Easy Lemon Cake Recipe with Sweet Glaze

This is a shortcut lemon cake, and I’m upfront about it: it starts with a boxed lemon cake mix. Adding real butter, milk, fresh lemon zest and a little vanilla makes it taste homemade, and a quick lemon glaze gives it a glossy, tangy finish. It’s what I bake when guests are coming and I have less than an hour. It’s not a Gordon Ramsay recipe; the full quantities are in the recipe card below.

What makes a box mix taste homemade

• Butter instead of oil. Melted butter gives a richer flavor than the oil on most packets.
• Milk instead of water. It makes a softer, more tender crumb. Buttermilk, in the same amount, adds a little tang.
• Fresh lemon zest. This is the biggest upgrade. Zest carries far more lemon flavor than the mix alone.
• A fresh glaze. Powdered sugar whisked with fresh lemon juice adds sweetness and a bright, sharp finish.

Baking tips

• Use room-temperature eggs so the batter blends smoothly.
• Mix only until the dry ingredients disappear. Overmixing makes a dense cake.
• Start checking early. It’s done when a toothpick in the middle comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
• For an extra-moist cake, brush the warm cake with a simple lemon syrup (equal parts sugar and water simmered with lemon juice) before glazing.

Swaps

• No lemon mix: use a yellow or vanilla cake mix and add 1–2 tablespoons each of lemon zest and juice.
• Oil instead of butter: use 1/4 cup of neutral oil for a slightly lighter cake.
• Dairy-free: unsweetened almond milk and a dairy-free butter.
• Gluten-free: use a gluten-free lemon cake mix and check that everything else is certified gluten-free.
• No glaze: dust with powdered sugar for a less sweet finish.

Recipes

Easy Lemon Cake with Sweet Glaze

A moist, tender lemon cake made from cake mix and boosted with milk and butter, finished with a bright powdered-sugar lemon glaze.

Chef Gordon Ramsay Recipes

Prep
15 minutes

Cook
30-35 minutes

Total
50 minutes

Serves
8 servings

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Ingredients

1 (15.25 oz) box lemon cake mix3 large eggs, room temperature1/2 cup (120 ml) whole milk, room temperature1/4 cup (56 g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled1 teaspoon vanilla extract1 tablespoon lemon zest (from 1-2 lemons)For the glaze: 1 1/2 cups (180 g) powdered sugar, sifted2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (adjust for consistency)1 tablespoon milk (if needed to thin the glaze)Pinch of salt

Instructions

01

Preheat oven

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease a 9x13-inch pan or line it with parchment.

02

Combine dry mix

Place the lemon cake mix in a large mixing bowl and add the lemon zest.

03

Add wet ingredients

Add the eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla to the dry mix.

04

Mix batter

Beat on low for 30 seconds, then increase to medium and mix until smooth and no dry streaks remain, about 1 minute.

05

Prepare pan

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

06

Bake cake

Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, 30–35 minutes.

07

Cool briefly

Remove the cake from oven and let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10–15 minutes.

08

Whisk glaze

While the cake cools, whisk powdered sugar, lemon juice, milk (if needed), and a pinch of salt until smooth and pourable.

09

Glaze cake

Pour the glaze evenly over the warm cake, spreading gently to cover the surface; allow the glaze to set before slicing.

Chef Tips

• Use room-temperature eggs for a lighter, more even crumb.
• If glaze is too thick, thin with teaspoon increments of lemon juice or milk.
• Avoid overbaking—check a few minutes before the timer to keep the cake moist.

Variations

• Berry: fold 1/2 cup of blueberries or raspberries into the batter.
• Layer cake: double the recipe, bake it in two pans and fill with lemon curd or whipped cream.
• Almond glaze: add 1/4 teaspoon almond extract to the glaze.

Storage

You can bake it a day ahead and keep it lightly covered at room temperature. Glazed, it keeps for 2 days under a cake dome. Unglazed, wrap it tightly and freeze for up to 2 months; thaw it overnight in the fridge and glaze before serving.

For a no-bake lemon dessert, try my Creamy Lemon Icebox Cake. For other fruity bakes, there’s the Strawberry Cheesecake, the Strawberry Layer Cake and the Blueberry Cream Tart.