Dora Charles’s Lost-and-Found Lemon Poundcake Recipe (2024)

We cleaned up the mistake in the gram conversion. Apologies all around. And this is a very airy cake, as pound cakes go. Folding in the egg whites, souffle-style, is what gives it much its height. I agree that lemon extract would make it more flavorful, but I also made it with double the vanilla and no lemon, which was great. Thanks for trying it and keep the notes coming.

A round of applause for giving the weight of ingredients in your recipes- so much more accurate (no matter where you are cooking! Now, if you'd just like to add the internal temperature required to be "done."

If you only have one bowl for your mixer, beat the egg whites first, with a little salt, cream of tartar, or vinegar, then dump them in another bowl while you mix the cake batter.

Made this yesterday afternoon. I didn't have sour cream but I had plain low-fat Greek yogurt so I used that instead. It seems to have been a perfect substitution in this recipe--I made no fat adjustments because of all the butter. Also used the option of a Tb of lemon juice & a teaspoon of grated lemon zest. The lemon flavor was definitely there, but next time I might add a bit more zest or perhaps make a lemon glaze for it. Overall, a delicious, moist pound cake--will definitely make it again.

This cake is indeed delicious; moist with great flavor. I used fresh lemon zest and juice. I served it with fruit and vanilla gelato. I used a bundt pan, which I would not do again. It was very difficult to release from the pan, in spite of generous greasing. One reason for this is the bundt pan holds heat for a long time and it would not release until the pan was cool, which took a long time. This is a very large cake. I would make it in two loaf pans next time and freeze one for later.

Look, you can cut the slices as thick or thin as you like. The photographer wanted a nice picture of the cake and a slice.

It's supposed to "reek of butter". It's a pound cake.

Of course they would. The gram is a unit of weight. It's ounces which can be weight or volume. Using cups is worse as it's less precise. Good cooks use weights for consistency.

Sorry. You forgot Maida Heater's 69th St Lemon Cake. The best!

So has anyone actually made this, or are all the remarks just wrangling over the weight conversions? It is of interest to some (maybe; not me). What I want to know is how does this taste?

I made this cake today. It came out just beautifully. The texture is absolute perfection. I used the lemon extract vice the lemon juice and zest. The disappointment was that it just was not "lemony" enough. I will definitely try it again but use the juice/zest next time.

I'm confused. I was raised in the South, by a master baker, and I was taught to never "tamp down" any flour, but to measure with a light touch -- else run the risk of producing leaden-heavy baked goods. Are there flours, and methods of cooking where one really does "tamp down" the flour?

Could this cake be baked in 2 loaf pans?

This is a very large and rich cake! Delicious. I made it as directed except for extra lemon and granulated sugar for powdered which I did not have on hand. A bit time consuming, as anticipated but familiar steps. Unfortunately It overflowed my pan and now my house smells likes a bakery fire and I am checking with the Google about how to clean oven floors.The cake is very moist. I let it bake for about an hour and a half but it still has a pudding-like consistency. It would be great toasted.

An excellent cake but more like a hybrid of pound and chiffon.

i made my own lemon extract but it smells of alcohol. do you have any idea how much sugar and what kind i can’t add to extracts to kill the boozy smell?

I cut the recipe in half and used a loaf pan. Better than Starbucks!

question for those who have baked thisi want to glaze the cake, using a mix of lemoncello and confectioners sugarany comments or thoughts to share?serving at a brunch this sunday, to family, the day after my only daughters wedding

A delicious and tender cake but not very lemony. I used lemon juice and zest; plain yogurt instead of sour cream. Very nice dessert with berries and whipped cream. However, I will revert to Ina Garten’s recipe for a truly lemony cake.

I've seen several comments saying this isn't lemony enough. If you want a delicious super lemony moist cake, Ina Garten's recipe is perfect! The recipe uses 6-8 lemons, the zest and juice. It's soooooo good!

More batter than my 12 cup bunt could hold ran all over oven. Good flavor, had large air pockets even though I rapped it on counter 30+ times

I made this cake today for the first time and it is amazing. I used fresh lemon juice and zest instead of extract and replaced the sour cream with creme fraiche. It raised about one-and-a-half inches above the rim of my bundt pan, so it is HUGE. It has a nice crunch on the outside but is very light and airy on the inside and the taste is delicious. Thank you, NYT. Highly recommended.

Due to family sensitivity to corn, can I substitute with superfine sugar?

This cake is indeed delicious; moist with great flavor. I used fresh lemon zest and juice. I served it with fruit and vanilla gelato. I used a bundt pan, which I would not do again. It was very difficult to release from the pan, in spite of generous greasing. One reason for this is the bundt pan holds heat for a long time and it would not release until the pan was cool, which took a long time. This is a very large cake. I would make it in two loaf pans next time and freeze one for later.

Thanks for the recipe. I made it yesterday, and it turned out well. I used lemon zest and juice, and it has a subtle flavour. I baked it in a 20cm sqare tin. Took 1 hour and 20 mins at 160C (325F). I had wondered whether rapping the tin 30 times would negate some of the effort taken to beat the egg whites, but I did it anyway. There were no air pockets, but it’s settling to a denser almost glassy texture at the bottom with a looser crumb at the top. Will make again, it’s very nice.

I bake a lot. I followed the directions (1/2 cup less sugar). I turned down the heat after 30 min. After 1 hour, it was nicely browned & pulling from the pan. I tested the cake with a bamboo skewer - clean. It came easily out of the pan. It was beautiful... until it cooled. It's now looks flattened. I'll have to bak another for an upcoming event. The flavor is lovely - the cake, unattractive, light. But ugly. I think I"ll stick to traditional pound cake next time.

Don't forget to "rap the pan sharply on the countertop." I did it the first time I made the cake and it came out great. Forgot the second time, and I had funky bubbles and bulges in the cake. Still tasted good, but it wasn't very pretty!