Home / Recipes / Popular / Cakes & Cupcakes / Lemon Pudding Cake

Lemon Pudding Cake

This delicious Homemade Lemon Pudding Cake makes the perfect dessert, no need for frosting it makes its own topping. The perfect dessert for lemon lovers and it’s perfect anytime.

Lemon pudding cake with a slice in a white dish.


 

If you know anything about me or my husband you will know that we adore anything lemon. I am partial to Lemon Desserts and he will take lemon anyway, on fish, in salad, desserts and gelato.

I always remember my Mom making Pudding Cakes and I was always intrigued that it actually worked! And not only does it work it tastes amazing too. A creamy pudding and soft cake, can’t get much better than that!

Recipe Ingredients

  • Butter – I use salted butter
  • Sugar – granulated or even better fine sugar
  • Lemon zest – room temperature
  • Eggs – large room temperature
  • Flour – all purpose flour
  • Milk – room temperature, best to use 2% or whole milk
  • Lemon Juice – room temperature
Lemon pudding cake baked in the black cake pan.

Why use room temperature ingredients?

Room temperature ingredients help to produce light tender baked good, in this case a cake. The ingredients will come together smoother with a lump free batter. Room temperature egg whites beat up fluffier. Using cold ingredients could deflate the stiff egg whites or solidify the butter.

How to make a Pudding Cake

In a large bowl cream the butter and half the sugar add the zest and egg yolks, beat to combine. Stir with a wooden spoon, whisk or spatula the flour alternately with the milk. Then stir in the lemon juice. Combine well.

In another bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites and remaining sugar until stiff peaks appear then gently fold into the batter. Pour into the prepared 8-inch cake pan or baking dish. Place the cake pan in a larger high sided pan filled with hot water. Bake until golden.

Let cool to warm, dust with powdered sugar and serve. If you wish you could serve with a dollop of whipped cream and fresh berries, such as blueberries or raspberries.

pudding cake how to make, stiff egg whites, batter in a pan and baked

Why is a Pudding Cake baked in a water bath?

The water bath helps to insulate the thick pudding layer and prevents it from over-cooking and becoming rubbery,  and at the same time it helps the the cake rise high above the pudding.

How to store it

Store the leftovers tightly wrapped or in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for up to 3 days. Re-heating can be done in the microwave. It’s best not to freeze the cake as it will deflate and won’t re-heat very well.

Pudding cake with powdered sugar in a white pan.

Recipe Information

  • This recipe can also be made in individual prepared ramekins, approximately 6. Be sure to cut down on the baking time to about 20 minutes.
  • The pudding cake is baked when the edges are set and the middle should be golden brown. It is over baked when there is no pudding on the bottom of the cake.
  • The batter for this cake cannot be made ahead of time as it will deflate, nor should the cake be frozen.

More Lemon Desserts you may enjoy

Pudding cake in a white dish with a spoon.

So if you want to bring back some memories or start some new ones, then I think this Lemon Pudding Cake would be the perfect Dessert! Enjoy.

A slice of pudding cake in a white dish with a spoon.

Lemon Pudding Cake

Rosemary Molloy
This delicious Homemade Lemon Pudding Cake makes the perfect dessert, no need for frosting it makes it's own topping. 
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings
Calories 181 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

  • 1 tablespoon butter (softened)
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar (or fine/divided) (divided)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest
  • 3 large eggs (room temperature) (separated)
  • 1/4 cup flour (all purpose)
  • 1 cup milk (room temperature)
  • 1/3 cup lemon juice (room temperature)

For room temperature ingredients remove from the fridge about 1 hour before using. Longer if your house is cold.

    Instructions
     

    • Pre-heat oven to 350F (180C) and grease and flour an 8 inch square or round cake pan.
    • In a large bowl cream the butter and half the sugar (1/3 cup), add the zest and egg yolks beat to combine.  Stir in (with a wooden spoon) the flour alternately with the milk.  Then stir in the lemon juice. Combine well.
    • In another bowl beat the egg whites and remaining 1/3 cup sugar until stiff, then gently fold into the batter. Pour into the prepared cake pan.  Place the cake pan in a larger high sided pan filled with 1 1/2 inches  (4 cm) of hot water.  Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes or until golden.
    • Let cool to warm, dust with powdered sugar and serve.  Enjoy!

    Notes

    Store the leftovers tightly wrapped or in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for up to 3 days. Re-heating can be done in the microwave.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 181kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 65mg | Potassium: 98mg | Sugar: 24g | Vitamin A: 245IU | Vitamin C: 6.1mg | Calcium: 58mg | Iron: 0.6mg
    Did You Make This Recipe?Please leave a comment below or pin it to your Pinterest account!

    Updated from August 18, 2018.

    146 Comments

    1. This seems like the amount of ingredients wouldn’t feed 6 people. Can the recipe be doubled and if so what size pan would you use and how long would you bake it ?

    2. Going to make this my wife Debra loves lemon she eats the like oranges also going to try it with vanilla or banana pudding

        1. Next time I’ll put it in the larger pan, THEN add hot water around the edge. I placed it in the larger pan with the 1+ inch of hot water already in there, the cake pan tilted, and water started pouring into the cake pan! Hopefully it’s not ruined. Still in the oven.

      1. Hi Colleen, some readers have made them in individual tins, but I would bake them for about 15-20 minutes. Let me know how it goes. Take care.

    3. 5 stars
      Merveilleux gateau au citron ! Tellement léger, on croirait un nuage. Pas trop sucré, juste ce qu’il faut. Son seul défaut: il est tellement bon que tout le monde se sert une seconde fois …. Alors il faut tout de suite faire 2 gâteaux plutôt qu’un !
      A huge thank for this recipe !

    4. 5 stars
      Simply delicious and refreshing. Not too sweet. I’ll make this to serve with fresh berries this summer. Love your recipes…thank you.

    5. For the lemon pudding cake, can you use unsweetened almond milk or oat milk in place of the regular milk?

      1. Hi Barb, I really don’t know because I have never made it with almond or oat milk. You could try, I think it would work. Let me know if you try it. Have a great weekend.

    6. 5 stars
      This is amazing, so light & zesty. About to make it again for dessert this weekend. Just wondering is it possible to prep the batter mix in the morning for baking later that day?

      1. Hi Kate, thanks so much, so glad you liked it. I don’t think I would since you beat the egg whites which helps it rise during baking. It could fall if you make it ahead of time. Take care.

    7. Hi, I’d l love to make this, it looks like a terrific. Can I make it a day ahead and should it be kept at room temp or in the fridge?

      1. Hi Shelley, it really should be made and served, or else the pudding will get hard and I imagine the cake will dry. It really should be served warm. Leftovers should be stored in the fridge. Hope that helps.

    8. 5 stars
      My favourite comfort dessert! Always turns out perfectly! I tried it with a gluten free baking mix and it also turned out well. It didn’t separate into a pudding and sponge layer but still was attractive and delicious.

    Leave a Reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.