I put all the lemon flavor in this lemon cake recipe, y’all. It has four layers of lemon sponge with a cream cheese frosting that’s bowl-lickin’ good. You will never taste another lemon cake this tender and moist, boos. Like seriously, the texture is everything! I also doubled up the lemon with both lemon zest and lemon extract, so you know you are gonna taste lemon for reals. Get into it.
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How to Make Lemon Cake
These step-by-step photos show how to make my lemon layer cake with lemon cream cheese frosting, but be sure to check the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and detailed instructions. Skip to the → Lemon Layer Cake Recipe
1. Cream together the oil and butter, then add the sugar
Beat until light, pale, and fluffy. Then add the eggs one at a time, fully mixing after each addition.
2. Mix remaining ingredients for the lemon cake batter
Turn mixer to low, add the flour in two parts, then add baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Mix in sour cream, milk, lemon zest, lemon extract, and vanilla until just combined.
3. Divide the batter evenly in pans
Smooth the tops.
4. Bake until a toothpick comes out mostly clean
Cool the cakes briefly in the pans, then turn out onto racks to finish cooling.
5. Beat the butter and cream cheese for the frosting
Beat them together until thick and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
6. Finish the lemon cream cheese frosting
Add the heavy cream, vanilla, lemon extract, and salt, then whip until light and fluffy.
7. Slice the cake layers
Level the cakes if needed, then slice each into two layers for a total of four.
8. Assemble your lemon layer cake
Add frosting between each layer, then frost the outside of the cake and serve.
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PRO TIP: Make sure your cake is completely cooled before you even think about frosting it. If it’s still warm, it will melt right off.
Full Lemon Layer Cake Recipe
Lemon Cake Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour sifted
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon zest
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon extract
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 4 cups confectioner's sugar
- 2 tsp heavy whipping cream
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp lemon extract
- pinch of salt
Instructions
For the Cake
- Start by preheating your oven to 325°F then liberally spray 2 (8-inch) round cake pans with non-stick baking spray.
- In your mixer bowl, add oil and butter and beat for 2 minutes on high speed. Slowly add in sugar and beat on high speed for an additional 4-5 minutes until very pale yellow and fluffy. Next, add eggs, one at a time, combining well after each addition and scraping down the sides as needed.
- Turn your mixer down to its lowest speed, and slowly add flour into batter in two increments then add baking powder, salt and baking soda. Be careful not to over beat.
- Lastly, add sour cream, milk, lemon zest, lemon and vanilla extracts, scrape down sides and mix until just combined and turn off mixer.
- Evenly pour cake batter into prepared baking pans and place in oven to bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes just barely clean but don't over bake (crucial not to over bake this cake)!! I personally start checking the cakes around 27 minutes just to ensure.
- Remove cakes from oven and rest in pans for 10-15 minutes. Invert cakes from pans onto cooling racks until cooled.
For the Frosting
- Add butter and cream cheese to the bowl of your mixer and beat on high speed until it begins to thicken and fluff.
- Next slow down mixer and carefully add in confectioner’s sugar. Once all sugar has incorporated, turn mixer back to high to continue whipping.
- Add in heavy cream, vanilla, lemon extract and salt and continue whipping until it is smooth, light and a fluffy frosting.
To Assemble
- Level the cakes, if necessary, and slice each cake into two layers making a total of four layers of cake. Add frosting between layers then frost entire cake with remaining frosting. Serve.
Notes
How to Store
- Room Temp: Keep the frosted cake covered on the counter overnight. Perfect if you plan to serve it the next day and want it soft.
- Fridge: You can refrigerate the cake for up to 5 days. Before serving, let it sit out and come back to room temp. Butter based cakes tend to firm up in the fridge and you want that tender bite, boo.
- Freezer: Freeze whole layers or slices by wrapping them tight in plastic wrap, then foil. They’ll keep for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, then let the cake come to room temp before serving.
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Keep ingredients room temp. Let the butter, eggs, sour cream, and cream cheese warm up so the batter comes together smooth and the frosting whips up good.
- Measure the leaveners right. Lemon extract is acidic, so the baking powder and baking soda amounts matter here. Follow the recipe and level those measuring spoons, boos!
- Don’t overmix the batter. Once the dry ingredients hit the bowl, mix just until they’re combined, then stop. That’s how you keep this easy lemon cake real tender.
- Check the cake early. Start peeking about five minutes before the timer goes off so the layers don’t dry out.
Yep boos! Bake them, let cool, wrap well, and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge, then bring to room temp before frosting.
It probably got too warm. Chill the frosting in the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes, then whip again until it firms up.
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I made this today for my dads birthday and the texture was just beautiful. The frosting was so smooth and complemented the cake well, the lemon flavor was subtle, but i also added a lemon curd to the inside and it made everything so bright and tangy. Im saving this one! Thank you!
Wonderful! I’m so so glad you enjoyed this!
I wanted to love this cake but it lacked lemon flavor (in the cake). The frosting was really good but overall it was a lot of work and ingredients for a disappointing result. The cake wasn’t as moist as I’d like to be either.
What a beautiful cake! You could make it for a wedding!
Making this cake for the third time, all three times as a birthday cake for my now 12 year old. Your recipe is flawless and the cake is out of this world. Thank you! <3
Awe, thank so much, Amy!
Would you recommend using Meyer lemons for this recipe ? Or one half regular lemons and one half Meyer lemons ? I’m baking a wedding cake for the first time ! Thank you for your amazing recipes !!!
Meyer lemons do tend to be sweeter than regular lemons so it really just depends on your taste preference. The best thing to do would be to test it out all three ways and do a tasting before making the final cake.
Thanks for your delicious cake recipes, all the way from sunny Perth, Western Australia tried the lemon loaf, now hummingbird’s next
Wow!! Thank you so much for making my cakes, I can’t wait to see what you think of the hummingbird cake!
Can I make this cake in a 9×13 pan?
Because this cake is only 2 8 inch round layers, it won’t hold enough volume for a 9×13 pan unfortunately. It would need almost close to double for that pan.
I made this in a 9×13 pan, cut it in half and stacked it, making a 9×6.5” rectangular cake. The layers were not thick enough to split further (as Jocelyn said), so I kept it as a 2 layer cake. The icing was too sweet for me anyway, so I was happy keeping it as 2 thicker layers. The guidance of checking the cake early was very useful, and I took it out at 35 minutes.
The cake itself was lovely and moist.
And thanks Jocelyn! Your cake recipes (this and your carrot cake) have given me confidence to bake cakes that I can share with others. I use the metric measurements and everything has turned out perfectly. I look forward to making your Turtles cake next! ❤️
Awe, thank you so much, Alissa, for your kind words and for sharing your tips for making a 9×13!
Could I make this in a bundt pan? Thank you
Great question, I don’t recommend making this cake in a bundt pan, but my lemon pound cake holds up amazing in a Bundt pan!
Hello, will I need to coat this cake with simple syrup? It will be in the fridge for 2 days before assembly.
I would suggest not putting this cake in the refrigerator or any cake in the fridge. If you won’t be assembling for 2 days, I suggest wrapping the layers super well with plastic wrap and putting in the freezer. Then thawing when you want to wrap. This will keep the layers moist.
Can you use this recipe for cupcakes?
Yes! It makes great cupcakes.