This homemade gluten free lemon bundt cake with lemonade icing is full of fresh lemon flavor. And as a bonus, this mouthwatering lemon cake is also dairy-free, so if you need a gluten free and dairy-free birthday cake, this recipe is for you!
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If you have been following for a while, you know our lemon tree is overflowing with lemons. Huge lemons, the size of grapefruits! I have been making lots of delicious recipes with fresh lemon juice, and even a few cocktails like this Tequila Lemonade.
It has been fun to create these gluten free lemon dessert recipes. If you haven't tried any yet, I can't wait to hear about the recipes you make.
Why This Bundt Cake is Great:
- One bite of this gluten free lemon bundt cake and you will want more and more. The fresh lemon flavor shines through!
- This bundt cake is truly a show-stopper dessert and is perfect for entertaining, or even using the batter to make delicious cupcakes for a party.
- This delicious lemon bundt cake recipe is perfect for those who have food allergies because it is dairy-free and soy-free as well.
If you love lemon desserts as much as we do, you will want to check out my Most Popular Gluten Free Lemon Desserts! And if you are looking for a buttery pound cake, check out this Gluten Free Lemon Pound Cake recipe too!
Thanks for this recipe I do appreciate is little oil version. I did double the glaze 😝and used lime zest and blueberry for decorations."
Gioconda M
This is one of my favorite gluten-free flour blends for cookies, cakes, pie crust, biscuits, and muffins! (Do not use this flour blend for yeast recipes.)
Ingredient Notes:
- Almond Flour - Make sure to use almond flour and not almond meal, otherwise, your cake may turn out grainy.
- Gluten Free Flour Blend - I have tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 GF blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours.
- Xanthan Gum - If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
- Baking Soda - Always verify that your baking soda is not expired. Using expired baking soda will affect the rise of the cake.
- Eggs - Use size large eggs. Note, I have not tested any egg replacers in this recipe.
- Lemons - Fresh lemons are best because you can also add lemon zest.
- Non-Dairy Milk - I used almond milk, but you can also use regular milk or another plant-based milk. I do not recommend canned coconut milk. If using oat milk, verify it is made with gluten free oats.
- Oil - Use melted coconut oil or another oil that you like to use for baking. I often will use canola because it is a nice flavorless oil.
- Pure Vanilla Extract - Do not use imitation vanilla
Tips For Sucess:
- To ensure your cake has no grainy texture, let the cake batter sit for 15 minutes before baking it. Some gluten free flour blends tend to have a little grit so this tip will help eliminate this issue.
- To measure your gluten free flour, I recommend using either the spoon method or leveling method. Spoon Method: Use a spoon to fill the measuring cup. Use a knife to level along the top to remove the extra flour. Leveling Method: Put the measuring scoop into the flour and fill. Do not pack the flour. Use a knife to scrape along the top to remove the extra flour.
- Do not overmix your cake batter. It will make your cake dense.
If you are new to cake baking, here is a good write-up of my favorite Kitchen Tools For Baking Cakes. I also have lots of Gluten Free Baking Tips to take your cake to the next level.
Hands down this non-stick spray is amazing. It is totally inexpensive and it will save your gluten free cakes and muffins from sticking!
🔑 Sandi says: Many bundt cake pans have a lot of fine edges and grooves. To prevent this gluten free lemon bundt cake from sticking, I highly recommend spraying the pan with La Tourangelle Spray.
Recipe Step-By-Step Directions:
Step 1: Add your flour, almond flour, baking soda, sugar, and salt to a large
Step 2: Add your eggs, oil, lemon juice, milk, and vanilla to a medium-sized bowl. Whisk the wet ingredients to blend.
Step 3: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix the cake batter until the ingredients are just barely mixed. Let the batter sit for 15 minutes so the rice flour in your flour blend can soften.
Step 4: Bake your bundt cake at 350º F for 50-60 minutes. Note that the actual baking time will vary by bundt cake pan size and depth.
The best way to see if a bundt cake is ready is to insert a toothpick into the cake. If the toothpick comes up clean, the cake is done. If there is batter or crumbs on the toothpick, bake it a little longer!
Step 5: Carefully place a cooling rack under the bundt pan and quickly invert the cake pan so the cake gently drops onto the cooling rack. Let the cake cool.
Step 6: Allow cooling completely then mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice to make the lemonade icing. Drizzle the icing onto the cake and enjoy!
If you love lemon, try my delicious Gluten Free Lemon Brownies recipe too!
Recipe FAQ::
For this lemon cake recipe, you can easily use bottled lemon juice.
Lemon zest is absolutely delicious in desserts and I highly recommend adding some to get lots of lemon flavor into this gluten free lemon bund cake recipe.
I prevent sticking by spraying my bundt pan with coconut oil spray. Many like to grease it with butter.
If you love bundt cakes as much as we do, check out this easy Gluten Free Vanilla Bundt Cake recipe with fresh raspberries.
I made this for my mother's 85th birthday cake. It was a hit with everyone--even those who don't have to be gluten free. It is amazing!"
Kathleen H., Pinterest
More Lemon Dessert Recipes:
- Gluten Free Lemon Curd Coconut Cupcakes - These are stuffed full of delicious lemon curd.
- Gluten Free Lemon Tart - This incredible lemon tart has a flaky crust and delicious sweet-tart lemon custard filling.
- Gluten Free Lemon Donuts - You can make these bite-sized donuts in a donut pan in the oven, or use a mini donut maker.
- Gluten Free Lemon Layer Cake - This is a great birthday cake. This layer cake has lemon curd nestled between each layer.
Reader Adaptations:
📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Lemon Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- ¾ cup almond flour * see note
- 2 cups gluten free flour blend * see note
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups almond milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons oil I used coconut
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice Use four for extra lemon flavor
Icing
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 teaspoons lemon juice add lemon juice slowly until icing is thick and drizzles when you lift the spoon out.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Spray a bundt pan with coconut oil.
- In a large bowl, add dry ingredients and whisk to blend.
- In a small bowl, add wet ingredients and whisk to blend.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just barely mixed.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes. Bake time may vary depending on the size of the bundt cake pan you use.
- To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, it is done baking. If you see batter or crumbs, the cake needs to bake longer.
- Allow cake to cool.
- Prepare icing and drizzle over cool cake.
Notes
- I have tested this recipe with King Arthur Measure for Measure GF and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 GF blend. That doesn't mean others will not work, I just have not tested other flours.
- If your gluten free flour blend doesn’t contain Xanthan Gum or Guar Gum, please add 1 teaspoon.
- I highly suggest using almond flour and not almond meal. Almond meal is more coarse and will make your donuts grainy.
- Other dairy-free kinds of milk will work but I do not recommend canned coconut milk.
- Note, this cake also makes incredible cupcakes or sheet cake.
- This cake will keep up to 4 days in an air-tight container, or up to 4 months in the freezer.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn't test, you may need to adjust your moisture levels in your baked goods.
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
This post was updated from an old July 2017 post with more recipe details.
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Lucy
I want to make this delicious looking gluten free lemon cake. I don’t have a regular size Bundt pan but I do have a pan that makes smaller bundt cakes (12 small Bundt cakes) Do you have any idea how long I would need to bake them?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Lucy, Can you tell me the measurements of the pans, including the depth?
Denise
This is not dairy free. Butter is a milk product. This would be dangerous for someone with a true dairy allergy.
Sandi Gaertner
There is no butter in the recipe, but you are right, I inadvertently left a photo of butter in an ingredient photo. Given there was no butter listed in the recipe or directions, I hope you gave this cake a try.
Jeanne E Vollmann
Can I substitute maple syrup or honey for the sugar?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Jeanne, I have not tested using a liquid sweetener. It will change the wet dry ingredient ratio and without testing this, I do not know how this cake would turn out.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Kelle, I am sorry it didn't work for you. I have not tested the gluten free flour blend you used. I looked it up and it is almost all starch. "Brown Rice Flour, Tapioca Starch, White Rice Flour, Potato Starch, Sorghum Flour, Arrowroot Starch, Guar Gum, Sweet Rice Flour, Rice Bran." Starchy flour blends don't really work in my recipes. I am not sure why but I am pretty sure this is why my recipe didn't work. I do hope you can try it again with a flour I tested the recipe with.
Sheri Maloney
What size bundt pan is suggested? This sounds perfect for Easter!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Sheri, I have a 9 inch bundt pan (by Wilton).
Hillary Anthony
Can I successfully substitute rice flour for the almond flour?
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Hillary, I do not think rice flour would sub well. It absorbs a lot more moisture than almond flour. Are you trying to make the cake nut-free? If so omit the almond flour and add 1/3 cup additional gluten free flour blend.