Eggless Lemon Cake

This Eggless Lemon Cake is soft, fluffy, and super moist, bursting with fresh, zesty lemon flavor! For an extra citrusy kick, it’s topped with a tangy lemon icing that takes it to the next level.

Made this on my sister’s birthday, had fabulous comments from family and friends ! Thank you so much for this delicious recipe. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
– Diksha

Eggless lemon cake with one slice cut on the cake stand with green napkin on side.

You’ll Love This Cake

  • Perfect for warm-weather gatherings or any time you crave a citrusy treat.
  • The ultimate dessert for lemon lovers.
  • Packed with lemon juice and zest, delivering bold, fresh flavor in every bite.
  • Topped with a simple yet tangy lemon sugar icing that perfectly complements the cake.
  • Quick and easy to make with minimal ingredients – perfect for beginners and pros alike.

Ingredient Notes

Here is the pic of the ingredients you’ll need to make this delicious eggless lemon cake.

Ingredients used in eggless lemon cake in individual bowls on a marble surface with labels.
  • Butter:
  • I prefer using unsalted butter for better control over the salt levels in baking. However, if you have salted butter on hand, it works fine—just skip the additional salt in the recipe.
  • Make sure the butter is softened at room temperature. It shouldn’t be too cold, too soft, or melted. Properly softened butter creams well with sugar, contributing to the cake’s fluffy texture.
  • Yogurt:
  • Both homemade yogurt and store-bought yogurt work perfectly in this recipe.
  • Full-fat, low-fat any yogurt works.
  • The batter texture may vary slightly depending on the thickness of the yogurt, but don’t worry—it won’t affect the baked cake’s texture or flavor.
  • Resist the urge to add water if the batter seems thick; it will bake beautifully as is.
  • Lemon Juice: Always use freshly squeezed lemon juice for the best flavor. Bottled lemon juice can’t replicate the bright, fresh citrus taste.
  • Lemon Zest: The zest comes from the outer yellow layer of the lemon rind. Use a Microplane zester to finely grate only the yellow part, avoiding the inner white layer, which is bitter and can impact the cake’s taste.
  • All Purpose Flour: Always measure your flour correctly to get a tender cake otherwise you’ll end up with a tough and dense cake.
  • How to Measure Flour Correctly:
    – Stir the flour in its container to loosen it.
    – Use a spoon to transfer the flour into your measuring cup, without packing it in.
    – Level off the flour with a straight-edged butter knife to ensure it’s smooth and even on the surface. Avoid shaking or tapping the cup, as this can compact the flour and lead to over-measuring.

Step By Step Photo Instructions (With Tips)

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C for at least 10 minutes.
  • Lightly grease the 9-inch round cake pan and keep it aside. Grease with butter or spray with cooking oil spray. 
  1. Take dry ingredients (all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder) in a bowl.
  2. Whisk it until incorporated well. Keep it aside.
Collage of 2 steps showing dry ingredients in a bowl and whisked to mix for lemon cake.
  1. Take softened butter and sugar in a bowl.
  2. Start beating (using a hand mixer) until it is light, fluffy and creamed together. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula. Alternately, you can do this by hand using a wire whisk or use a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. 
  3. Then add yogurt, lemon juice and lemon zest. 
  4. Beat it again until well combined. The batter may look curdled but it is perfectly fine.
Collage of 4 steps showing creaming butter and sugar, adding and beating rest of the ingredients.
  1. Now add flour mixture to the wet mixture.
  2. Start folding using a spatula and everything is just combined. Do not over-mix or beat. 
  3. Pour into the prepared cake pan and spread the batter evenly.
  4. Bake into the preheated oven at 350°F or 180°C for 30-35 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake will come out clean. And the cake will leave the sides of the cake pan.
    – Let it cool for 5 minutes in a pan. Then loosen the sides with a butter knife and remove it on the cooling rack. And let it cool completely.

Consistency of Cake Batter:
– The batter’s consistency may vary depending on the yogurt’s thickness.
– If your yogurt has a higher water content, the batter might appear slightly runny. On the other hand, if the yogurt is very thick, the batter could resemble a light, thick dough (refer to the step-by-step photos for guidance).
– Rest assured, both consistencies work perfectly and result in a delicious cake.

Collage of 4 steps showing making the batter, spread in the cake pan and baked cake.

Layered Cake: Want to make it extra special? Simply double this eggless lemon cake recipe to create a stunning layered cake.
Frosting For Layered Cake: Make luscious lemon buttercream frosting or any other frosting of your choice, such as cream cheese frosting or vanilla buttercream.

  1. Take powdered sugar in a bowl and add lemon juice.
  2. Whisk it until you get a smooth, runny (yet thick) glaze.
  3. Pour icing on the cooled cake.
  4. Spread it with a butter knife and let it drip down from the sides. Let the icing dry and set before you cut or cover and store.
Collage of 4 steps showing making lemon glaze and drizzling, spreading over the cake.

Tips About Lemon Icing:

Wait for the Cake to Cool: Always let the cake cool completely before adding the icing. This ensures the icing sets properly and forms a delicate crust (as seen in the main photo).
Warm Cake Absorbs Icing: If you apply the icing while the cake is still warm, it will seep into the cake instead of forming a crust, resulting in a moist, glaze-like finish.
Storing Iced Cake: While the icing stays crusty on the day it’s made, it softens slightly when stored overnight. This doesn’t affect the taste but changes the texture slightly.

Close up of a slice of eggless lemon cake showing the inside texture.

Did you try this recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Leave a review in the comment section below. If you’re sharing it on your Instagram then don’t forget to tag me @spice.up.the.curry

Eggless Lemon Cake Recipe

4.88 from 80 votes
Close up of a slice of eggless lemon cake showing the inside texture.
This eggless lemon cake is soft, fluffy, super moist and packed with fresh lemon flavor! Plus, it is covered with lemon icing.
Kanan
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Serving Size 8 (single layer 9-inch round cake)

US measuring cups are used (1 cup = 240 ml)

Ingredients

For The Cake:

  • 1 ¾ cups All purpose flour (Maida)
  • 1 teaspoon Baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons Baking powder
  • 1 stick or ½ cup Unsalted Butter, softened at room temperature
  • ½ cup White Granulated sugar
  • 1 ¼ cups Plain Yogurt
  • 3 tablespoons Lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon Lemon zest, from 1 lemon

For The Icing:

  • 1 cup Powdered sugar (Confectioner’s sugar or icing sugar)
  • 2 tablespoons Lemon juice

Instructions

Prep:

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C for at least 10 minutes.
  • Lightly grease the 9-inch round cake pan and keep it aside. Grease with butter or spray with cooking oil spray.

Making Eggless Lemon Cake:

  • Take dry ingredients (all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder) in a bowl. Whisk it until incorporated well. Keep it aside.
  • Take softened butter and sugar in a bowl. Start beating (using a hand mixer) until it is light, fluffy and creamed together. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula. Alternately, you can do this by hand using a wire whisk or use a stand mixer with the whisk attachment.
  • Then add yogurt, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat it again until well combined. The batter may look curdled but it is perfectly fine.
  • Now add flour mixture to the wet mixture. Start folding using a spatula and everything is just combined. Do not over-mix or beat.
  • Pour into the prepared cake pan and spread the batter evenly.
  • Bake into the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake will come out clean. And the cake will leave the sides of the cake pan. Let it cool for 5 minutes in a pan. Then loosen the sides with a butter knife and remove it on the cooling rack. And let it cool completely.

Making Icing:

  • Take powdered sugar in a bowl and add lemon juice. Whisk it until you get a smooth, runny (yet thick) glaze.
  • Pour icing on the cooled cake.
  • Spread it with a butter knife and let it drip down from the sides. Let the icing dry and set before you cut or cover and store.

Video

Notes

  • The consistency of cake batter may vary depending on how thick/watery your yogurt is. If the yogurt has more water content then the batter may look a little runny. If the yogurt is super thick then the batter will look like thick, light dough (as you see in step pics).
  • Layered cake: You can double the cake recipe to make two layered cake.
  • If icing is added to the cooled cake, then you let it set. You’ll get a nice crust of icing on top. As you store, the next day it will soften.
  • If icing is added to the warm cake then the cake will absorb the icing and you’ll miss the crusty icing.
  • Storage: If serving the next day, you can keep it overnight at room temperature in a covered container. If wanted to store for more days, then it should be kept in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Bring it to room temperature before serving to enjoy the soft texture

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice with icing. | Calories: 537kcal (27%) | Carbohydrates: 51g (17%) | Protein: 5g (10%) | Fat: 36g (55%) | Saturated Fat: 23g (115%) | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 96mg (32%) | Sodium: 266mg (11%) | Potassium: 110mg (3%) | Fiber: 1g (4%) | Sugar: 29g (32%) | Vitamin A: 1103IU (22%) | Vitamin C: 4mg (5%) | Calcium: 121mg (12%) | Iron: 1mg (6%)
4.88 from 80 votes (33 ratings without comment)

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203 Comments

  1. Can I replace butter with ghee? And if so then how much?
    If not then what are other substitutes for butter?

    1. No you cannot use ghee.
      Personally I have not tried, but one reader has tried with oil. She says she used 1/2 cup of oil instead of butter and it turned out good.

      1. Very good texture. I have replaced butter with 1/2 cup of oil. However, it needs few more spoons of lemon juice to taste like LEMON cake and at least one spoon less of soda to reduce the soapy taste.