If you love lemon desserts as I do, this is a must-try recipe! Picture a moist Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Seed Cake with a Lemonade Icing. It is perfect with a cup of coffee, tea, or for dessert!
One bite and you will be hooked on this easy to make dessert. You can also do what I like to do, make a double batch and freeze one gluten free lemon loaf for another time. And a bonus, this gluten free dessert is also dairy-free!!
You may also like my Top Ten Gluten Free Lemon Desserts recipe roundup. And if you love pound cake...OMG you need to try this Gluten Free Lemon Pound Cake recipe too!
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With this new recipe, you will notice I am baking a lot more quick bread types of loaves. They are perfect for snacking!
If you are a big make-ahead baker, you may also like this Gluten Free Pumpkin Bread or this Gluten Free Matcha Green Tea Banana Bread.
Loaf, Bread, or Cake...what do you call it?
Do you ever wonder what to call these sweetbreads? I always get confused if something is a loaf, a bread, or a cake. This lemon poppy seed recipe is definitely sweet enough to be a dessert so maybe bread isn't the right word here. You can even make this into gluten free lemon poppy seed muffins!
You can call this gluten free lemon poppy seed cake recipe anything you like, perhaps the bigger decision is what lemon poppy seed cake topping is best :-).
For this recipe, I created a simple lemonade icing. You don't need any topping if you don't want your poppy seed loaf to be too sweet.
Instructions:
Add the dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk to blend. In a separate bowl, add the wet ingredients and mix well.
Gluten Free Flours
I have tested three gluten free flour blends in this recipe. I liked King Arthur Gluten Free Measure for Measure and Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour Blend. This doesn't mean other blends won't work, I just haven't tested any others. Try to avoid flour blends that are high in starch.
As always, if your blend does not contain Xanthan Gum, you will need to add 1 teaspoon.
Pour the wet ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix. Don't over mix because this will make your poppy seed cake not as fluffy!
Bake It
Next, pour the batter into a greased bread loaf tin and bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes, or until done.
You can test if your gluten free loaf is done by inserting a toothpick into the middle of the cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, it is finished baking!
Fun toppings:
- Lemon glaze (a much runnier version of my lemonade icing, you want the lemon juice and sugar to absorb into your cake.
- Vanilla frosting
- Cream cheese frosting
If you love lemon, here are even more delicious gluten Free lemon desserts:
- This Gluten Free Lemon Layer Cake is the ultimate lemon cake recipe...it makes a great birthday cake.
- The lemon filling in this Gluten Free Lemon Tart is absolutely delicious.
- Love donuts? These Gluten Free Dairy Free Lemon Donuts are going to become your favorite!
Can you omit the poppy seeds?
The poppy seeds are completely optional so feel free to omit the poppy seeds if you don't have them on-hand.
Can you freeze this cake?
You can easily freeze this lemon loaf cake. To freeze it, wrap the cooled loaf in plastic wrap tightly. Next, wrap it in foil. Place the bundle into a freezer bag. It will keep about 3 months in the freezer.
If you love cakes baked in loaf tins, you will also love this gluten free peach cake recipe.
Tools:
- An easy to use lemon juicer makes getting fresh lemon juice a breeze!
- A simple zester can get the right amount of zest, and not the white bitter pith.
Next, eat and enjoy!
📋 Recipe
Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
A moist and delicious gluten free lemon poppy seed cake.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 2 tablespoons almond milk
For Icing:
- 2/3 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice, feel free to adjust this if you want your icing thicker or runnier.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Grease a bread loaf pan with coconut oil or butter.
- In a large bowl, add all dry ingredients and whisk to blend.
- In a smaller bowl, add all wet ingredients, including zest and whisk to mix.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix. Don't over mix or your cake will not be as light and fluffy.
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until done. Insert a toothpick into the top middle to test.
- Allow the cake to cool completely.
- In a bowl, add icing ingredients and mix. Drizzle on top of the cake and enjoy!
Notes
Note, if your gluten free flour blend doesn't contain Xanthan Gum (or Guar Gum) please add 1 teaspoon to your mix.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 368Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 62mgSodium: 254mgCarbohydrates: 43gFiber: 2gSugar: 24gProtein: 5g
Please note this nutrition information is calculated by a recipe plugin and is an estimate based on the ingredients used in this recipe.
(*This post was updated from an older April 2018 post.)
Hannah
I love this recipe and I'm making it for my partner's birthday party this week because he's obsessed with it. Thank you! Just a quick question:Ccould you share with me the ratios for the original glaze with butter? It worked so well for me the first time, and I can't imagine the flavor without butter. Much appreciated!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Hannah, it was 1/4 cup of butter I believe. Tell your partner happy birthday from us!
Dana
This was drop-dead delicious! I stuck to the recipe as written but halved the glaze amount. I poured the glaze over while the cake was still warm and still in its pan. It soaked in beautifully. I let it cool completely before removing it from the pan. I found it needed a full 40 min to test fully baked. Tender, moist, amazing. Thank you so much!
Sandi Gaertner
I am so glad you liked it Dana, you made my day!
Dana
Hi again! I’m back to bake this a second time because we devoured the first double batch. Why did you remove the butter from the topping?! I think it was genius and will still make it that way because we loved it. Also, I noticed that in your description near the top you mention to bake for 40 minutes (which is what worked for me) but in the actual directions you state to bake for 30.
Love this recipe.
Dana
Sandi Gaertner
You are so sweet Dana. I am finding the butter topping only works if someone uses the specific gluten free flour blend I used, King Arthur Measure for Measure. When someone uses a higher starch content blend, the recipe didn't work with the butter topping so I took it out. There are just too many gluten free flour blends and when some don't work with a recipe...it frustrates people.
Barbara AlOthaimeen
Thank you for this fabulous recipe! I just made it and I don't think anyone would be able to tell that it's gluten free. I did use half and half in place of almond milk, only because I was out. It turned out great.
Sandi Gaertner
I am so glad you liked it Barbara 🙂
Lynne
By using the coconut oil, does that mean it is gluten free, and dairy free?
Sandi Gaertner
This recipe is dairy-free as well as gluten free. Thank you for stopping by Lynne 🙂