Moist 7Up Cream Cheese Pound Cake (with Lemon Lime Glaze)

Name: 7Up Pound Cake
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 75 min
Total time: 100 min
Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups Cake Flour; 1/2 tsp Baking Powder; 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt; 1 cup Salted Butter ((room temperature)); 8 oz Cream Cheese ((room temperature)); 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil; 2 3/4 cups Sugar; 1 tbsp Lime Zest; 5 large Eggs ((room temperature)); 1 tbsp Butter Vanilla Emulsion ((or vanilla extract)); 2 1/2 tsp Lemon Emulsion ((or lemon extract)); 1/2 tsp Almond Extract; 3/4 cup 7-Up ((room temperature)); 1/3 cup Heavy Cream; 2 tbsp Sour Cream; 4 oz Cream Cheese; 2 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar; 2 tbsp Salted Butter ((melted)); 2 tbsp Lemon Juice; 1 tbsp Lime Juice; 1 tbsp Whole Milk ((more if you prefer a looser consistency))

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This 7UP Pound Cake recipe is bright, buttery, and packed with lemon lime flavor. It’s topped with a delicious cream cheese glaze that drips over every curve of the cake like pure sunshine. This pound cake recipe is melt-in-your-mouth delicious and perfect for any occasion!
If you love this classic pound cake recipe, make my lemon buttermilk pound cake and cream cheese pound cake!

7up pound cake on a cake stand coated in lemon lime glaze.

This 7UP Cream Cheese Pound Cake is that pound cake. It’s rich, velvety, and has a citrusy sparkle that wakes your taste buds right up.

The cream cheese brings all the lush, custardy vibes while the 7UP keeps the crumb light, tight, and so. freaking. tender.

Every slice has those golden edges, a nice buttery center, the whole thing singing with lemon-lime goodness. This is the kind of cake your grandma would call “a good cake,” and you already know that’s the highest compliment.

It bakes up beautifully, slices like a dream, and stays moist for days (if it lasts that long).

7-Up Pound Cake Ingredients
Substitutions and Variations
How To Make 7 Up Pound Cake
Pro Baking Tips
Recipe FAQs
More Pound Cake Recipes

7-Up Pound Cake Ingredients

7up pound cake on top of a cake stand covered in lemon lime glaze.

(full list of ingredients can be found in the recipe card)

Salted Butter gives the cake its rich, buttery flavor, creates tenderness, and helps build that fine, velvety crumb.
Cream Cheese creates a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture with subtle tang and extra moisture that keeps the cake soft for days. No dry cake here!
Sugar sweetens the cake and aerates the batter when creamed with butter, giving the cake lift and a light, velvety texture. When creamed properly, sugar traps air in the fat, giving your pound cake lift and that dreamy texture instead of being heavy and tight.
Large Eggs bind the ingredients together, add structure, and provide richness so the cake holds up to all that moisture.
Lemon Extract and Almond Extract brightens the flavor and enhances the citrusy notes from the 7UP. Together, they makes the flavors of this 7-up cake pop.
Vanilla Butter Emulsion adds a rich, bakery-style depth of flavor that rounds out the sweetness.
Cake Flour is a low protein, superfine flour that keeps the crumb soft and tender.
Baking Powder gives a gentle lift for that perfect rise without compromising the pound cake texture. Traditional pound cakes don’t use a leavening agent, however, it creates a beautifully airy texture and prevents the cake from being too dense.
7UP Soda adds lightness from carbonation and enhances the lemon-lime flavor while keeping the cake moist.
Heavy Cream and Sour Cream adds richness and creaminess for a silky, luxurious texture, keeping the cake moist and plush. Use leftovers and make my whipping cream pound cake and eggnog pound cake.

Substitutions and Variations

You can use any lemon-lime soda, it doesn’t have to be 7-up specifically!
If you prefer to use unsalted butter, feel free to do so – just up the kosher salt to 1 tsp instead of 1/2.
No vanilla butter emulsion? Use vanilla extract instead.
If you don’t have any limes for lime zest, you can use lemon zest instead.
Feel free to experiment with glazes. I like a cream cheese glaze but you can also use a butter based glaze like how I did with my buttermilk pound cake.

How To Make 7 Up Pound Cake

dry ingredients whisked together in a bowl.

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine cake flour, baking powder, and kosher salt. Whisk together and set aside.

butter, cream cheese, sugar, and oil creamed together in a bowl.

Step 2: Add room temperature butter, cream cheese, vegetable oil, sugar, and lime zest to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream together on medium speed for 7-8 minutes, until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and reduce the mixer speed to low speed. Begin adding eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl, ensuring that everything is mixed together and smooth.

heavy cream, 7up, and extracts mixed together in a bowl.

Step 3: In a separate bowl, combine 7-up soda, heavy cream, sour cream, lemon extract, vanilla emulsion (or vanilla extract), and almond extract. Gently whisk together until smooth.

7up pound cake batter mixed together in a bowl.

Step 4: Add half of the dry ingredients to the stand mixer bowl and mix together until smooth, about 20 seconds. Then add in the soda mixture and mix until combined. Add the remainder of the dry ingredients and mix until smooth, about 20 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl once more ensuring the batter is combined.

Step 5: Spray a 15-cup bundt pan or tube pan with nonstick baking spray (like baker’s joy), then pour the cake batter into the pan. Smooth into an even layer, then bake for for 1 hour and 15-25 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn over onto a wire rack to cool completely.

7up pound cake on a cake stand with slices next to it on plates.

Step 6: While the cake is cooling, make the lemon lime glaze. Add cream cheese to a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, melted butter, lemon juice, lime juice, and milk. Pour the glaze on top of the cooled cake and enjoy!

Pro Baking Tips

Cream until it’s truly fluffy. Don’t rush this part! Beat the butter, cream cheese, oil, sugar, and lime zest for a full 6 to 8 minutes. It should look pale and airy. That long creaming time is what gives your pound cake its signature plush texture and fine crumb.

Use room temperature ingredients. Cold butter or eggs will cause your batter to curdle or bake unevenly. Let everything – I’m talking butter, cream cheese, eggs, sour cream, and even 7U, sit out until it’s at room temp before you start. At least 1 hour depending on the temperature of your house.

Measure flour the right way. Always spoon and level your flour (or better yet, weigh it). Too much flour is the #1 reason pound cakes turn out dry.

Grease every crevice of your Bundt or tube pan. Use a nonstick baking spray with flour (like Baker’s Joy) and make sure to get every curve and ridge. You can even dust it lightly with extra flour afterward for good measure.

Don’t rush the cooling process. Let the cake rest for 10 minutes in the pan before inverting, any sooner and it might tear. Then cool completely before adding syrup or glaze to lock in moisture instead of melting it away.

Recipe FAQs

Can I use all-purpose flour instead of cake flour?

You can, but the texture will be a little denser and less tender. Cake flour gives this pound cake that tight, velvety crumb that makes it melt in your mouth. If you only have all-purpose, remove 2 tablespoons of flour per cup and replace with cornstarch for a quick DIY cake flour.

Why do I need cream cheese and butter?

The combo adds both richness and structure. Butter gives that classic buttery flavor, while cream cheese adds moisture and a subtle tang that keeps the cake soft for days.

Do I really need to cream the butter mixture for 7–8 minutes?

Yes! That’s where the magic happens. The long creaming time incorporates air, helping the cake rise tall and light instead of dense.

Can I use diet or zero-sugar 7UP?

Stick with the original. The sugar and carbonation in regular 7UP both affect the texture and lift of the cake. Diet versions won’t give you the same tender crumb.

How do I store 7UP pound cake?

Wrap it tightly or store it in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to a week. Let it come back to room temperature before serving so the texture softens again.