Lemon-Spice Visiting Cake

By Dorie Greenspan

Updated October 11, 2023

  • Gentl and Hyers for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Amy Wilson.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
1 hour 25 minutes
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
70 minutes
Rating
4(4,785)
Comments
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Whether you pack this cake as a gift or have it ready when visitors come to you, the imperative to share is implicit in its name. The cake is built for comfort and durability – make it on Thursday or Friday and have it all weekend. And if it stales, toast it; the heat will intensify the lemon and spice deliciously. The cake is easy to make (no machines needed) and, like all spice cakes, better after a day’s rest. Giving it a swish of warmed marmalade when it comes out of the oven is optional. What shouldn't be passed up is what I call the ‘lemon trick’: Use your fingertips to rub the recipe’s lemon and sugar together until the sugar is moist and aromatic. This easy step transfers everything essential from the lemon to the cake. Think of it as aromatherapy for the cake and you.

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Ingredients

Yield:10 servings

  • Butter and flour for the pan

  • 1 ½ cups/190 grams all-purpose flour

  • 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder

  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger

  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

  • 1 ¼ cups/250 grams sugar

  • 1 large (or 2 small) lemons

  • 4 large eggs, at room temperature

  • ½ cup/120 milliliters heavy cream, at room temperature

  • 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

  • 5 ½ tablespoons/75 grams unsalted butter, melted and cooled

  • ⅓ cup marmalade, for glaze (optional)

  • ½ teaspoon water, for glaze (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

49 grams carbs; 107 milligrams cholesterol; 335 calories; 4 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 14 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 201 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein; 32 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Center a rack in the oven, and heat it to 350. Butter an 8 ½-inch loaf pan (Pyrex works well), dust with flour and tap out the excess. (For this cake, bakers’ spray isn’t as good as butter and flour.) Place on a baking sheet.

  2. Step 2

    Whisk the 1 ½ cups flour, baking powder, cardamom, ginger and salt together.

  3. Step 3

    Put the sugar in a large bowl, and grate the zest of the lemon(s) over the sugar. Squeeze the lemon(s) to produce 3 tablespoons juice, and set this aside. Using your fingers, rub the sugar and zest together until the mixture is moist and aromatic. One at a time, add the eggs, whisking well after each. Whisk in the juice, followed by the heavy cream. Still using the whisk, gently stir the dry ingredients into the batter in two additions. Stir the vanilla into the melted butter, and then gradually blend the butter into the batter. The batter will be thick and have a beautiful sheen. Scrape it into the loaf pan.

  4. Step 4

    Bake for 70 to 75 minutes (if the cake looks as if it’s getting too dark too quickly, tent it loosely with foil) or until a tester inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer to a rack, let rest for 5 minutes and then carefully run a blunt knife between the sides of the cake and the pan. Invert onto the rack, and turn over. Glaze now, or cool to room temperature.

  5. Step 5

    For the glaze: Bring the marmalade and water to a boil. Brush the glaze over the top of the warm cake, and allow to it to set for 2 hours. The glaze will remain slightly tacky.

  6. Step 6

    When the cake is completely cool, wrap in plastic to store. If it’s glazed, wrap loosely on top.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
4,785 user ratings
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Comments

Eilonwy

Zest a few lemons when they are on sale (or zest lemons you are using only for juice in other recipes) and freeze the zest in a small plastic bag. Then when you need the zest, just pull out the required quantity.

Jean Paulson

With this, as with any cake or sweet bread, I prep the pan with butter and sugar. Yes, sugar. Adds a crunchy note, and has never, ever produced a stuck loaf or cake. Taught to me long ago by a CIA- graduate co-caterer. Forget parchment,flour and all that other business...this is no-fail, and delicious.

stacy

Trader Joe's has shelf stable boxes of cream you can buy and keep in your pantry

Laura C.

I respect Dorie and had high hopes for this cake. It was BAD and DRY! I took it out at 50 minutes and it was still like eating sand. Bummed out.

ls

Baked for 70 as recipe says, came out burnt and incredibly dry and tough. Start checking at 50!

Brian

This cake is fairly dense, somewhere between a typical cake and a pound cake. Just an FYI, not a critique. What is a critique is that this has minimal lemon and barely detectable spice. I would not call it a “spice cake”. If when toasted “the heat will intensify the lemon and spice,” good. It really needs it. Otherwise, add extra lemon zest or some lemon essence or lemon oil, and consider doubling the ginger and cardamom if you want anyone to think you made a plausible “spice cake.”

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