This Moist Lemon Cake Recipe is a bakery-style sheet cake packed with fresh lemon flavor - no extracts, just real lemons. The crumb is light, tender, and super fluffy, and it's all topped off with the dreamiest lemon cream cheese frosting that's smooth, creamy, and full of tangy goodness. The best part? It all comes together in one bowl and bakes up perfectly in a 9x13 pan. Easy, delicious, and perfect for any occasion!
For more simple, fresh, and absolutely delicious ideas, check out our full collection of lemon recipes!
Layer cakes are beautiful, but let's be real - most days there's just no time for that. This easy lemon cake keeps it simple and checks all the boxes: one bowl, fluffy, moist, full of bright flavor, 9x13 pan, and easy to decorate.
Plus, it gets topped with a crazy delicious light lemon cream cheese frosting - tangy, creamy, and a perfect finish for that bright lemony cake.
After baking up our fair share of cakes over the years, we just keep coming back to this versatile dessert. It's a go-to for birthdays, potlucks, Easter, or laid-back summer parties. Just easy, delicious cake without the fuss.
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Why this recipe is great
- Easy: It can be mixed up and in the oven in under 10 minutes - no fancy steps or equipment needed.
- One bowl: Everything goes into the same bowl. Mix, add, mix again. That's it.
- Best flavor: We make use of the highly flavorful essential oils in the lemon peel. No need for extract here!
- Extra moist: Thanks to the oil and buttermilk this cake is moist and tender!
Moist lemon cake ingredients
This recipe only requires a few ingredients that are pantry staples! Specific quantities are in the recipe card below, but here are a few tips to help you get the perfect cake.
- Buttermilk: It adds both tangy and moisture to the cake. Make sure to shake before measuring.
- Oil: Any neutral tasting one will work: vegetable oil, canola oil, or avocado oil are all good options.
- Flour: Nothing special here, just all purpose flour.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar is used to sweeten the cake batter.
- Baking powder: It provides the cake lift, so it bakes up tender instead of dense. Just make sure your baking powder is less than 6 months old - fresh really does make a difference!
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract complements the other flavors.
- Eggs: Large eggs are the standard for both structure and moistness.
- Salt: Kosher salt is our standard, but table salt will work as well.
- Lemons: Fresh large lemons are a must for the best flavor, but whether you use regular or Meyer lemons, both work great.
- Butter: Salted butter is the only kind we buy.
- Cream cheese: Full-fat cream cheese has the best texture and flavor.
- Heavy cream: It cuts the heaviness of the frosting while still keeping that rich, delicious flavor.
- Powdered sugar: Also know as confectioners sugar, this is the preferred sweetener because it results in a smooth finish.
Helpful kitchen tools
How to make lemon cake in a 9x13 pan
before making the batter, preheat your oven to 350ºF. Then generously spray a 9x13 cake pan with nonstick baking spray.
In a the bowl of stand mixer, or in a large bowl using hand beaters, mix together the white sugar, eggs, baking powder, and salt. Mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add in buttermilk, oil, vanilla and lemon zest. Mix on low for 1 minute. Once again, scrape the sides of the bowl being sure to get the very bottom.
Finally, add in the flour and mix on low speed for 2 minutes. Use the rubber spatula to get anything off the bottom of the bowl.
Pour lemon cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or has a few moist crumbs attached. It should not be wet though. Cool in the cake pan on a wire rack until room temperature.
Frosting for lemon cake
To make the frosting, grab a stand mixer or a medium bowl and hand mixer. The stand mixer does a slightly better job, but either will produce a nice frosting.
Beat the softened butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Longer is better here - at least 2 minutes.
Add in the half of the powdered sugar and mix until just combined. Add in the rest of the powdered sugar and mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl thoroughly.
Add in the lemon zest, vanilla extract, and 2 tablespoons of the heavy cream. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add in more cream as needed to make sure the frosting is loose enough to spread but firm enough to hold its shape.
Spread lemon cream cheese frosting to the completely cooled cake using an offset spatula. The back of a large spoon will slo work but for a really smooth finish, an offset spatula is your best tool.
Hint: The easiest way to zest citrus is with this microplane. If you want to juice the lemons be sure to get the peel off first. The most important point is to avoid the with pith that is under the skin of the lemon. It is bitter and will not taste delicious.
How to decorate
Once the cake is cool, use a large offset spatula to make lines back and forth diagonally from corner to corner. The cake can now be stored in the refrigerator overnight. Do not add the rest of the decorations until just before serving.
On opposite sides of the cake add very thin lemon slices slightly overlapping each other. For a final touch, sprinkle lemon sugar, shimmer sanding sugar, and a little lemon zest in a line starting at the lemons and going out about 3 inches on each side.
When to serve this moist lemon cake
- Any birthday party
- Easter
- Mother's Day
- All the big summer holidays: Memorial Day, Fourth of July, or Labor Day
- Potlucks
- Picnics
- BBQ or gilling party
Can I make ahead?
The whole cake can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. If decorating with fresh lemon slices be sure to add them just before serving.
To freeze: Bake the cake and cool to room temperature. Frost as directed. Then wrap tightly to keep the air out and freeze in the 9x13 pan. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature for a couple hours.
Individual slices can be stored in the freezer as well. Place pieces on a cookie sheet and freeze until the frosting is hard. Then wrap in plastic wrap and put in a ziptop bag or other airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator or for an hour or so at room temperature. The frosting might not look beautiful but they will still taste delicious!
FAQs
Leftovers can be stored in the pan if it has a cover or in any airtight container. I prefer to store in the refrigerator because it increases the moisture in the cake, but it can also be stored for a day or two at room temperature.
Plain yogurt should work really well in place of the buttermilk. We have a lemon loaf cake and a lemon bundt cake that both make use of yogurt for both moisture and tenderness.
Tips & tricks
- The butter and cream cheese for the frosting should be genuinely softened, not firm, so it whips well.
- Choose lemons with a vibrant, healthy peel.
- Refrigerating cake results in a more moist cake.
- Decorating: Use a large offset spatula to make lines back and forth diagonally from corner to corner. Then add thinly sliced lemon circles to opposite corners. For a final touch, we sprinkled lemon sugar, shimmer sanding sugar, and a little lemon zest in a linen from the lemons out about 3 inches on each side.
More recipes
Looking for other recipes that use up extra fresh lemon juice? Try these:
Recipe
Moist Lemon Cake Recipe (9x13 pan)
Equipment
- stand mixer or hand mixer
Ingredients
Cake Batter
- 1 ¾ cups sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 3 eggs room temp
- 1 cup buttermilk room temp, shaken
- ½ cup neutral oil canola, avocado, etc
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest 2-3 lemons
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 12 tablespoon butter softened
- 1 ½ oz cream cheese softened
- 3 ¾ cups powdered sugar sifted if it looks lumpy
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoon lemon zest
- ¼ cup heavy cream plus more if needed
Instructions
Cake Batter
- Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 nonstick pan.
- Combine sugar, salt, baking powder, and eggs in a stand mixer or large bowl with hand beaters. Mix on medium speed for 1 minute, then scrape the bowl.1 ¾ cups sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 3 eggs
- Add the buttermilk, oil, vanilla, and zest. Mix on low for 1 minute and scrape.1 cup buttermilk, ½ cup neutral oil, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- Add the flour. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes and scrape, getting the bottom really well.2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- Pour into pan. Bake for 25-30 min minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool in the pan completely.
Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Once cool, make the frosting. Beat the softened butter and cream cheese on medium speed until fluffy.12 tablespoon butter , 1 ½ oz cream cheese
- Reduce speed to low and add half the powdered sugar. Mix until just combined, then add the remaining powdered sugar. Beat on medium for 1 minute.3 ¾ cups powdered sugar
- Add vanilla, lemon zest, and 2 tablespoons of cream. Beat for 2 more minutes or until light and fluffy. Add additional cream if needed until the frosting is loose enough to pipe, but stiff enough to hold its shape.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 teaspoon lemon zest, ¼ cup heavy cream
- Spread the frosting onto the cooled cake with an offset spatula, You can add designs if desired. Sprinkle with lemon zest for an extra pop of color.
Notes
- The butter and cream cheese for the frosting should be genuinely softened, not firm, so it whips well.
- Choose lemons with a vibrant, healthy peel.
- Refrigerating cake results in a more moist cake.
- Decorating: Use a large offset spatula to make lines back and forth diagonally from corner to corner. Then add thinly sliced lemon circles to opposite corners. For a final touch, we sprinkled lemon sugar, shimmer sanding sugar, and a little lemon zest in a linen from the lemons out about 3 inches on each side.
Add Your Own Notes
Nutrition
All nutrition information is provided by a third party and is an estimate only. Use your own nutritional calculator for more specific measurements.
Cece says
Easy to make. We loved it.
Danielle says
So glad to hear! Thank you for taking a minute to let us know!
Misty says
Glad you liked it!
Danielle says
This is the perfect cake for a summer party!