An intensely flavoured self saucing lemon pudding that magically separates into two delicious layers – one cake, one sauce. Make it with only 5 main ingredients – no eggs needed!
Amazing lemons!
It’s not uncommon here in Australia to see bags of lemons sitting on driveways with a sign in front: ‘Free lemons’. Which I love!
But if you’re going to take those lemons, you really need to think of something to make with them. And relatively fast before they turn into green powder in your fruit bowl.
I love how versatile lemons are. I have some favourite savoury recipes that include lemons, like this incredible and easy Greek lemon chicken and potatoes.
I also have other go-to lemon dessert recipes, like this lemon mascarpone cake, and these lemon bakewell bars.
How to make a self-saucing lemon pudding
You might have seen something like this magic lemon pudding called self-saucing lemon pudding, or even lemon delicious pudding (here in Australia!).
You mix together:
- flour
- sugar
- lemon zest
- milk
- and butter
then you pour over lemon juice, sugar and water and bake. While in the oven, the dish ‘magically’ separates into a cake layer and a lemon sauce layer.
Add ice cream and eat. Hopefully you’ve fooled guests into thinking you’ve slaved away over this magic lemon pudding, when really it only took you 5 minutes to throw together. Massive win.
In the past, I haven’t had much success making anything that has ‘magic’ in its name. A chocolate self-saucing pudding ended up with hardly any sauce and a magic apple cake tasted divine but didn’t have the 3 clearly defined magic layers it was supposed to.
Love this recipe? Or hate it?
This recipe tends to divide a room. We have made it many times and love it, but it does receive mixed reviews.
Pro tip: The key to success is to leave the lemon pudding to cool slightly for ten to fifteen minutes after it comes out of the oven. The sauce might look a bit runny at first but if you let it stand it thickens up nicely.
This is what people say about this recipe:
Caro said: “ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh this is a lemon lovers dream! Tangy, warm, soft, not too sweet, I loved loved loved it.”
Juanita said: “Loved this! So easy and so yummy. We made it two days in a row!”
But CA Cook said: “I tried to make this and it was a disaster. The liquid stood on top of the cake and after 45 minutes there were still several inches of liquid. It didn’t taste lemony at all. The texture of the cake was really weird. I looked up other recipes for this kind of pudding and they call for eggs. Maybe this needs eggs.“
Nope. The recipe doesn’t ‘need’ eggs. I have tried to figure out why some people don’t like this recipe but can’t.
All I can suggest is to:
- make sure the oven is properly heated before putting the pudding in.
- Make sure you use self raising flour and not plain flour.
- Leave the pudding for 10 to 15 minutes before eating to let the sauce thicken and cool a little.
- Then eat it immediately. We find it tastes lovely the next day, but some of the sauce soaks into the pudding.
The only other advice I have is to try it for yourself… and make your own decision about whether you’re a quick and easy lemon pudding without eggs lover or hater!
I hope you enjoy this. It perhaps won’t ever win any beauty contests, but we think it’s a delicious ‘got-to-have-dessert-right-now’ recipe!
This is the kind of baking dish I use for this pudding:
Update: The original magic lemon pudding recipe I adapted had very mixed reviews, and so does this one! If you give this a go and like it, would you consider popping back and leaving a review? Thank you!
Like this recipe? You’ll enjoy my chocolate self saucing pudding too!
I worked on the ‘little sister’ of my lemon pudding aka a 6-ingredient chocolate self saucing pudding, also with no eggs, for a long time before publishing it.
I wanted to get it ‘just right’. I hope you agree it was worth the wait! There are plenty of chocolate self saucing puddings out there already, but what sets this one apart is that:
- it’s surprisingly low in sugar
- it’s egg free, just like the lemon pudding, in case you can’t get any or you can’t eat eggs
- it’s got plenty of sauce (mmmm… )
More really easy desserts
- 5-minute chocolate banana ice cream (healthy nice cream!)
- 6-ingredient gooey Swedish chocolate cake (you’ve got to try this!)
- Addictive peanut butter Cheerio bars
- No bowl chocolate pecan bars (magic bars!)
- 5-minute chocolate pots (only 4 ingredients!)
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Easy lemon magic pudding (5 ingredients)
Equipment (affiliate links)
Ingredients (UK/Australia? Click below for grams/ml)
for the cake batter
- 1 cup self-raising flour
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 lemon zest only (use the juice in the sauce)
- ½ cup milk warmed
- 2 tablespoons butter (melted and mixed in with the warm milk)
for the sauce
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 cup water boiling
- ½ cup lemon juice (2 to 3 lemons)
to serve (optional)
- icing / confectioners’ sugar for sprinkling
- vanilla ice cream
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 355F / 180C and grease a medium sized high-sided baking dish with butter.
- Mix together the flour, sugar and lemon zest in a medium bowl.
- Pour the milk / butter mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
- Empty the batter into the baking dish.
- Mix the sauce ingredients together, then carefully pour over the batter in the baking dish. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the sauce starting to bubble around the sides.
- Take out of the oven, then leave for 10 to 15 minutes to allow the sauce to thicken slightly before serving.
- Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve immediately with vanilla ice cream (if you like).
Andrew says
Tried this with the family, increasing it for 6 people and also trying Jason’s suggestions to reduce sweetness (double lemon juice, half sugar). Worked OK (especially the cake part), was very tasty and was very easy but the two adjustments meant a large amount of lemons (I gave up after seven…are UK lemons smaller than those in Australia?) and the sauce, even after resting for 15-20 mins, was very liquid (I did remember to reduce water)…could this be because the sugar quantity was reduced and therefore will create less of a syrup? Cooking time was just over an hour.
I will try again but will keep the ratio of sugar to lemon/water.
Helen says
Hi Andrew! Thanks for the feedback on trying the suggestion to reduce sugar. Many of my newer recipes contain minimal amounts of sugar but I’ve never played around with the amounts in this recipe because I think a self saucing pudding really does depend on fairly precise measurements to get the ‘magic’ sauce separating from the cake effect. So yes, definitely do try the recipe again with the higher amount of sugar! Having said that, I did recently publish a chocolate version of the recipe with far less sugar in it, so maybe you’d like to try that some time too? The recipe is here in case you’re interested: https://scrummylane.com/chocolate-self-saucing-pudding-low-sugar-no-eggs/
P.S. Yes I think Australian lemons probably are generally larger than the ones found in UK supermarkets! I rarely buy lemons here because either relatives give them to me from their trees or neighbours leave boxes of them outside their houses for you to help yourself to for free!
Janiika says
We made this once, and then told everyone we knew about it, – it was that good! Making it again tonight!
Helen says
Aw thank you, Janiika! Love this comment! It is pretty wonderful, isn’t it? Have you tried the chocolate version?
Jason says
Quick and easy recipe. A bit too sweet for me. Suggest half the sugar in the sauce and double the lemon juice. Reduce the water amount to compensate. Overall very tasty.
Helen says
Hi Jason! Yes, I agree that this is pretty sweet! You’ll find that many of my newer dessert recipes contain far less sugar (you have to try the 30-minute healthy chocolate cake!). Have you tried making it the way you describe, with less sugar?
Eva says
Wow! I admit I was pretty sceptical as I put this sloppy liquid into the oven, but it transformed completely! Such a moist sponge and the tangy sauce is perfect with it. Would be great served with some cream….hit the spot perfectly, thank you! X
Helen says
Hello Eva! So happy you like it! It is hard to believe this actually works, isn’t it? I have a chocolate version on the site which you may like too 🙂
emma says
It was exactly the same for me, but it turned out amazing! I seperated my batter in three small bowls and to my suprise it worked out perfectly as well! Delicious!
Helen says
Hi Emma! Thank you so much for the feedback. It’s very helpful to hear that the mini versions worked. I have to try that too!
Joyce says
Ooh! This was delicious and easy and quick to whip up on a Friday night. It was fresh and just great with cream. Egg free too. I used soy milk and it was yummy!
Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Helen says
Hi Joyce, and thank you so much for the review! There’s a chocolate version of this on the blog now, in case you’re interested in trying that one too 😉
Laura says
This pudding was lemony-syrupy-scrumptiosness! Our house is allergy central, so I used gluten-free SR flour, unrefined coconut oil in place of butter & lactose-free milk. I added 1 tsp vanilla extract to the batter, and used the zest of 2 lemons. I reduced the hot water to 3/4 cup. Served with dairy-free vanilla ice-cream. A lot of allergy-friendly substitutes kinda suck, but this recipe was no-fail & totally divine!
Helen says
Thank you, Laura! It’s interesting that you made these substitutions and it still worked well! That may help others so thank you so much!
Laureen Hart says
OK, it is still warm and I am trying to stay away and not FINISH THE WHOLE PAN!
This is very yummy and I didn’t even have real lemons. My store was out, so I used bottled juice.
I can only imagine it with the zest in the cake.
I was looking for a simple lemon pudding in the American fashion when I found this recipe.
It looked so easy I figured I would give it a shot, just ’cause.
My husband hates dry cake, so this was perfect. He added the ice cream, I had it native. And I was tooooo hungry (and lazy) to sprinkle it with powdered sugar. (But if you used a paper doily for a nice pattern, it would be great for any potluck!)
I did 2 other tweaks.
I am US so I made my usual substitution for the self rising flour: Krusteaz Complete Buttermilk Pancake mix.
I don’t do any finicky baking so the substitution always works. I use it for cakes, muffins, etc. If I did fancy stuff it might flop big time. I did it the first time when I was out of flour and it worked so well I use it for everything.
One of the suggestions on another site was to put a pinch of Turmeric in for color. Since I was using bottled juice and no zest I was worried it would look anemic so I added a pinch to both the cake part and the sauce part. Worked great!
I will try this with Lime juice, maybe Orange Juice, or maybe brown sugar and molasses. I can see the base concept expanding to a lot of flavors.
I am certain we are going to enjoy a lot of the recipes here. I like to cook, but I don’t like fussy recipes. And, the Sticky Apple and Ginger cake sounds like heaven !!
Helen says
Hello Laureen! Thank you so much for your comments! I’m really interested in your substutions! Did you notice that I recently posted a chocolate version of this? Also very yummy and I hope you try and enjoy that one too! 🙂
Sarah says
Made this earlier today using plain flour and baking powder. I measured in American cups and it worked fine. I’m going to convert it to grams for next time, as I’ll definitely make this again. I cooked it for the exact timings but didn’t leave it to cool for long enough as we were too keen to eat it., so the sauce was runny. The leftovers (which I’m going to eat now!) have a perfect sauce. It was sweet and sharp and delicious, and my toddler loved it too. Thank you!
Helen says
Hello Sarah, that’s really useful to hear that you used American cups and it worked well. I guess you’ve seen the conversion button at the top of the ingredients’ list? Just click and you’ll see the amounts in grams. Look out for the chocolate version coming next week 😉 Thank you so much for the feedback!
Pip says
Made tonight (4 June 2020]. It very much reminds me of a dessert my mother used to make in the fifties,, called golden doughboys. The texture is identical but the sauce here is lemon rather than golden syrup.
Both my husband and I enjoyed this dessert and would definitely make it again, but it is rather “don’t swim after eating”😉. Quite doughy but in a good way. Thanks for the recipe!
Helen says
Hi Pip, and thank you so much for leaving a review. I love that it reminds you of something your mother made, and love the story behind it. I chuckled at your description – definitely not the healthiest recipe on here, but also not the worst 😉
Barbara says
I liked the look of this recipe because it didn’t use any eggs. Your instructions and comments were very helpful as the results were exactly as predicted. I added baking powder and baking soda to my Canadian all-purpose flour, which worked perfectly. The lemon sauce was not thick but not too runny either, and was nicely lemony. As recommended, I let it stand for 15 minutes after taking it out of the oven which seemed to help thicken it sufficiently. Both my husband and I enjoyed it very much and I will definitely make it again.
Helen says
Hello Barbara, and thank you so much for your encouraging review! Over the years (yes, this recipe is quite old!) I’ve figured out little tips and tricks to make sure it works for as many people as possible, so it’s really good to hear that it turned out exactly as it’s supposed to for you! I’m so glad you’ll make it again! P.S. Look out for the chocolate version of this – coming within the next few weeks, and also egg free! 😉
katrina treloggen says
Just a question what is 0.5 etc of a cup 2/3rds or 3/4? thanks
Helen says
Hi Katrina! 0.5 of a cup is half a cup. 2/3 is two thirds. 3/4 is three quarters. Sorry I’ll go back to the recipe and make sure it’s clearer. Good luck!
Carole French says
Hi my husband doesn’t like lemon so was just wondering if you can use an orange instead ?
Helen says
Hi Carole! Well, I haven’t tried it but I would imagine that it would work in the same way. You’d end up with a kind of ‘orange curd’ sauce. I just wonder whether it would have enough flavour? Could you mix some raspberries in with the batter? Also, does he like chocolate desserts? I’ll be publishing a chocolate version of the lemon pudding within a few weeks!
Annie says
Sauce was good, lovely lemon flavor but pudding part was like a chewy gel. Not one i will try again.
Helen says
Hi Annie! I win some I lose some with this recipe, but thanks for your review anyway. Are you in the USA? Did you use ‘self rising flour’? I’ve recently learned that self raising flour in the UK and Australia and self rising flour in the USA are different. It might be best to use plain flour and add 2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt for every cup. Wasn’t the lovely lemon flavour of the sauce worth more than 1 star though? Only kidding, that’s fine.
Anne says
I made this tonight, it was quick and easy. The pudding part was quite dense like a steamed pudding. There wasn’t a great amount of sauce but it was delicious, nice and tangy. I cooked for about 50 minutes as it just wasn’t browning on the top because there was a layer of sauce, like lemon curd covering it. Perhaps some of the sauce evaporated from the extra cooking time! I’ll definitely make again and cook for the set time as it doesn’t need to be browned on top. The lashings of cashew cream I made to go with it covered it anyway haha. Thanks for this recipe Helen, it reminded me of the chocolate version I used to make years ago 😍
Helen says
Hi Anne, I always appreciate feedback on this recipe so thank you so much for your detailed review. It’s interesting that you thought it was like a steamed pudding – I can see that too! This definitely isn’t one of my best looking recipes so yes it’s fine if the pudding hasn’t browned all that much. I’ll add a note to the recipe notes section – thanks!
As for the chocolate version, I’m working on it, so keep an eye out for a new recipe within the next few weeks 😉
Anne says
Hi Helen,
no worries, it’s always good to get feedback! I’m going to tinker with this recipe (because that’s how I roll) and try and make it gluten free. I usually try and eat gluten free but I had some SR flour in the pantry hence the reason for making this one 😀. Will be looking forward to the chocolate version 🤤.
Helen says
I think you’ll be fine making it gluten free, Anne! Hope you have a good weekend! 🙂
Leah says
As I put in oven I was convinced it would be a disaster, looks so strange! I was wrong. It was Epic. Just what you need on lockdown when you can’t get hold of any eggs. I served with hot custard, the kids thought it was the best thing they ever had in their lives 😂. Thanks for the easy fun delicious recipe.
Helen says
Hello Leah, this is one of those comments that makes my day, so thank you so much for that! I love that your kids loved it so much 🙂 I usually eat this with ice cream, but now you’ve got me craving it with custard! If you enjoyed this, may I also suggest the 6-ingredient gooey Swedish chocolate cake. It’s a bit sugary, but gets rave reviews (and you can always reduce the sugar content a bit!!)
Dawn Rogers (Jomada-Dawn) says
I wanted something simple and not too time-consuming to use up a lemon or two, so I searched for lemon sponge pudding – delighted to have found this recipe. I’m not much of a cook, but this went down a treat! I halved the ingredients, as there were only two of us, and I found that it worked very nicely – and with just 5 ingredients, nothing I wouldn’t normally have in. It came together so easily – no need for a food mixer, the batter mixed smoothly with a spoon. Next time, I’d probably try mixing the batter right in the souffle dish (or would that not work?) – save on washing up!!
A very easy to follow recipe and a very pleasing result – thank you! Bookmarked, and I’ll be checking out your other recipes
Helen says
Hello Dawn, and thank you so much for your kind review. Sounds to me like you are a cook after all because you seem to have some good ideas! I don’t see why you couldn’t mix the sponge mixture right in the dish – why not? Just smooth it down a bit and make it roughly even and I think you’ll be fine! 🙂
Laura says
I made this tonight using gluten free flour and almond milk due to allergies, and limes because our tree is absolutely full of fruit at the moment. Although the gluten free flour produced a different (chewy/spongy) texture than I remember of regular self saucing puddings from my childhood, it was still delicious! The sauce thickened beautifully after resting, I’ll definitely make this again!
Helen says
Hello Laura! Thank you so much for your feedback! I love that you made this gluten free – thank you so much for testing it for me! It’s good to hear that it worked, albeit creating a slightly different texture. Personally I love almond flour and the slight chewiness it can create. The sauce is amazing, isn’t it? I love that it’s like lemon curd on the second day!
Lorna Hodkinson says
So I fancied making a “magic lemon pudding” like the one my mum used to make. I searched the web but I could only find the ones with eggs that you mixed in one and they separate when cooked. I knew they weren’t right as I remember watching my mum pour a watery liquid over the cake mix and her telling me it would magically appear at the bottom as a lemon sauce. AND THEN I FOUND SCRUMMY LANE!!!!!!!!! It looked something like what I remembered, I had all the ingredients so I made one straight away. I was a little sceptical when I took it out of the oven, there was a LOT of sauce, but duly left it (actually for about 40 minutes) then dished some up for me and hubby. He ate in silence, finished, put down his spoon and said “that was frikkin awesome!” OMG I am so grateful to you for posting this recipe! Exactly how I remember it. The sauce was a little thin so I may try a little less water in my next one, but , rest assured, there WILL be a next one. Thank you, thank you, thank you xxxxx
Helen says
Hi Lorna! What a lovely comment to wake up to! You’re right that this is a pretty traditional recipe in Australia. You’re in Australia, right? I do get a few people saying this recipe doesn’t work for them, but I just can’t figure out why. I’ve never managed to make it ‘not’ work! If there are any leftovers, the pudding is pretty tasty the next day too. The sponge soaks the sauce up a bit. I also find it goes thicker – almost like lemon curd.
Do you like chocolate, too? I’m thinking of posting a chocolate version of this soon! In the meantime, I have another very popular and easy recipe on the blog – my 6-ingredient gooey Swedish chocolate cake. It’s also ridiculously easy and yummy!
Thanks again for the review – I really appreciate it! Have a lovely day! 🙂
Lorna says
Hi Helen, I am actually in the UK, it’s probably been 20 years since I last had it but I knew with the first spoonful that this was the right recipe. I use the metric measurements rather than cups, don’t know if it makes much difference, I am also bemused as to how some people have struggled with this. Inthink a chocolate one would be great, especially with some salted caramel ice cream!! Now I’ve found you I’ll be a regular visitor 🥰🥰
Helen says
I tried a chocolate version for the first time yesterday, Lorna. Wasn’t bad! Needs some tweaking but I’ll keep working on it for you 😉
Tamara Oates says
Absolutely amazing
Easy, tasty and turned out exactly as you described
Thank you!
Helen says
Hi Tamara! Thank you so much for the feedback. So glad you agree this is amazing!
Emily says
I made this today and it is really nice! Far easier and looks and tastes just as good as other lemon layer recipes I’ve tried, but less complicated and the sauce was even more lemony. I’m definitely making this again!
Helen says
Hi Emily! Thank you so much for your positive review. I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I made this again at the weekend for the first time in a while and was reminded how deliciously lemony it is, too. I’m so happy you’re going to make it again! Have you tried my 6-ingredient gooey Swedish chocolate cake, too? That’s another super easy and delicious dessert – just for when you’re more in the mood for something chocolaty! Have a lovely day!
RR says
Yum! This was delicious! I added the baking soda and baking powder to the regular flour as I’ve never seen self rising flour in Thailand where I currently live.
Despite the strangeness of how it looked going in and the numerous warnings I gave my husband that it might not be great (just to manage his ecpectations) we really loved it. It’s so tart and sweet and lemony. Yum.
Helen says
Hi! I was so happy to see this comment today because I had JUST made (and eaten!) this recipe again – like literally just put my spoon down when your comment came through. You described it perfectly. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Happy Easter!