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Baked goods

Citrónová babeta: Slovak lemon sponge cake

Name: Citrónová babeta: Slovak lemon sponge cake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 16 servings
Ingredients: 4 Eggs; 250 g Powdered sugar; 100 ml Vegetable oil (plus a little for greasing); 120 ml Lemon juice (from 2 lemons); 1 Lemon zest (grated from 1 lemon); 250 g All-purpose flour; 1/2 packet Baking powder; 1 pinch Salt; 1 tbsp Coarse wheat flour (semolina-like) (for dusting the pan)

A fluffy lemon cake with eggs, powdered sugar, oil, lemon juice and zest, baked in a small pan at 170°C (340°F) for 30 minutes. Serves 16.

Vegetarian · Translated from Slovak · October 24, 2026

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Recipe at a glance

Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Temperature: 170 °C (340 °F)
Servings: 16 servings
Difficulty: Easy

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Citrónová babeta is a simple, fluffy Slovak cake made with the juice of two lemons and grated lemon zest. The yolks are beaten with half the sugar until thick and pale, then the oil and lemon juice are slowly poured in. Finally, the flour and egg whites beaten with the remaining sugar are folded in. The cake bakes in a small pan for about half an hour.

Ingredients

16 servings

Eggs 4
Powdered sugar 250 g
Vegetable oil (plus a little for greasing) 100 ml
Lemon juice (from 2 lemons) 120 ml
Lemon zest (grated from 1 lemon) 1
All-purpose flour 250 g
Baking powder 1/2 packet
Salt 1 pinch
Coarse wheat flour (semolina-like) (for dusting the pan) 1 tbsp

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Instructions

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Prepare the pan
Grease a small baking pan, about 32 × 22 cm, with oil and dust with coarse wheat flour. Preheat the oven to 170°C (340°F).
Beat the yolks and add the lemon juice
Separate the eggs. Beat the yolks with half the powdered sugar until thick and pale. With the mixer running, slowly pour in the oil and lemon juice.
Fold in the flour and beaten egg whites
Mix the flour with the baking powder, then use a wooden spoon to fold it into the yolk mixture along with the lemon zest. Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt and the remaining sugar until stiff peaks form, then gently fold them into the batter.
Bake
Pour the batter into the pan and bake for about 30 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center comes out dry.
Recipe by: Danula Vašíčková

Tip: Lemons vary in juiciness, so measure the juice—you need about 120 ml for the batter. Pour in the oil and juice slowly to keep the beaten yolk mixture from curdling.

Nutrition facts

Approximate values per serving, calculated from the ingredients

Energy: 191 kcal
Protein: 3.3 g
Carbohydrates: 29 g
of which sugars: 16 g
Fat: 7.1 g
of which saturates: 1.0 g
Fiber: 0.5 g
Salt: 0.1 g

Calculated from the raw ingredients, without frying oil. Where an amount is “to taste”, typical amounts are used. Food composition: USDA FoodData Central and product labels.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Citrónová babeta – nadýchaný koláč s citrónovou šťavou