Lemon Raspberry Cake Loaf
Enjoy a slice of Lemon Raspberry Cake Loaf topped with keto cream cheese frosting for the perfect light spring recipe!
Guests will never believe that this lemon loaf cake is both gluten-free and low-carb! The gluten-free sweet bread is packed with citrus and fresh raspberries, then topped with a creamy keto frosting you will love. It makes an amazing breakfast with a cup of coffee or a quick little dessert right before bed.
We use a blend of almond flour and coconut flour to keep this delicious grain-free bread fluffy and light. Monk fruit or your favorite sugar substitute will keep this low-carb and keto-friendly, only 3 net carbs per slice! It’s similar to that popular Starbucks lemon loaf, just with the addition of fresh raspberries and no added sugar, grains, or preservatives.
Need more lemon desserts? You have to try our Lemon Pie, these Lemon Bars, and this No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake!
Ingredients
- Butter (room temperature) and Monk Fruit Sweetener – Any sweetener will do EXCEPT powdered sugar. Use the granular sweetener if you want the fruity flavors to pop. Golden sweetener is best if you prefer the more molassas-like flavor similar to cane sugar. If you want the deepest, sweetest flavor, use the brown sugar sweetener.
- Almond Flour and Coconut Flour – The blend is very important to achieving the right texture.
- Baking Powder, Baking Soda, and Salt – These provide lift that help make your cake loaf beautifully airy.
- Eggs, Sour Cream, and Vanilla – Binders and flavor makers! I have not tried this with any substitutes.
- Raspberries and Lemon – These fruits brighten up the flavor and make it perfect for spring and summer brunches. You will need actual lemon as we use the zest for the strongest lemon flavor. You do not want to use frozen berries as the extra water content will make it difficult to get the right texture.
- For the keto icing, you will need Cream Cheese, Lemon, and Confectioner’s (Powdered) Monk Fruit
How do you make a lemon loaf cake?
This amazing keto dessert recipe requires an oven, a 9×5 loaf pan lined with parchment paper and cooking oil, an electric mixer or stand mixer, and four mixing bowls.
Prep materials and ingredients
Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees F. Line your loaf pan with parchment paper, then lightly spray with cooking oil. Set aside and prep your four mixing bowls:
- Bowl 1: Monk fruit sweetener and butter
- Bowl 2: Almond flour, coconut flour, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt (stir to combine)
- Bowl 3: Eggs, vanilla extract, and sour cream (whisk to combine)
- Bowl 4: Confectioner’s monk fruit, lemon zest, lemon juice, and cream cheese
Make the bread
With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sweetener in Bowl #1 until nice and fluffy. This took about 2 minutes for me. Add the wet ingredients from Bowl #3 into Bowl #1 and beat in 30-second increments. When combined with no lumps, pour in the dry ingredients (Bowl #2) and beat in 30-second increments until smooth.
Finally, fold in the raspberries, then pour your batter into your prepared baking dish. Bake 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out cleanly from the center of the loaf.
Add the frosting
While the lemon raspberry cake is baking, use an electric mixer to combine the icing ingredients in Bowl #4 and beat until smooth. Taste, then add additional cream cheese, lemon, or sweetener based on your own personal preference. I like more of a thinner lemon glaze, but adding more cream cheese will create a thicker icing.
Once it’s done, let the cake cool completely, then drizzle the lemon frosting on top.
What to serve with lemon raspberry cake loaf
I love this recipe with a hot cup of coffee as a little sweet snack or breakfast! If you are serving this at brunch, I recommend pairing it with a good savory quiche, some cheesecake stuffed strawberries. You could have some raspberry syrup, strawberry sauce, or lemon curd on the side for guests to customize how they like.
Suggestions and Substitutions
- Try with other citrus fruits! Since we don’t use lemon extract and instead use fresh lemon juice and zest, you could easily swap those for limes, grapefruit, blood oranges, etc.
- Try different berries. You could use blueberries, blackberries, even sliced strawberries. Just make sure they are in small, bite-sized pieces so they have enough time to soften. Avoid frozen berries as the water content changes the wet-to-dry ratio in the recipe and messes with your baking time.
- Prevent too much browning. Almond flour often browns quicker than all-purpose flour, so sometimes it can create a very crunchy topping if you aren’t careful. If you notice yours is browning quickly, you may want to loosely cover it with aluminum foil to protect it.
- Cool the cake before icing it. Pouring a cream cheese glaze onto a hot loaf will cause it to melt and separate, leading to a dense and soggy cake bottom and no frosting on top.
Storage
This lemon loaf cake is best stored in a tightly sealed container in a cool area. During the Summer months or in hotter climates, it may be best to refrigerate your lemon raspberry loaf to prevent the cream cheese frosting from melting. The gluten-free cake is generally safe for up to 3 days on the counter or 5 days in the fridge. I have not tried freezing this and cannot predict how it would hold up.
More Fruity Recipes
- Strawberry Cheesecake Jars
- Blackberry Brie Bites
- Blueberry Crumble Bars
- Apple Cinnamon Cupcakes
- Raspberry Cheesecake
Get the Recipe: Lemon Raspberry Cake Loaf
Ingredients
For the Lemon Raspberry Cake Loaf
- 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup brown sugar, golden, or classic monk fruit sweetener
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest, about 1 lemon
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
For the Keto Cream Cheese Glaze
- 1/2 cup confectioners Monkfruit sweetener
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 ounce cream cheese, for a more intense cream cheese flavor or thicker glaze you can increase the cream cheese 1 ounce at a time until it reaches your desired flavor and consistency
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a 9×5 loaf pan with parchment paper, lightly spray with cooking oil and set aside.
- With an electric mixer cream the monkfruit sweeter and butter until fluffy in a large mixing bowl, this takes about 2 minutes.
- In another bowl combine the almond flour, coconut flour, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda and salt, until blended.
- In a third bowl combine the eggs, vanilla extract and sour cream and blend until there are no lumps.
- Add the egg and sour cream mixture to the butter sugar mixture and beat with an electric mixer in 30 second increments. When combined, pour in the flour mixture and beat in 30 second increments until smooth.
- Fold in the raspberries.
- Pour the batter in the prepared baking dish and bake 45-50 minutes until a toothpick comes out cleanly.*
- Allow the bread to cool completely before adding the glaze.
- For the glaze: using an electric mixer combine the confectioners Monkfruit sweetener, zest, juice and cream cheese and beat until smooth. Taste and add additional ingredients based on your personal preference.
