I can’t be the only one who likes lemon. I feel like once Easter hits, the desserts need to get a little lighter. I mean, I do love a decadent chocolate dessert pretty much any day of the year, but I love this time of year when the fruit, the Cool Whip, and the puddings start making more of an appearance on the dessert table.

Recently we attended the McKinney Family Reunion and I needed to take something. My go-to recipe is always our family favorite – Pudding Pound Cake. While I was there, I realized that I think I like summer potlucks better than other seasons of the year. I was going through the line with a cousin and we both decided we should have skipped the meat table and just gone for a plate of sides – macaroni and cheese, hash brown casserole, Cowboy Caviar, Mexican corn dip – they were all there two-stepping next to each other.

I actually had that dreaded potluck moment – do I stack taller or wider? You know what I’m talking about the dilemma where you decide if you are ok with your baked beans and corn dip touching or if you need to make a layer of Fritos scoops between them. Y’all, the struggle was real.

And, you don’t even try to put any of the desserts on that plate. Oh, you are planning to come back for round 2 (or 3!) and get a plate for desserts all on its own. And, when you come from a family of cooks and married a reunion family of cooks…the struggle is real. Pyrex really should have sponsored the day or at least bought us t-shirts!

Growing up, we called the cake I took “Becky Harper Cake” because she is my mom’s friend who gave us the recipe. But, as it turns out we make it more than her. It really is my favorite and I love the mix and match nature of it. For this one, I used a lemon pound cake and lemon pudding mix, but you could try any combination you like!

Let’s just say, the leftovers didn’t last long at my in-laws.

Print Recipe

Lemon Pudding Pound Cake

This sweet and simple lemon pound cake is the perfect addition to the potluck, Sunday lunch, or weeknight coffee gathering. It's light and fluffy and a tad tangy with the right amount of lemon flavoring.

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: lemon, meals that gather, meals to take, pound cake

Servings: 20

Ingredients

• 1 boxed lemon or butter cake mix
• 1 pkg instant lemon pudding mix
• 1 lemon or 5 drops of lemon essential oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/4 cup water divided
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350.
• Zest the whole rind of a lemon. Set aside in a bowl.
• In a stand mixer, combine cake mix, pudding, eggs, and oil.
• Juice lemon into a one-cup measuring cup and fill the rest of the way with water.
• Pour into a mixing bowl.
• Mix together all ingredients, beat on medium to high until batter is light and fluffy.
• Spray a bundt pan or 2 loaf pans with non-stick spray.
• Pour batter into a pan and spread evenly.
• Cook for 35-45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and let rest for 3 minutes.
• Invert on to serving platter or stand.
• In a small bowl, mix together lemon zest, powdered sugar and 1/4 cup water.
• If icing is too runny, add a little bit of powdered sugar. If it's too thick, add a tiny bit of water…just a little at a time to get the right texture.
• Spoon icing over cake while it is still warm.
• Allow cake to cool to room temperature before covering.

Notes

This cake is part of what our family calls Becky Harper cake – its a basic cake recipe that can be mixed with any combination of cake and pudding flavor.

• 1 cake mix
• 1 pudding mix
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 tsp extract or flavoring

Some of my favorite combinations are:

• Butter cake and pistachio pudding
• Red Velvet Cake and Cheesecake pudding
• Pineapple Supreme Cake and Vanilla pudding – stir in coconut
• Chocolate Cake or German Chocolate cake with chocolate pudding – add chocolate chips, nuts, coconut

The combinations are endless!

I also make this cake at St. Patrick’s Day with butter cake mix and pistachio pudding. I think butter cake mix and french vanilla pudding with cinnamon swirl would be supper yummy. I’ve never tried the strawberry combination, but I bet it would be easy too. And of course you never go wrong with a butter cake mix and chocolate pudding or devils food cake mix and chocolate pudding. Stir in a few chocolate chips or peanut butter chips… and you will want to slap yo grand-mama!