This Lemon Loaf is made with a lemon cake topped with a lemon glaze. Try my Lemon Pound Cake for another delicious cake with a rich, lemony flavor.
Lemon Loaf
If you are craving a refreshing piece of cake, this is the loaf to make! The cake starts with a moist lemon cake. The cake is then topped with an easy-to-make sweet lemon glaze. It is delicious with a cup of coffee or as an afternoon snack. When life gives you lemons, make a lemon loaf!
Lemon Loaf Ingredients
There are two parts to this recipe–the lemon cake and the lemon glaze.
Eggs: Room-temperature eggs will give you the best results when baking this cake.
Sour Cream: When sour cream is added to cakes, it makes them richer and adds fat for a creamier cake.
Lemon Flavor: I used the zest of a lemon, lemon juice, and lemon extract to bring out the lemon flavor in the loaf.
Flour: Use all-purpose flour in this recipe.
How to Make Lemon Loaf
This flavorful loaf is a must-make if you love lemon-flavored desserts and treats. It’s easy to put together and get baked to enjoy. To get started, preheat the oven and grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan. Set the pan aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, add the room temperature eggs, sugar, sour cream, lemon zest, and lemon extract. Beat until the mixture is creamy. Then, slowly add the oil.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet mixture and mix just until combined. A few lumps are okay. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 55-60 minutes. The loaf is done when an inserted toothpick comes out with a few crumbs, but no wet batter. Allow the cake to cool completely before adding the glaze.
Lemon Glaze
This icing (literally) on this loaf is the sweet lemon glaze. Once the lemon loaf has cooled, drizzle the glaze over the cake. To make the glaze, simply combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and whisk until smooth. Once you have your desired consistency with the glaze, pour it over the cooled cake and enjoy!
How to Store Lemon Loaf
This lemon cake should be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for 4-5 days. To freeze the loaf, place the cooled, frosted cake in the freezer for a couple of hours. Once frozen, wrap the cake first in plastic wrap. Then, wrap it in aluminum foil. Place in a freezer-safe container, labeled and dated, for up to six months.
Looking for More Lemon-Flavored Desserts?
Lemon Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
This amazing Lemon Loaf is delicious Lemon cake topped with a lemon glaze.
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounces sour cream, room temperature
- 2 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1-2 teaspoons lemon extract
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
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Preheat oven to 350°F and grease an 8½ x 4½-inch loaf pan.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, add eggs, sugar, sour cream, lemon zest, lemon juice, and lemon extract and beat until creamy. Slowly drizzle in oil.
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In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
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Add flour mixture to the wet mixture and mix until just combined. (Some lumps are okay.)
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Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs.
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Allow the cake to cool completely (about 30 minutes).
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In a medium bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and whisk until smooth.
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Pour the glaze over the cooled cake and serve.
***The ingredients in this recipe have been updated based on feedback. The original recipe called for two full tablespoons of lemon extract. If you like a rich lemony flavor, you can still try it this way. We tested with McCormick lemon extract with great results. However, some have reported that more concentrated extracts (such as Watkins) were too much for their liking.
This recipe was found on Tiktok from @tasteandtraveler. She does not give credit for the recipe she shares, but it is directly from Averi Cooks, Best Lemon Loaf.
It’s Easter morning & I’m preparing to make this lemon loaf recipe. Your recipe calls for two TABLESPOONS of lemon extract? I believe it’s a typo so I’ll find another version of this recipe to try.
It’s correct. 🙂 Use can start with 1 tablespoon, taste-test your batter, and add the other if you’d like. But yes, the recipe is tested and correct. 🙂
Yummm. I made it for Easter and it was a hit.
I made your Lemon Loaf today as a layer cake using two 6 inch round pans. Other than that I followed the recipe closely. My small pans baked in about 35 minutes. I did use lemon juice as required and two teaspoons of lemon extract. Oh, I forgot to mention my eggs were extra large. My cake had a nice rise, and a délicate crumb texture. I plan to tort the layers and will fill them with lemon curd. The center one will have strawberry filling. I will frost the cake with a lemon butter cream. After leveling the tops of each layer, I sampled the cake and found it to be tender, moist, and not too heavy. Delicious! Just what I was looking for. And, I think this is just the right sized cake for a party especially if you’re serving several other desserts.
Hi Amandaq and everyone,
It’s very hard for me to get sour cream ! Is there a substitute I can use please? Can I use buttermilk instead? Thanks in advance !
Hi, Juliana! I work with iambaker and am happy to help with questions. We have not tried a substitute for sour cream in this recipe, but I would recommend using Greek yogurt. However, I can’t speak for the effectiveness of it in this recipe. If you do try it, please let us know how the lemon loaf turns out. I hope this helps, and have a great day!
I love everything lemon!!! Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes 😊.
I really appreciate, you written well and helpful blog for those regarding recipe. I will follow and share these recipe related blogs.
Thank you for your recipes, Amanda! They come out perfect every time. I tried a recipe from another website that used the same ingredients as you, except for sour cream (buttermilk was used) and 3 cups of flour (instead of 1.5 cups). The lemon loaf turned out heavy and dry. I wonder if these ingredients caused it. Anyway, ill try this lemon loaf recipe soon. Thanks again!
Could you use milk instead of oil with poppyseed in it to make it a lemon poppyseed loaf.
I have not tested this recipe with that substitution so can’t speak to its effectiveness.