Easy lemon drizzle cake

Lemon cake is always a crowd favorite and this lemon drizzle cake is not only a fail-safe, easy recipe but also results in the most delicious, tangy and moist cake you will make.

It really shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who know me that lemon cake is by far my favorite type of cake. I mean, lemon-anything is my favorite. If I don’t have a large quantity of fresh lemons in my kitchen at all times I get a bit panicky because I just can’t live without that bright, zingy, freshness it adds to everything. Sweet or savory, lemon brings everything to life. And this lemon drizzle cake is no different.

I make this easy lemon drizzle cake recipe all the time because it doesn’t involve any creaming of butter and sugar or sifting or any of that stuff that makes baking seem difficult, you know? The key to this cake being so soft and tender is the use of plain yoghurt and oil in the cake. The lemon zest in the batter infuses its delicious perfume through the entire loaf and the zingy lemon icing finishes everything off perfectly.

I made a relatively runny icing because I wanted it to sink into the cake a little but you can always use less water if you want a thicker icing. Which would you prefer?
Serve generous slices of this sunshine-in-cake-form with coffee/tea for the ultimate afternoon snack.

How to make lemon drizzle cake

Pre-heat the oven and line a loaf pan with parchment/baking paper. Stir together the dry ingredients and whisk all the wet ingredients together in a measuring jug. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and place in the oven to bake until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely then pour over the icing and serve.

How to make icing for lemon drizzle cake

Depending on the thickness you want, you can use more or less lemon juice and even add milk to make it thinner. For an icing that soaks into the cake, using 2 cups of icing/powdered sugar with ½-¾ cup of liquid will result in a thin icing. For a thicker icing, use less liquid or add more icing sugar.

Easy lemon drizzle cake

Lemon cake is always a crowd pleaser and this lemon drizzle cake is fool-proof and also results in the most delicious, tangy and moist cake ever.

4.49 from 31 votes

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Course: Baking, Cake, Dessert, Easter

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 12

Calories: 335

Author: Alida Ryder

Ingredients

• 2 cups cake/all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup plain yoghurt (I used Greek)
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3 large eggs
• ½ cup canola oil
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon

For the icing

• 2 cups icing/powdered sugar
• juice of 1 lemon

Instructions

• Pre-heat the oven to 180ºc and grease and line a loaf tin with baking paper. 
• Stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. 
• In a jug, mix together the sugar, yoghurt, oil, lemon zest, vanilla and eggs. 
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well. 
• Transfer to the loaf pan and place in the oven. 
• Bake for 30-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. 
• To make the icing, whisk together the icing sugar and lemon juice until smooth. 
• Pour the icing over the cooled cake and serve. 

Nutrition

Calories: 335kcal | Carbohydrates: 51g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 131mg | Potassium: 221mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 37g | Vitamin A: 70IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 91mg | Iron: 1.1mg

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