I don’t know about you guys, but I am a huge fan of lemon. From lemon curd, lemon bars, lemon bread, to lemon meringue pie, I love it all. So, I am on a journey to recreate my favorite lemon baked goods into a gluten-free version, starting with this amazing gluten-free lemon loaf cake. This lemon loaf cake is one of my favorite loaf cakes I've ever done, the loaf itself is perfectly soft, the lemon flavor stands out so well, and the hardened glaze ties everything together perfectly with it tart lemon flavor.
After turning my oven on to 325 F I gathered all of my ingredients, and started melting my butter. While the butter was melting, I started grating my lemons, then I juiced them. After that, I poured my melted butter into a large bowl and added the sugar to it. I mixed the butter and sugar together for a couple of minutes until it started to become slightly fluffy. I used a whisk and did it by hand, but when I use my mixer, I get the same result. I do this with everything I bake, and I find that it helps to make the texture of whatever I'm making a little bit fluffier. Once I had the perfect consistency, I added the three eggs and mixed those until well combined. Then I added the lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla to the mixture. I made sure to mix it all together until it was completely combined. My next step was to add the sour cream, which I also mixed thoroughly, then I added the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. It is very important to first fold the flour into the mixture, and then mix it. This helps to ensure that there are no lumps. I mix it until there are no lumps, and the dough is nice and smooth.
I go ahead and grease my loaf pan with some oil, or line it with parchment paper. I usually prefer using the parchment paper, but oiling the bread pan works well too. I poured the dough into the loaf pan, and smoothed out the top. I put it in the oven, and it took about an hour to bake. I checked to see if the loaf cake was done by inserting a knife into the middle. When it came out clean, I removed the loaf cake from the oven and left it to cool. I first let it cool in the loaf pan, then I took it out and put it onto my cooling rack. While the cake was cooling, I started working on the glaze. I mixed together the powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl. I didn’t do it this time, but I do add some lemon zest to my lemon glazes sometimes if I want to make it more tart. I waited until the cake was completely cooled before drizzling the glaze over the top. Once the glaze was hardened, I served the cake. I like to cut off pieces one at a time instead of cutting the cake all at once. To store, I either put it in a container or wrap it in tinfoil.
Loaf Cake:
½ cup unsalted melted butter
1 cup white sugar
3 large eggs
2 tbsp lemon zest
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup gluten-free all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
⅓ cup sour cream
Lemon Glaze:
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice + extra if needed
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325 F and grease a loaf pan.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat the butter and sugar until it becomes slightly fluffy. You can use a mixer, or a whisk.
Add the three eggs to the mixture, and mix until well combined.
Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla, and mix until everything is completely combined.
Fold in the sour cream, then add the salt, baking soda, baking powder, and flour. Mix until there are no lumps of flour.
Pour the mixture into the loaf pan, you can use parchment paper in the loaf pan before you pour it in, or you can just grease the pan.
Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the middle of the loaf cake comes out clean.
When the cake is done, let it cool completely before glazing it.
While the cake is cooling, mix the ingredients for the glaze together. The glaze should be thick enough to where it doesn’t run off the cake completely.
When the cake is cool, pour the glaze onto the bread with a spoon. Let the glaze harden before serving.
Put the cake in a container, or wrap it with something to store.
Enjoy!!