Lemon Pudding Cakes
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A dessert that bakes into two dreamy layers—fluffy cake on top, silky lemon pudding underneath. One spoonful of these lemon pudding cakes, and you’ll be hooked!
As someone who cooks for a living, I’m always mindful of dessert portion sizes—but I make an exception for these irresistible lemon pudding cakes. They’re refreshingly light and practically guilt-free, with a built-in surprise: during baking, the batter magically separates into a fluffy cake layer on top and a luscious lemon pudding beneath.
If you don’t have ramekins on hand, no worries! An 8-inch square pan or a 2-quart baking dish works just as well, with about the same baking time.
Love citrusy desserts? You might also enjoy my lemon bars or lemon pound cake—both bright, tangy, and perfect for lemon lovers.
“Absolutely delicious and really easy! Makes such an elegant dessert…I get rave reviews when I serve this.”
What You’ll Need To Make Lemon Pudding Cakes
Step-by-Step Instructions
First, spray six (6-oz) ramekins with nonstick cooking spray then make the batter by whisking the egg yolks, milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, melted butter, salt, and flour in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. When you lift the beaters out, the peaks should curl.
Whisk a bit of the beaten eggs into the lemon mixture to lighten it. Then add the remaining beaten egg whites to the mixture. Gently fold with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth.
The batter will be light, foamy, and liquidy.
Place the prepared ramekins inside a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Ladle the batter evenly into the 6-ounce ramekins, filling them almost to the top. Then, using a teapot or pitcher, carefully pour room-temperature water into the baking dish until it reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This water bath (or bain-marie) helps the cakes bake gently, ensuring the custard-like pudding layer forms perfectly.
Carefully place the baking pan in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes, or until the cakes are puffy and lightly golden on top.
Using tongs, carefully remove the lemon pudding cakes from the baking dish and let cool on a rack for about 20 minutes before serving. (They will sink a bit as they cool; that’s totally normal.) Dust the cakes with powdered sugar and serve with berries, if you like. Enjoy!
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Lemon Pudding Cakes
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs, separated
- 1 cup milk (low-fat or whole)
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest, from 2 lemons
- 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup sugar
- Fresh berries and confectioners' sugar, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set a rack in the middle position. Spray six (6-oz/177-ml) ramekins with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, butter, and salt. Add the flour and sugar and whisk until smooth.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. (The peaks should curl when you lift the beaters out of the bowl.) Spoon about ¼ of the egg whites into the lemon mixture and whisk until smooth. Add the remaining egg whites and, using a rubber spatula, gently fold into the lemon mixture until smooth. The batter will be light, foamy, and liquidy.
- Place the prepared ramekins into a 9 x 13-in (23 x 33-cm) baking dish. Ladle the batter evenly into the ramekins (it will come almost to the top). Using a teapot or pitcher, pour room temperature water into the pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Carefully place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the cakes are puffy and lightly golden on top. Using tongs, carefully remove the ramekins from the baking dish and let cool on a rack for about 20 minutes before serving. (They will sink a bit as they cool; that's okay.) Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve with berries, if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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These cakes were over the top delicious. I made these Pudding Cakes for dinner guests, I made only 6 and all of their comments about the dessert were “why did you only make 6?” They wanted more! So glad I have an over abundance supply of fresh lemons. Thanks for a great recipe!
I scaled the recipe down to make 2 servings. They are delicious but the cake part was almost too tender. I would have liked a bit more substance to the cake part, if that makes any sense. But to be fair, scaling may have contributed to the texture. All that said, I’ll be making them again. Thank you for the recipe.
Do you think your yogurt whipped cream would go with the pudding on top?
Hi Susan, I’m not sure which whipped cream you’re referring to. Also, are you saying you’d like to top the pudding cakes with the whipped cream? Thanks for clarifying!
I’ve made this a few times and it’s perfect and flavorful every time! Good for everyday or company. Definitely a keeper!
This was soooo good. I did make the following changes: substituted milk for almond milk, added more spices (ginger, cardamom, vanilla, and cinnamon). I baked them in 12 oz, small bowls, so I only got 3 servings instead of 6. This recipe is really flexible and forgiving. I could see doing other variations, like changing the lemon juice to other fruit juice/syrup.
Thanks!! ❤️❤️❤️
Thes little cake/puddings are heavenly! I didn’t have fresh lemons so I used orange zest and bottled lemon juice. The combo was amazing, will definitely be making them again. Thanks so much for the recipe.
This is an old Pennsylvania Dutch recipe. Except it was in a pie form called, lemon sponge pie. Delicious! Brilliant idea to serve in ramekins minus the pie crust.
Could you please tell me what type of ramekins you used for these pudding cakes or where you purchased them? Thank you!
Hi Joanna, The ramekins I use are expensive ones from Pier 1 and they work just fine. Williams Sonoma has nice ones if you don’t mind spending a little bit more. Hope that helps!
Have you ever tried to make a gluten free version? Wondering if I can just substitute 1-1 the reg flour for my favorite GF flour ? Thoughts?
Hi Shelly, I haven’t made these with gluten-free flour, but several readers have commented that they have with good results. Hope that helps!
Hi Jenn,
Happy New Year!
We have beautiful Meyer lemon 🍋 trees on our property. Will they work as well for flavor?
Happy new year to you! Yes, Meyer lemons should work. Enjoy!