This is the recipe you need to make the Best Eggless Lemon Pound Cake! It’s moist, buttery, and tastes like lemon heaven. Easy to make with simple ingredients.
Oriana’s Thoughts On The Recipe
This eggless lemon pound cake is the ultimate dessert for lemon lovers! Lemon Pound Cake all by itself is superbly delish, but if you want to take it to the next level, glaze it with sugar lemon glaze. I personally am addicted to this Eggless Lemon Pound Cake … so simple but so good!
Craving cake instead? Try my Eggless Lemon Cake recipe.
What I Love About This Recipe
Ingredients Notes & Substitutions
Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).
You’ll need:
- Flour: Standard all-purpose flour works best here; skip the cake flour, bread flour, and wheat flour.
- Baking powder and Baking soda: Make sure they’re not expired.
- Salt: I prefer kosher or sea salt. If you only have table salt handy, I recommend reducing the amount to half.
- Butter: I prefer to use unsalted butter, but if you only have salted butter handy, you can use it. In this case, skip the salt called for in the recipe.
- Sugar: Regular white sugar, also known as caster sugar.
- Fresh Lemons: You’ll need the juice and zest.
- Milk: For baking, I like to use whole milk. However, you can use any milk you have handy.
Food Allergy Swaps
- This recipe is naturally egg, nut, peanut, soy, and sesame-free, making it suitable for most dietary needs. However, always check labels for hidden allergens.
- Dairy-Free: To make this recipe dairy-free, you can easily swap out the dairy ingredients for non-dairy alternatives.
- Butter: Substitute butter with dairy-free butter substitutes. Miyoko’s Creamery Organic Vegan Butter and Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks are my favorite butter substitutes for baking.
- Milk: You can use your favorite non-dairy milk, like soy or oat milk.
- Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free, all-purpose flour blend. Look for a gluten-free flour blend specifically formulated for baking, as it will have the right combination of flours and starches to mimic the texture of wheat flour. My favorite is Better Batter Original Blend. I also like Doves Farm Freee Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour, but this blend does not contain xanthan gum, so you need to add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum per cup (140 g) of gluten-free flour blend.
Step By Step Recipe Photo Tutorial
Please check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact quantities and detailed instructions (scroll down).
Step 1 – Mix Dry Ingredients
Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl.
Step 2 – Milk and Lemon Juice
Mix lemon juice and milk in a cup.
Step 3 – Cream Butter and Sugar
Beat the butter, then add the sugar: Beat the room-temperature butter until smooth, then beat in the granulated sugar until it is creamed and pale. Add lemon zest.
Step 4 – Add Milk Mixture and Dry Ingredients
Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk-lemon mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture; beat until just combined, about 30 – 45 seconds. Do not overmix
Step 5 – Spread Into Baking Pan
Spoon/spread batter into greased loaf pan.
Step 6 – Bake
Bake for 40 – 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when poked in the center.
Lemon Sugar Glaze
The sugar lemon glaze on top of the pound cake adds a whole other level of flavor. It’s sweet and zingy and totally delicious. To make it, you just need confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice, and heavy cream (or half and half or milk).
Eggless Cake Success Tips
Measure the ingredients correctly. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
Preheat the oven for at least 15 minutes before starting the recipe, giving it plenty of time to reach the ideal temperature.
Don’t overmix the batter. Instead, mix just until the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout.
Bake the batter as soon as it is ready.
Don’t open the oven door until your baked good has set. Leave the oven closed until the minimum time is stated in the recipe.
Know your oven! Every oven is different, so baking times always have to be taken with a grain of salt. Oven thermostats can be wildly off, affecting baking time, so keep an eye on yours.
Storing & Freezing Instructions
Store: Cover leftover pound cake tightly and store at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Yes, you can freeze this delicious egg-free pound cake! Just follow these simple steps:
- Let the eggless lemon cake cool completely.
- Wrap it up in 2 layers of plastic wrap, then with foil to avoid freezer burn.
- Place inside a large freezer Ziploc bag and freeze for up to 2 months.
Ready to eat it? Thaw it overnight on the countertop before slicing and serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
The pound cake can be too dry if you add too much flour or overbake it.
You can buy, but you’ll lose a lot of flavor!
Yes, I would suggest adding about 1 cup.
Pound cakes are dense and take a while to bake in the oven. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours, and don’t be alarmed if yours is taking longer. The pound cake is ready when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out *mostly* clean. A couple of moist crumbs are OK.
More Eggless Lemon Recipes You’ll Love!
- Eggless Lemon Cake
- Easy Eggless Lemon Curd
- Eggless Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Bars
- Easy Eggless Lemon Bars
- Easy Eggless Lemon Tart
- Easy Eggless Key Lime Pie
- Browse more recipes…
Recipe Card
Best Eggless Lemon Pound Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cup (280 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon (1.5 g) baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon (1 g) salt
- ¼ cup (60 ml) fresh lemon juice
- ¾ cup (180 ml) milk (I used whole milk)
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup (115 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 g) white sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Lemon Sugar Glaze
- 1 cup (120 g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) heavy cream or milk
Important
You can find step-by-step photos above in the post and/or right here on the recipe card. They’ll walk you through the process and make everything super clear! Just click the camera icon button below on the right to show or hide them. Turn them off before printing if you prefer a cleaner copy!
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Grease and flour a 9×5-inch loaf pan. You can also line the pan with parchment paper, then grease the parchment paper with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a measuring cup or bowl, mix together lemon juice, milk, and vanilla extract.
- Using an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat butter until creamy on medium-high speed, about 3 – 4 minutes. Add the sugar and beat on high speed for 4 minutes until creamed and pale, scraping down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add lemon zest and beat for 1 minute.
- Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk-lemon mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture; beat until just combined, about 30 – 45 seconds. Do not overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. NOTE: The lemon cake batter is thick, so use a spatula to spread it into the pan, if necessary.
- Bake for 40 – 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when poked in the center. Allow the pound cake to cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Then, remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely on a wire rack. The cake must be completely cool before frosting.
Make the glaze:
- Whisk all of the icing ingredients together and pour over the pound cake.
- This recipe is naturally egg, nut, peanut, soy, and sesame-free, making it suitable for most dietary needs. However, always check labels for hidden allergens.
- Dairy-Free: To make this recipe dairy-free, you can easily swap out the dairy ingredients for non-dairy alternatives.
- Butter: Substitute butter with dairy-free butter substitutes. Miyoko’s Creamery Organic Vegan Butter and Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks are my favorite butter substitutes for baking.
- Milk: You can use your favorite non-dairy milk, like soy or oat milk.
- Gluten-Free: Use a gluten-free, all-purpose flour blend. Look for a gluten-free flour blend specifically formulated for baking, as it will have the right combination of flours and starches to mimic the texture of wheat flour. My favorite is Better Batter Original Blend. I also like Doves Farm Freee Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour, but this blend does not contain xanthan gum, so you need to add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum per cup (140 g) of gluten-free flour blend.
- Measure the ingredients correctly. I highly recommend using a kitchen scale.
- Make sure to cream the butter and sugar together for 4 – 5 minutes, until creamy and pale. To achieve this, the butter has to be at the right consistency; ideally, the butter will easily bend without breaking and will give slightly when pressed. If it looks or feels oily, it is too soft.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Mix just until the ingredients are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
- Bake the cake(s) as soon as the batter is ready.
- Don’t open the oven door until the cake(s) have set. Leave the oven closed until the minimum time stated in the recipe.
- Preheat the oven at least 15 minutes before you begin to give it plenty of time to reach the ideal baking temperature.
- Every oven is different, so baking times should always be taken with a grain of salt. Oven thermostats can be wildly inaccurate, which can significantly affect baking time, so keep an eye on yours. The cake(s) are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
I appreciate your feedback, and it helps others, too!
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Originally posted in July 2020, the post content was edited to add more helpful information, no change to the recipe in May 2025.
Hi Oriana!
If I wanted to make this cake without the lemon flavor, would I just substitute the lemon juice for equal amount of milk?
Thank you!
Hello Jasmeen! Possibly, but I never tested this recipe without the lemon juice so I can’t say for sure, but you can certainly give it a try. You can also use my vanilla pound cake recipe instead. Let me know how it turns out for you! Thanks for your interest in my recipe.
This recipe sounds delicious! My grandson is allergic to eggs and I can’t wait to try it. Could it be doubled and baked in a bundt pan? Do you think substituting vegan butter work?
Hello Debbie! I haven’t tested this recipe in a bundt pan, but you can certainly give it a try. Let us know how it turns out for you! Thanks for your interest in my recipe.
I had the same question can it made in Bundt pan, how much should the quantity be adjusted?
Hello Neetu! I haven’t tested this recipe in another size pan but you can certainly give it a try. I highly recommend you to read Tips to Scale a Recipe & Cake Pan Sizes before you get started. Let me know how it turns out for you! Thanks for your interest in my recipe.
Hi! What should be the temperature of the oven while baking? Also should the milk curdle ? Is it ok to use it even after it has curdled?
Hello Priti – Thanks for your interest in my recipe. The oven temperature is stated in the recipe (350º F (180º C). Yes, the milk curdled when it’s mixed with the lemon juice, that is okay.
Hi Oriana, cake tastes amazing. Followed recipe exactly but had problems after pouring in milk/lemon mixture, it wouldn’t combine with creamed butter/sugar. Poured in all at once,was that my mistake? Or butter not creamed enough or to much? Added flour mixture and mixed until combined because I didn’t want to ditch it. Came out a bit dense and flat but still tasted amazing. Will try again
Hello Andrea! Thanks so much for trying my recipe. I am glad you like the taste. Baking is always tricky, and baking without eggs even more. It’s impossible to say exactly why your cake was dense because there are so many things that can make that happen. I’ll tell you the most likely, and then hopefully, you can work out what went wrong and avoid it in the future.
Using too much flour or liquid can cause the baked goods to become too dense and don’t rise. Make sure you measure the ingredients properly. The best way to do it is using a kitchen scale.
Make sure to cream the butter and sugar together for 4 – 5 minutes until creamy and pale. To achieve this, the right temperature butter is KEY! Softened butter should easily bend without breaking and will give slightly when pressed. If your finger sinks into the butter and looks oily, it’s way too soft.
Do not overmix the batter.
Bake the cakes as soon as the batter is ready.
Don’t open the oven door until it has set.
Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If the cake collapses after baking, it probably means that you didn’t bake long enough.
I hope this helps! xo
Hi! This was an easy to follow recipe and the cake turned out delicious. However, it was a bit too soft and crumbly, and fell apart easily when cutting. Is this a result of overmixing? Or could it be because I used low-fat milk? Hope to get it right the next time because I really love the taste!
Hello Sharuna! I am glad you liked the taste of it. You can read more about the most common eggless cakes mishaps, causes, and solutions here >>> Ask Oriana…Your Eggless Baking Questions Answered! Thanks so much for your feedback and for trying my recipe.
The milk curdled for me too. I may have overmixed the liquids because I was waiting for it to be incorporated. The batter looks right once the flour went in. If it’s intentional, a tiny note in the recipe would be great. We’ll see how it turns out!
Hello Jen! Yes, the milk will curdle when mixing with any acid. Thanks so much for your feedback and for trying my recipe.
I baked this pound cake and it was out of this world! So rich and full of flavor. It was a super hit and it will be my go-to recipe for a moist lemon pound cake from now on.
Hello Sonali! It sounds like you nailed it! Thanks so much for trying my recipe and taking the time to come back and let me know.
Hi Oriana,
Thanks for sharing this great recipe! I tried this recipe and I’ve a couple questions for you:
1. For me 40 mins made the entire bottom crusty and my cake was a bit more on the dark yellow-brown side. Probably 30 mins would work better for me?
2. The cake kind of sank in the middle once it was done. Not sure if this was a result of overmixing or something else?
3. The step where you mentioned mixing lemon juice, milk, and vanilla extract – it curdled the milk. Is this intentional? Or should I be adding these ingredients to the butter mixture one by one?
Thank you in advance!
Hello Nene! Every oven is different so baking times always have to be taken with a grain of salt. Oven thermostats can be wildly off and that will all affect baking time so keep an eye on it. For better results, please follow the recipe exactly. A cake can sink for several reasons, I invite you to visit my Eggless Baking FAQ page to read more about it. Thanks so much for trying my recipe and taking the time to come back and let me know!
Hi Oriana,
I wanted to add Pineapple pieces to this lemon cake. Is there any changes in the recipe that you would recommend? Also, I see you have a lemon blueberry cake in your blog but the ingredients are slightly different, for eg:, that recipe has apple cider vinegar and oil in addition.
Hence, I wasnt sure of the difference in recipe and which one would be suitable to enjoy a lemon cake with few pineapple pieces. Please recommend.
Hello Nikita! You’re for sure an adventurer baker…I love that! I haven’t tested this recipe with pineapple. The pineapple probably will release liquid during the baking time so I am not sure how the final texture will be. I would probably use the blueberry cake recipe. Please let us know the outcome.
Hey Oriana! Instead of lemon zest can I add about 1/2 teaspoon of Lemon Essence??
Hello Srishti! Yes, you can.
You say use all purpose flour, is that plain or self raising?
Hello Caroline! All-purpose flour is plain flour, without leavening agents. Hope that helps!
Hi
Just a quick question. For your Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies you have listed cream cheese as on of the ingredients . However it is quite difficult to procure this item where I live. What can you suggest as a substitute. We do get something known as cheese spread. Would that work? Its much softer than
cream cheese
Hello Anita! I am sorry but I don’t know that cheese spread. You have to options, you can try to make your own cream cheese (email me if you want the recipe) or you can try with the cheese spread, but since you say it’s softer just add 75 gr. I am not sure how the substitution will affect the outcome. If you do try using this alternative ingredient, please let me know the outcome. Thanks for your interest in my recipe.?
This sure is going to be everyone’s favourite in my home too… Puppy is doing good… My girls are spoiling him like crazy ? ? He is getting naughty by the day ????
I am to know that, Sudha! Have a great weekend =)
Oh wow !!! You will have happy times around… They fill our lives with lots of joy… Thanks again. Wishing you too a great weekend !
Super duper delicious… Thank you for sharing this yum recipe…
Hello Swati! I’m delighted to hear you enjoyed it so much. Thanks so much for trying my recipe and for taking the time to come back and let me know!
Hey Oriana,
Made this cake and absolutely loved it. Wonderfully moist and Lemony in taste.. Thanks again for such amazing recipes…Shared the pics on Instagram. Hope you get to see them sometime ?❤️
Hello Sudha! So happy you liked it…This is my new fave cake ? I will look for your photos. Hope the puppy is doing good ?
I tried it today, It is indeed the best lemon cake I had! Thanks a lot Oriana, I love your recipes 🙂
Hello Veena! WOO-HOO … So glad you loved this. Thanks so much for trying my recipe!