzle
- 75 ml lemon juice
- 75 g caster sugar
Decoration
- 50 g icing sugar
- 1-2 tsps lemon juice
- lemon zest
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180ºc / 160ºc Fan – grease and line your 2lb loaf tin!
- Beat together your butter and sugar together until light and creamy!
- Add in your flour, eggs and lemon and beat again until combined. It'll be a smooth cake mixture!
- Add the mix into the cake tin and bake. This can take 55-65 minutes – but check from 50 minutes onwards.
- Towards the end of baking – in a bowl, mix together your 75ml lemon juice and 75g caster sugar together.
- Once the cake is baked, drizzle this over the cake, whilst still in the tin. Let the cake cool fully.
- Once the cake is cooled, remove from the tin.
- If you want to decorate, mix in lemon juice to your icing sugar until you reach the desired consistency.
- Drizzle this over the cake, and sprinkle on some lemon zest for decoration!
Notes
- I use this loaf tin
- If it helps, I also use this baking parchment in my bakes
- This cake will last for 4-5 days at room temp! I store it in a cake storage tin.
Storage and freezing
Thanks to the wonderful moisture-retaining properties of the hot sugar-and-juice soak, this classic lemon drizzle loaf cake keeps exceptionally well and will stay beautifully soft, tender, and intensely flavourful for four to five days when stored at room temperature inside an airtight cake tin or a dedicated cake storage box.
It is highly recommended that you do not store this bake in the fridge, as the cold environment will cause the butter fats within the sponge to firm up, making the overall texture feel dense and dry. If you want to prepare this bake well in advance, the un-iced loaf cake freezes beautifully for up to three months; simply let the drizzle-soaked cake cool completely, wrap it tightly in a double layer of cling film followed by a layer of kitchen foil, and freeze, ensuring you allow it to defrost fully at room temperature before adding the fresh icing glaze.
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Everybody knows I love a lemony bake, lemon drizzle loaf cake is just the beginning of the possibilities, there are lemon drizzle cupcakes if you need smaller, more bite-sized bakes, alternatively I have had great success with lemon drizzle traybake which have proven to be very popular.
The ultimate showstopper if it’s a special occasion and you need to demonstrate you are the expert baker I always have the lemon celebration cake, great for a birthday or anniversary.
so gorgeous ! and I didn’t mess it up so it must be easy to follow ! thanks !
This lemon drizzle was the nicest I have ever tasted. I followed the instructions to the letter and it then owned out perfectly. Highly recommended 5*.
Can I use this recipe for a round tin? thank youuu x
You can – but have a look at my lemon celebration cake as it’s a round cake! x
I’ve used many of your recipes, so straight forward to follow! This was my first lemon drizzle and everyone loved it! Thankyou !
Ahh yay!
Tried this and my whole family absolutely loved it!! Jane is there any way I can make this vegan for my sister? Thank you!
Hey! Ah yay! So usually I find it best to make a vegan sponge batter rather than trying to substitute all the eggs but that’s just me – it may be worth trying my vegan Victoria sponge recipe (with added lemon) if you want!
Hi Jane, have you ever done this recipe in a mini loaf tray? Any idea on cooking times? Thank you!
I’m afraid I have not, sorry!!
Weigh the eggs in their shells that’s the grams of other ingredients!
Yep, always weigh in the shells..!
Sorry to be the millionth person to mention the eggs lol, but I’ve got four medium eggs and one large. Can that work? Shall I do 1 large and 2 medium, instead? I am going to try baking this today, so just wanted to make sure. Thanks 😊
As I use five eggs, I would maybe weigh three medium, and one large, in their shells, and then match the flour/sugar/butter to the weight! x
I found Jane’s recipe for Lemon Drizzle so informative.Right down to weighing the eggs .Brilliant. Thank you.
I loved this recipe it was delicious! I want to make a Gluten free one for my nan so I’ve got Gluten free self raising flour. I just wondered having never made a Gluten free cake before do I follow the same recipe or do I need to adjust anything? Thanks for the brilliant recipes by the way! I’ve made several cheesecakes all amazing
Hey! Yes you can definitely use gluten free flour – but often adding in xantham gum is best for GF cakes. Or you can add in some ground almonds for a nicer texture!
Is it normal for this to rise well above the tin? Its been in the ove 15 minutes and is an inch above my liner.
Hoping it’ll come out smoothly as it’s for an order tomorrow and I’ve just ran out of eggs 🤦♀️
As mentioned on the post some tins are differently sized even though they are all called the same size – so yours may be a tad small! x
I love this recipe and love lemon cake. It is my daughter’s 1st birthday next month and wanted to do a lemon cake with buttercream covering it, do you think this recipe will work?
I gave a lemon celebration cake which is a round cake if you are after that – but if you still want a loaf cake then yes it should be okay! x
Zoe – I just came on here to commemorate Jane on this recipe. This cake turned out marvellous and looks just like the photo, except the decoration, like you’ve mentioned 😀 So as I thought, I added too much lemon juice. I also had to make my own icing sugar by blending caster sugar, which is fine but I got the translucent appearance too. It really doesn’t make a difference to the cake (as it is just decoration) and my husband absolutely loves it. He was so excited when I told him I was baking this (for the first time ever) as a treat for him, he loves lemon cake.
I used 5 medium eggs which were the right balance in this cake. When I cut in to it (the “Dum, dum, dum moment) it was a “Voila” moment 😀 Perfect and looks just like your photo, Jane. I will make this again but not yet as this makes a hefty cake – but we’ll get through it 😉
One ask – it says 373 calories per serving – what is a serving, 1/8th? Crikey it’s a lot. Home baking always gives me a false sense of fat and calories, I always tell myself that home baking is healthier, that’s a big fooling yourself thing, I know! 😉
Thank you for this wonderful cake! <3
Super fab … So easy ….tastes yummy 😋