Sourdough Lemon Cake

One of the most popular sourdough discard recipes on the internet, you will love this Sourdough Lemon Cake.

Somewhere between a dessert and a quick bread, this cake perfectly balances the tangy lemon and the glaze’s sweetness.

This is perfect for that discarded sourdough starter, transforming it into a moist and flavorful cake, ideal for any time of day.

Prep Time 20minutes minutes
Cook Time 50minutes minutes
Total Time 1hour hour 10minutes minutes

Ingredients

For the Cake

½ cup vegetable oil (or melted butter)
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1½ cups flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ cup sourdough starterdiscard
¾ cup milk

For the Glaze

½ cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Instructions

Prep. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with the rack in the center. Prepare a loaf pan or 9 x 9 square cake pan with cooking spray.
Wet ingredients. Combine the vegetable oil, eggs, and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until well combined.
Dry ingredients and milk. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl and add to the sugar mixture 1/3 at a time, alternating with the milk and the sourdough starter. Mix on low until just combined. Stir in the lemon juice and lemon zest by hand. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake and cool. Bake for 50-60 minutes (for the loaf pan) or 40-50 minutes (for the square pan) until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes in the pan.

Make The Glaze

In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice for the glaze. Pour over the still-warm cake.
After the glaze has soaked in and hardened, remove cake from pan and allow to finish cooling on wire rack. Slice and serve once cool.

Notes

Having trouble with your cake sinking? Try adding a teaspoon of baking soda along with the powder. Cakes can also sink if they are underbaked: this recipe looks very browned before it bakes through.

Can be frozen if allowed to cool completely and then wrapped tightly. Glaze after it’s defrosted.