Looking for an easy way to add a bright, zesty finish to your favorite baked goods? This lemon powdered sugar glaze is just what you need!

With only a few simple ingredients, this quick glaze comes together in minutes and adds a beautiful glossy finish with a tangy-sweet flavor.

Why you’ll love this lemon powered sugar glaze recipe

This simple lemon glaze comes together in minutes and adds the perfect sweet-tart finish to baked goods like cookies, scones, muffins, or cakes.

Why you’ll love this recipe:

Only 4 ingredients – All you need is powdered sugar, fresh lemon juice, and a pinch of salt. Add some lemon zest for extra flavor!
Perfect balance of sweet and tangy – The powdered sugar gives it sweetness, the lemon adds zingy flavor, and salt balances it all out.
Versatile and easy to drizzle – It has the ideal consistency for drizzling over cooled baked goods.

Ingredients

This simple lemon powdered sugar glaze is quick to make and uses just a few basic ingredients.

Powdered sugar
Fresh lemon juice
Lemon zest
A pinch of salt

How to make the recipe

A simple lemon glaze can transform ordinary baked goods into something truly special.

The secret to this lemon glaze is getting that ideal consistency—not too thick, not too runny—and a balanced lemon flavor that wakes up your taste buds.

Zest the lemon. Before juicing your lemon, zest it until you have about ½ teaspoon of lemon zest. Always zest before juicing, because it’s much easier to remove zest from an unjuiced, whole lemon!
Juice the lemon. Cut the zested lemon in half and squeeze out the juice. You’ll only need about 2 teaspoons for the glaze, but it’s good to have extra on hand in case you need to adjust the consistency.
Place 1 cup of powdered sugar in a small bowl.
Add the lemon zest and a tiny pinch of salt to the powdered sugar. The salt helps balance the sweetness.
Mix. Gradually add the lemon juice to the powdered sugar mixture, ½ teaspoon at a time, stirring after each addition. Keep adding and stirring until the glaze reaches the perfect consistency—smooth, glossy, and able to drizzle easily off a spoon. This usually takes about 2 teaspoons of lemon juice total.
Use. For best results, use your lemon glaze right away while it’s still fresh and at the perfect consistency. Drizzle it over your baked goods and allow it to set before serving.

Tips

Follow these essential tips to ensure your lemon glaze turns out silky smooth and bursting with flavor every time.

Zest before juicing. Always zest your lemon before cutting and juicing it. Once a lemon is juiced, it becomes much more difficult to grate the zest properly. Use a microplane or fine grater to remove just the yellow outer layer of the peel. The oils in the zest contain intense lemon flavor that will make your glaze truly shine.
Add juice in increments. When mixing your glaze, add the lemon juice gradually. Adding the liquid slowly lets you to get the perfect consistency—thick enough to cling to your baked goods but thin enough to drizzle beautifully. Different brands of powdered sugar may absorb liquid differently, so adding juice incrementally gives you control over the final consistency.
Don’t skip the salt. It might seem weird to add salt to a sweet glaze, but salt is the secret ingredient that makes lemon glaze balanced. Salt balances the sweetness of the powdered sugar. Just a small amount is all you need—it won’t make the glaze salty, but it will make all the other flavors pop.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Coffee Cake with Lemon Powdered Sugar Glaze

Conclusion

This lemon powdered sugar glaze is proof that a little zest can go a long way.

With just a few simple ingredients, you can whip up a sweet-tart topping that instantly brightens coffee cakes, muffins, cookies, scones—you name it!

Keep it in your baking toolkit for whenever you need that perfect finishing touch.