Delightfully Easy Lemon Syrup Cake Recipe (2024)

One-bowl Lemon Cake with Syrup Drizzle is bright, tangy and loaded with lemon flavor.

Lemon syrup cake is loaded with fresh lemon juice for a tart, sunny flavor. Moist lemon cake is perfect for serving with coffee or tea.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links for your convenience. If you make a purchase, this site may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. You can read my full disclosure policy here.

If you need something light, sweet and full of flavor, you are going to love this easy Lemon Syrup Cake.

It’s the perfect cake for spring and summer parties. It looks beautiful on the plate and isn’t too heavy on the palate.

Lemon is one of those flavors that just makes you smile. It’s bright and both sweet and tart at the same time.

Baking with fresh lemon juice and lemon zest adds moisture and a zippy, citrus flavor. A good quality, moist lemon cake is like a plate of sunshine.

This lemon syrup cake (known in some regions as lemon drizzle cake) is a flavorful lemon cake that’s soaked in a lemon simple syrup, making it super moist and bursting with lemon flavor.

If lemon isn’t your thing, you can use lime, orange or grapefruit in place of the lemon.

This cake serves well for wedding or baby showers. Bring it to a potluck, a bake sale, or make it “just because.”

No matter where you serve this lemon cake with syrup drizzle, it’s sure to be a big hit!

More Lemon Recipes to Enjoy

• Easiest Lemon Cake from a Mix
• Lemon Pistachio Cookies
• Lemon Pudding Crinkle Cookies
• Easy Lemon Curd Cookies
• Lemon Cobbler
• Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake

Tips for Making Moist Lemon Cake

• Use fresh lemons. The flavor of fresh lemons far surpasses bottled lemon juice. Plus, you get the added flavor from using the lemon zest. Fresh lemons are a must in my opinion.
• Add the lemon syrup while the cake is still hot. It will absorb more syrup and be that much more flavorful.
• Use plain Greek yogurt in place of sour cream if you prefer.
• Don’t over-mix the batter. This one-bowl recipe should be mixed until just incorporated.
• Don’t overcook or over-reduce the syrup. It should simmer for a few minutes until it is just slightly thickened and all the sugar has dissolved. Cooking too long can cause it to become bitter.
• Swap the lemons for your favorite citrus. Limes, oranges and grapefruit all work well in this recipe. Or, skip the citrus and make a golden syrup cake instead!

How to Make Zesty Lemon Syrup Cake

It’s really easy to make lemon drizzle cake–all you need are lemons and some pantry staples!

Ingredients You’ll Need:

For the Cake:

• Granulated Sugar
• Vegetable Oil
• Eggs
• Sour Cream
• Lemon Juice
• Lemon Zest
• All-purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Salt

For the Lemon Syrup:

• Granulated Sugar
• Lemon Juice

How to Make It:

(Full printable recipe is available below)

Prepare the equipment. First, you’ll preheat the oven to 350F and grease an 8-inch round cake pan. Set prepared baking pan aside.

Prepare the Batter. Next, you’ll prepare cake batter by mixing together sugar and vegetable oil in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or with a handheld electric mixer and a large bowl).

Add eggs to the sugar mixture and mix well to incorporate.

Add sour cream, lemon juice, and lemon zest, mixing to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Add the dry ingredients of flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix on low speed just until incorporated.

Bake the cake. Next, you’ll pour batter into the prepared cake tin and bake in preheated oven for about 40-45 minutes.

It will be golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Once you remove it from the oven, use a wooden fine skewer or toothpick to poke holes in the warm cake.

Make the syrup. During the last ten minutes or so of the baking time, begin preparing lemon syrup by combining sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat.

Stirring often, cook the mixture for about 2-3 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved.

Add the syrup to the cake. Pour the warm syrup over the top of the cake, allowing the syrup to soak into the small holes in the cake.

Let the cake cool completely before serving.

Notes and Adaptations for this Easy Lemon Drizzle Cake:

• Leftover cake can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
• For additional flavor options, simmer fresh herbs such as lavender, rosemary, thyme or mint with the tangy lemon syrup before pouring over the cake.
• You can serve plain or with a dollop of whipped cream on top. This makes a great dessert or sweet treat with afternoon tea!

Be sure to save this recipe to your desserts board on Pinterest!