Okay, so I’ve been craving lemon cake lately, the kind that just screams sunshine and happiness, you know? But I didn’t want to go through all the fuss of making one from scratch. Then I thought, “Why not try using a yellow cake mix as a base?” I mean, it’s already got most of the dry ingredients sorted, right? And I didn’t have any pudding mix on hand, which a lot of recipes call for, so I just winged it.
I grabbed a box of yellow cake mix from the pantry, the cheap kind, nothing fancy. Then I looked in my fridge and found some lemons. Perfect! I zested one whole lemon – that little grater got a workout. And I juiced that lemon too, plus another one, to get enough of that tangy lemon juice.
Next, I just followed the instructions on the cake mix box for the wet ingredients – you know, eggs, oil, and water. But instead of using all water, I replaced like half a cup with the lemon juice. I also dumped in all that glorious lemon zest. I figured, the more lemon flavor, the better!

I whisked it all together, trying to make sure the zest was evenly distributed. It smelled amazing already, all lemony and sweet. I poured the batter into a greased and floured 9×13 inch pan – I always do that part religiously, don’t want any sticking disasters.
Then I popped it into the oven, which I had preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit like the box said. I think it took about 30 minutes to bake, but I kept an eye on it and used the good old toothpick test to make sure it was done. You know, stick a toothpick in the center, and if it comes out clean, it’s ready.
Let it cool!
Once it was out of the oven, I let it cool in the pan for a bit before flipping it onto a wire rack to cool completely. Patience is key here, people! While it was cooling, I whipped up a simple glaze with some powdered sugar and more of that precious lemon juice. Just enough to make it drizzle-able.
Finally, when the cake was completely cool, I drizzled that tangy glaze all over the top. It looked so pretty, and the smell was just intoxicating. I couldn’t wait any longer, so I sliced myself a piece.
And let me tell you, it was good! Really good! It was moist and fluffy, with a strong lemon flavor that wasn’t too overpowering. The yellow cake mix totally worked as a base, and honestly, I didn’t miss the pudding mix at all.
- Super easy
- Fast as hell
- Cheap!
- Smell good
This is definitely going to be my go-to method for making lemon cake from now on. It’s so simple and delicious, and you probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry already. Give it a try, you won’t regret it!
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