Sourdough Lemon Cake with Glaze

A deliciously sweet and tender cake made with discarded sourdough starter, this sourdough lemon cake is one of the yummiest ways to avoid food waste.

Recipe

Some of the best sourdough discard recipes are breakfast recipes, because sourdough bakers typically discard and feed their starter in the morning. And this lemon cake makes the perfect breast (or snack! or dessert!) that the whole family will love.

There’s no sour taste, just a bright lemon flavor and plenty of sweetness and tartness from the glaze.

The ingredients you’ll need

For the cake

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (or melted butter)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda (optional, for a more “quick bread” texture vs cake)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1/2 cup sourdough starter, discard
• 3/4 cup milk

For the glaze

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Step by step sourdough lemon cake

Making the batter

This recipe is easy as can be. Go ahead and preheat your oven to 350 with the rack in center.

Prepare your pan with non stick cooking spray. I like to use a loaf pan so it feels acceptable to serve this lemon cake as a breakfast. But a square cake pan works very well too!

Combine the oil, sugar, and eggs, in a bowl with an electric mixer. It will just take a minute.

In a separate bowl, mix up the dry ingredients. Add them to the sugar mixture 1/3 at a time. So add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, then stir in the milk. Add another third, stir in the sourdough starter. Add the last third and gently stir.

Finally, mix in the lemon juice and zest by hand. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake the cake for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The top will crack. If you’re using a square cake pan, it will be done in 40-50 minutes.

Making and pouring the glaze

Set the cake, still in its pan, onto a cooling rack and let it cool for about 15 minutes.

While the cake is cooling, let’s mix up the glaze. It will all fit in just a small bowl.

Mix up 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, 2 teaspoon of lemon juice, and 2 teaspoons of lemon zest. Pour it over the slightly cooled cake while it’s still in the pan. After a few more minutes, the glaze will cool and harden. At this point, remove the cake and let it finish cooling on a cooling rack.

When completely cool, slice and serve!

You can always double this recipe and freeze one. Make sure it is fully cooled before you freeze it. Make the lemon glaze after its defrosted.

To prevent sinking

A few readers have noted that their lemon cake has collapsed after baking. Since receiving that feedback I’ve added some baking soda to the recipe to help leaven it further.

The baking soda is optional and will produce a lighter cake. I prefer it with only baking powder because it is a denser, more pound cake like texture.

The two most common causes of this are an underdone cake or inactive baking powder/ baking soda.Make sure your cake is fully baked before baking by using a cake tester and remember that baking powder and baking soda should be replaced every 6 months.

Want more sourdough cake recipes?

• Sourdough coffee cake is swirled through with cinnamon sugar and is absolutely delicious.
• Shredded carrots, golden raisins, and a perfectly sweet and tangy cream cheese topping come together in sourdough carrot cupcakes.
• Another sweet breakfast favorite is sourdough banana bread.