There’s something about lemon in a cake that just lifts the mood. It’s bright, sharp in the best way, and when folded into a soft sponge – magic. This isn’t one of those stiff, polite cakes that look good on a plate but leave you unmoved. This one? It disappears fast. I’ve lost count of how many slices I’ve seen vanish before the kettle boils.

No mixer. No butter to cream. No overthinking. This lemon sponge cake recipe is loose, friendly, and happy to bend with whatever you’ve got in the pantry. I’ve made it dairy free, gluten free, and still had people ask for seconds without realizing it was “the healthy version.”

Active Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients

What I like most – this cake doesn’t ask for anything wild.

• 200 g plain flour (or gluten-free blend if needed)
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• 150 g caster sugar
• 100 ml light olive oil (or any neutral oil)
• 3 eggs
• Zest and juice from 2 fresh lemons
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 60 ml almond milk (or whatever plant milk’s on hand)
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

Preparation

Heat the oven– 170°C if you’ve got a fan, 180°C otherwise. Grease a 20 cm round tin or line it with baking paper if you hate cleanup.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the sugar, oil, and eggs. Don’t worry about a perfect ribbon or any of that – just mix until it looks glossy and a bit foamy. Add the lemon zest and juice. Toss in the vanilla.

In a second bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually fold this into the wet stuff. Pour in the almond milk as you go to loosen things up. Stop once it looks smooth-ish. Lumpy batter ruins everything.

Cooking

Pour the batter into your tin. Spread it gently. Don’t smack it around – you want a soft rise.

Bake for 30–35 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when the top turns golden and a skewer comes out clean with a few moist crumbs clinging on.

Let it sit in the tin for about ten minutes. Then turn it out and let it cool properly – this part is torture, but cutting it hot just tears everything.

Serving

Dust it with icing sugar if you like visuals. Or leave it bare and let the flavor speak. I sometimes top mine with plant yogurt and crushed berries when I’m pretending to be fancy.

Nutritional Value Per One Serving

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 245
Total Fat: 10 g
Saturated Fat: 1.2 g
Cholesterol: 55 mg
Sodium: 100 mg
Total Carbohydrates: 34 g
Dietary Fiber: 1 g
Sugars: 17 g
Protein: 4 g

Tips and Variations

Once you’ve nailed the base, you’ll start riffing without even thinking:

• Use blood oranges instead of lemon when you find them; the color’s beautiful and the taste’s more mellow
• Add texture with chopped pistachios, chia seeds, or even a spoon of poppy seeds
• Turn it into cupcakes if you’re short on time – just drop the baking time to around 20 minutes

The best lemon sponge cake is the one you actually want to eat. So change it up, don’t treat the recipe like gospel.

Conclusion

This sponge cake with lemon is the one I make when I want the kitchen to smell like something good’s happening. It’s simple, quick, and forgiving – which is a rare thing when it comes to baking. Whether you want something gluten free, dairy free, or just honestly delicious, this cake holds its ground. I’ve never seen a slice go uneaten.

And that’s always the best review.

Take a peek at our dessert collection for more sweet favorites.