Lemon Cream Cheese Cake
This gorgeous Lemon Cream Cheese Cake is everything you want in a loaf cake. It’s bright with lemon flavor, light and moist from the cream cheese, and beautiful to look at. Say no more!
This cake takes simple ingredients and turns them into something that you can’t get enough of. Using cream cheese to add a bit of tang as well as richness tempers the soft tender texture achieved by using cake flour. These two additions make a huge difference!
This cake should definitely be in your dessert rotation!
The first step to make this tasty loaf is to combine the sugar and lemon zest. Use your fingers to blend the zest with the sugar. Make sure you work it for a few minutes…it should feel moist. Set it aside.
Combine the cake flour, salt and baking powder and set aside.
Beat butter on high speed of an electric mixer until it’s fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add the cream cheese and beat to just incorporate with the butter. Add the oil and vanilla and beat for 2 minutes and then add the sugar-lemon zest mixture. Beat on high for 3 minutes.
Add the eggs one at a time and beat until incorporated. Finally, add the flour mixture.
Transfer the batter to a loaf pan and bake for about an hour. Let the loaf cool for a bit.
Meanwhile, make the lemon syrup by heating lemon juice, water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Poke holes in the top of the loaf and pour the lemon syrup over the cake. Refrigerate the cake for about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the glaze by beating the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add the confectioners’ sugar and mix well. Add lemon juice and mix well.
Remove the cake from the loaf pan ad spread the glaze over the top. Sprinkle chopped pistachios over the top and serve.
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Lemon Cream Cheese Cake
Makes: 8-10 servings
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 60-65 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour & 30 minutes
Ingredients
Lemon Cream Cheese Cake:
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- 1 & 1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus a bit more to sprinkle inside the pan
- 1 & 1/2 cups (200 g) cake flour, preferably unbleached
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt + a pinch
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup salted butter, softened, divided into 14 tbsp and 2 tbsp for greasing the pan
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tbsp water
Lemon Simple Syrup:
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tbsp water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
Lemon Cream Cheese Glaze:
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup butter (salted or unsalted), softened
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- 1-2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- chopped pistachios or fresh berries to decorate and serve
Instructions
Making the Cake:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease a 9” x 5” loaf cake pan with butter or baking spray and line with parchment paper so that the edges overlap the long sides. Finely mist the pan with baking spray and, if desired, sprinkle some sugar on the inside walls of the pan.
Mix lemon zest with sugar and using your hands rub it with the sugar for two to three minutes, just until the zest looks evenly mixed and the sugar looks moist. Set aside.
Over a large bowl sift together cake flour, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and baking powder.
With a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or with an electric mixer with the beaters, beat 14 tablespoons butter on high speed for 2 minutes to make it fluffy. Add the cream cheese in chunks and beat just to incorporate it with the butter. Add oil and vanilla and mix in high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer running, add the sugar-zest mixture slowly until incorporated.
Stop mixer and scrap down the sides and through the bottom of the bowl to make sure there’s no sugar stuck on the sides or on the bottom. Bring speed to high again and beat for 3 minutes. Please take note that if you are using a hand electric mixer, you should add one to two minutes at each step. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat until they are fully incorporated. Stop mixer and scrape down once more. Beat for 30 seconds to make sure everything is well mixed.
Bring speed to the lowest and add the flour mixture until most of it is incorporated. Finish mixing by hand with a folding motion using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
Transfer batter to prepared pan, making sure there are no gaps between the batter and the walls of the pan. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until top is deep golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean when you insert it through the very center of the cake, which would be cracked. Do not open oven door before 55 minutes of baking. If cake’s done, turn off oven and open oven door. Wait about a minute or two before taking it out completely. Let it cool down for 2 to 3 minutes before poking it all over with a toothpick and pouring lemon syrup over (recipe follows).
After soaking, place it in the fridge to cool down for 10 to 20 minutes before glazing.
Making the Lemon Simple Syrup:
When the cake is entering the last 5 minutes of baking, mix lemon juice and water in a small saucepan and pour sugar right in the middle to prevent it from sticking to the walls of the saucepan. Gently boil over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes until sugar has completely dissolved.
Remove from heat and pour over poked cake. Place cake in the fridge 5 to 10 minutes before spreading glaze.
Making the Glaze:
Beat together cream cheese and butter in medium speed until smooth and well blended, 4 to 5 minutes. Using a spatula scrape down any mixture creeping up in the bowl and mix, until there are no big lumps.
Place a large strainer over the bowl and sift over the cup of confectioner’s sugar. Mix until well blended.
Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and mix. Taste flavor and consistency and add the extra tablespoon of lemon juice if desired or needed.
Remove cake from pan by holding onto the overlapped edges of parchment paper.
Spread glaze over cake. You may sprinkle chopped pistachios, any other nuts or berries on top to serve.
Recipe by Dev Amadeo
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