Raspberry Lemon Loaf

This easy raspberry lemon loaf is perfect to share with friends, or make it to eat all to yourself.  

Can I make a confession? I don’t love lemon baked goods.  I mean, I LOVE lemon in many other things.  Lemon slices in water, lemon squeezed onto my Caesar salad, lemon pasta – you name it.  But in baked goods, not so much.  Which is very weird to me because frankly, I’m not that picky.  I’ll eat most things.  But not lemon baked goods.

Until now.

You see, I decided to create this recipe because even though I don’t like lemon, I know many other people do.  And it’s April, which felt like the perfect month to make a great recipe like a lemon raspberry bread. After making my strawberry cake it was time to try out a different berry recipe.

It just so happens that when I finished making this beautiful lemony loaf a close friend came by.  She decided to sample it and went back for more which was a huge accomplishment for me because this dear friend of mine is not a fan of many foods out there.  

So of course, I had to try it myself after she did and I was surprised to discover that I enjoyed this raspberry lemon bread myself!

So, basically, all I’m saying is, take my word for it.  You’ll like it.  I feel confident you will.

Also, I love making quick breads because they are, well, quick and easy.  And when you have hungry teens like I do who seem to never stop eating, well, fast recipes are important.  You can whip this up fairly quickly, any day of the week.

Before we start, I’ll answer some common questions for this bread.

Can I use fresh raspberries instead of frozen?

Yes, you can use fresh berries.  You make find the consistency or flavor slightly different, but it’ll still work.

Can I use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream?

​You sure can!

Can I use bottled lemon juice?  

​You can.  I used fresh lemon juice from the lemon I grated for the lemon zest.

Can I make this without the glaze?

For sure!  It’s delicious with our without the glaze.

Can I freeze this bread?

You betcha!  Stick it in your freezer for up to three months and pull it out anytime you have unexpected guests show up!

How to Make Raspberry Lemon Loaf

 

What you will need:

• 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup frozen raspberries

For the glaze:

• 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup frozen raspberries, thawed
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Step 1:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Grease a bread pan.

Step 2:

In a large bowl, cream together your butter and your sugar.

Step 3:

Add your eggs and mix again.

Step 4:  

Add the sour cream, fresh lemon zest, and lemon juice.  You can use fresh lemon juice or bottled, it doesn’t matter.  Mix well.

Step 5:  

Add the dry ingredients which is the flour, baking soda, and baking powder.  Mix again until well combined with all the wet ingredients.

Step 6:  

Gently fold in the raspberries.  You don’t want to overmix the batter.

Step 7:

Pour the batter into your prepared pan. bake for 45 – 50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.  Ovens vary in heat, so your bread’s bake time may be less or more.   When it’s done, pull it out of the oven, let it cool for 10 minutes in the bread pan, and then take it out and transfer it to a cooling rack.

Wait for the bread to completely cool before you put make the lemon glaze because if you try to drizzle the glaze on too soon it’ll just melt right off and it’ll be a mess.  I know it’s hard to wait, but trust me on this – make sure the bread is completely cool.

To make the glaze:

Step 1: 

The first thing you want to do is to take the raspberries and strain them to remove the seeds.  This is why you want them thawed first.  

I used cheese cloth and I just squeezed out all the juice with my fingers but you could also use a mesh sieve and a spoon to squish the juice out of them. I ended up with a little over a tablespoon of raspberry juice from this. 

Step 2: 

In a medium bowl, with a hand mixer on medium speed, mix together the powdered sugar, raspberry juice, and lemon juice.  

You want the glaze to be a thin enough consistency that you can drizzle this on the bread so it should be a pourable consistency.  If you find it’s still too thick, add a half tablespoon to a whole tablespoon of milk.

Step 3: 

Drizzle the glaze over the bread.  Side note – I have full faith in you that you will drizzle your glaze in a much prettier pattern than I did mine.   I think I was getting impatient!

Step 5: 

Try to not eat the whole loaf in one sitting!

You’ll want to store this in an airtight container.  You know, if there are any leftovers!

This delicious lemon raspberry loaf is a welcome change from all the chocolate desserts I eat.  Chocolate is a favorite of course, but when the warmer weather hits a nice fruity dessert just hits in the right spot.  

The combination of lemon and juicy raspberries, topped off with a lemon glaze makes this bread one of those recipes you’ll want to make again and again.

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