Y’all my lemon loaf cake puts the Starbucks one to shame! Plus you can make it without a stand mixer or hand mixer. Just a little elbow grease and you can mix this up in a flash. I keep it super moist and also a bit light because I use oil and Greek yogurt instead of butter. And the lemon flavor is over the top because I add in lemon juice, zest and extract. Pucker up boos and get into it.
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How to Make Lemon Loaf Cake
Step 1: Mix the Cake Batter
- Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl.
- Whisk them together until mixed.
- Combine the eggs, sugar, zest, juice, oil, yogurt, and extracts in a large bowl.
- Whisk everything together until well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
- Stir with a whisk until a thick batter forms. Do not over-mix.
Step 2: Bake It
- Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan.
- Bake until the cake is golden brown on top and it starts to pull away from the sides of the pan. You can also check with a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. It should take about 50-55 minutes to cook. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes and then remove to finish cooling.
Step 3: Mix the Lemon Glaze and Top Your Lemon Loaf
- Whisk together the confectioners’ sugar, zest, juice, and milk in a bowl until smooth.
- Pour the glaze over the cake once completely cooled. Let glaze set, slice, and enjoy!
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Lemon Loaf Cake Recipe
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I’ll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- ¾ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt plain
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar sifted
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Place rack in the middle position. Prep a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick baking spray.
- In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda and whisk together.
- In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, zest, juice, oil, yogurt, and extracts and whisk together until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients into wet ingredients and whisk together until a thick batter forms. Do not overmix.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until cake is golden brown, starts to pull away from the sides of the pan, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50-55 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove from pan to continue cooling, about 30 minutes.
- Whisk together confectioners’ sugar, zest, juice, and milk until smooth. Pour over cake once completely cooled. Let glaze set, slice, and enjoy!
Notes
Allow it to cool completely and then wrap it in plastic wrap or aluminum foil, or store it in an airtight container. How long will lemon loaf cake last?
Store your cake at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerate for up to a week. Can I freeze lemon cake?
Yep, you sure can! For best results, I recommend freezing the cake before you add the glaze.
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Zesting Your Lemon: Avoid the white pith that lies right under the surface of the yellow outside. It is too bitter and doesn’t taste great.
- Avoid Mixing Too Much: Too much mixing of the dry ingredients and your loaf may end up dense and tough.
- Cool the Cake: If the cake is warm, the glaze will slide right off or won’t set properly.
Recipe Help
I have made a version of this lemon cake using olive oil. My only caution is that olive oil has a very distinct flavor which does distract from the lemon flavor.
Yep! You can even enjoy it plain with just a powdered sugar dusting or it tastes great with basic buttercream frosting or cream cheese frosting.
More Favorite Lemon Cake Recipes
- Lemon Pound Cake
- Meyer Lemon Olive Oil Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Lemon Layer Cake
- Best Lemon Cupcakes
*Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating and leave comments below!* Post a photo of how your version of the recipe came out on Instagram (using #grandbabycakes)!!
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Oh this looks amazing!!!! Can I substitute Coconut Oil for the Olive Oil?? I also am Gluten Free so will replace the regular flour with Better Batter GF flour mix!! I LOVE LEMON CAKE!!
Hi Jeanne,
I haven’t tried coconut oil instead but I would definitely try it out since coconut oil is usually a great substitute and see how it works. I also see no problem why you can’t sub your favorite flour for the regular one.
Hi, Jeanne and Jocelyn: I used coconut oil and made this for the first time this past week and I absolutely love it. I am also allergic to milk, so I substituted cashew yogurt (cashew cream) for the Greek yogurt and it still turned out awesome. I was very happy. AND, I did NOT tell my friends what substitutes I had made or the original healthier version you gave us and they were amazed that I could cook so well! Thanks, Jocelyn.
Sharon
Hooray Sharon! I am so glad that the substitutions worked out so well for you. That is so exciting!
Amazing…watching sweet intake but I have to thank you for this delightful cake. I used coconut Greek yogurt & it blended nicely with the lemon. Now if I can keep my daughter from eating it all I may have a piece for tomorrow.
I must try this with coconut Greek yogurt. I loved that you blended the flavors!!! Thank you so much for your warm comment.
how is this healthy?
This looks gorgeous! I’ve never baked with olive oil, but am going to have to try this one. I love lemon bread/cake and this looks so moist.
Wow thank you so much! It is super moist!!
I am so wanting to make this recipe!! I just don’t think it will turn out as beautiful as your picture 🙂 I was looking for an alternative to those mass-produced lemon cakes, because I just love lemon cake!
regards,
irene of Cash Advance Business
Hi Jocelyn,
I made this tonight and it was delicious! My boyfriend and I thought it was so good, we ate the whole loaf..opps.
However, I did substitute the flour for whole-wheat flour, and the eggs for egg whites.. and it turned out tasting lovely. Thank you for the recipe!
Thanks so much Kelsey! This is definitely one of my fave cakes!
This looks so light and delicious! And I just love the addition of olive oil and greek yogurt. A no-guilt treat for sure 🙂
Thanks so much!!
Your cake looks so delicious, I love tart lemony things! That’s great that’s it a little lighter too, I should probably start doing that with my desserts!
I definitely want to try more lighter recipes in the future too. It is great to encourage people that it’s ok to still have something sweet.
Hi Jocelyn – I need a healthy recipe this time of year! This looks so good, I can’t believe it is healthy! Can’t wait to try it
Thanks so much! I couldn’t believe it was healthy either after consuming the whole thing 😉
It looks so moist and delicious! I want to have a big thick slice of this! And that it’s healthy…good, I want an extra slice 🙂
Thanks so much Averie! I think that’s my problem too. I always want an extra slice of whatever is healthy!