I am obsessed with the lemon loaf at Starbucks. It's so good! Y'all know that I'm a big fan of homemade cakes and quickbreads, but their lemon pound cake is super moist, buttery, and packed with tangy lemony goodness.
Save this recipe by clicking on the ❤️ heart on the right-hand side of the screen or in the recipe card.
Table of Contents
🗝️ Key takeaways
- Made with simple ingredients, this easy copycat Starbucks lemon loaf recipe bursts with bright lemon flavor for a perfect balance of sweet and tart.
- Indulge in a hearty slice of this lemon pound cake for breakfast, brunch, or a post-dinner sweet treat! Loaf cakes are great gifts, too.
- My lemon loaf cake recipe uses buttermilk rather than sour cream—it enhances the tangy lemon flavors and creates a super moist crumb!
Calling all lemon lovers! The combination of fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, and lemon extract in this delicious lemon loaf recipe is guaranteed to satisfy all your lemon cravings—and I dare say it’s even better than the Starbucks version!
🧾 Ingredients
This is an overview of the ingredients. You'll find the full measurements and instructions in the green recipe card (printable) at the bottom of the page.
📖 Variations
- You can adjust the lemon ingredients in this lemon loaf to your liking. Add extra lemon zest for a stronger flavor, or omit the lemon extract for a subtler flavor.
- Substitute the lemon extract in the tangy lemon glaze with 1-2 teaspoons of lemon zest if you want a fresher, more natural flavor.
- Get fancy and use Meyer lemons! They’re sweeter and a tad less acidic than regular lemons, so your loaf will taste a bit sweeter.
- You can use the juice, zest, and extract of other citrus fruits, too. An orange loaf would be delicious, too!
- Y’all know I’m partial to buttermilk in baked goods, but you can use sour cream or plain Greek yogurt if that’s all you have in your fridge.
🔪 Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. Full instructions are in the green recipe card at the bottom of the page. Click on the image to see it full size.
Whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl at medium speed, then add the melted butter, oil, extracts, zest, and juice.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in thirds, mixing after each addition until just combined.
Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake.
🍴 Equipment
- 9"x5" loaf pan
- Hand mixer or stand mixer
🥫 How to store leftovers
Store leftovers of your citrusy loaf in an airtight container for up to four days. Don’t refrigerate lemon loaf since it will dry out the cake.
However, this lemon cake recipe freezes well! If you’ve already frosted your lemon loaf, flash-freeze the whole loaf or individual slices on a sheet pan for 2-3 hours.
Then, wrap it in a layer of plastic wrap and aluminum foil and transfer it to an airtight container or freezer bag. (You can skip the flash-freezing step if your lemon loaf is unfrosted. Simply wrap and store.)
This loaf will keep frozen for up to six months. Thaw frozen lemon loaf in the fridge overnight or set it out at room temperature.
Expert tip:
For the best results, always use lemon juice squeezed from fresh lemons in lemon desserts! Bottled lemon juice tastes artificial and bitter.
💭 Things to know
- A citrus zester makes it easier to grate the lemon peel into fine shreds.
- Let the eggs and buttermilk warm to room temperature and the melted butter cool slightly before mixing them with the rest of the ingredients. This helps prevent the batter from curdling.
- Use a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil. Olive oil will change the flavor of your lemon loaf and make it taste weird.
- Thoroughly grease your loaf pan with cooking spray and coat it with a thin layer of flour so the batter doesn’t stick.
- My copycat recipe uses a 9x5-inch loaf pan. An 8x4-inch loaf pan will create a thicker loaf that'll need a bit longer baking time.
- Cover the top of your lemon loaf with a sheet of foil if it’s browning too much while it bakes.
- Your lemon loaf is done baking when a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, the top feels firm to the touch, and it has an internal temperature of 200 degrees F.
- Remove the baked lemon loaf from the pan and allow it to cool on a wire rack. The airflow underneath the loaf prevents a soggy bottom.
- Wait to drizzle the glaze over the top of the loaf until it has cooled completely so it doesn’t melt off.
- Place a sheet of parchment paper underneath the wire rack before icing so it’s easier to clean up excess glaze that drips off the sides.
- Sift the powdered sugar into a small bowl with the lemon icing ingredients to prevent clumps in your sweet lemon glaze. Adjust the amount of powdered sugar, cream, and lemon ingredients to get the consistency and flavor you prefer.
👩🍳 FAQs
Actually, both! Starbucks lemon loaf is a cross between a quick bread and a moist pound cake.
The best part of lemon bread recipes is—you guessed it—the fresh lemon flavor. The perfect lemon loaf is made with natural ingredients like freshly squeezed lemon juice.
I strongly advise against bottled lemon juice, which contains preservatives and other ingredients that make it taste artificial and bitter.
No! Lemon oil and lemon extract cannot be used interchangeably in lemon recipes. Lemon oil is much more concentrated and intense. Stick with lemon extract for the right amount of lemon flavor.
It's easy. You’ll just need to reduce the baking time based on the size of the mini loaf pans. You can divide the batter into three or four 3x5-inch mini loaf pans and reduce the baking time to about 35-40 minutes.
Medium-sized lemons produce about 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of lemon zest each, while large lemons produce 3-4 tablespoons of juice and 1 ½-2 tablespoons of lemon zest. For my original recipe, you’ll need at least two medium lemons or one large.
📚 Related recipes
- Lemon Sheet Cake with Whipped Lemon Frosting is an easy, delicious cake with a light ‘n fluffy frosting—perfect for birthday parties and potlucks!
- The buttermilk and pudding mix in my Lemon Bundt Cake creates a dense, moist cake that’s been a favorite recipe of Southern cooks for years.
- My buttery Lemon Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze are packed with so much lemon flavor that will wake up your tastebuds in the morning!
📞 The last word
Y'all, I'm going to save so much money with this easy recipe!
If you click on the number of servings in the recipe card you can adjust the measurements up or down for the exact number of servings you need.
If you love this recipe please comment below and give it 5 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 Recipe
Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf
Print Pin Recipe Save Recipe Rate RecipeIngredients
Lemon Loaf
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup butter , melted and cooled to room temperature
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 ½ tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ cup buttermilk
Lemon Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar, may need to add more
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- 1-2 tablespoons cream as needed for right consistency.
Instructions
Lemon Loaf
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Grease and flour an 9x5-inch loaf pan.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Set aside.
- Beat the granulated sugar and eggs with the mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Mix in the melted butter and the oil.
- Mix in the vanilla, lemon extract, lemon zest and lemon juice until combined.
- Add in the buttermilk and mix well.
- Add ⅓ of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix well.
- Continue adding flour until all the dry ingredients are mixed into the wet mixture but don’t over mix.
- Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf pan.
- Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. It will register 200F with an instant read thermometer.
- Cool completely.
- Once the loaf is cool cover with glaze.
Lemon Icing
- Whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon extract, lemon juice, and cream until smooth.
- Stir in more powdered sugar or cream as needed for desired consistency.
Notes
- Let the eggs and buttermilk warm to room temperature and the melted butter cool slightly before mixing them with the rest of the ingredients. This helps prevent the batter from curdling.
- Use a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil. Olive oil will change the flavor of your lemon loaf and make it taste weird.
- My copycat recipe uses a 9x5-inch loaf pan. An 8x4-inch loaf pan will create a thicker loaf that'll need a bit longer baking time.
- Your lemon loaf is done baking when a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, the top feels firm to the touch, and it has an internal temperature of 200 degrees F.
- Wait to drizzle the glaze over the top of the loaf until it has cooled completely so it doesn’t melt off.
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition information is estimated as a courtesy. If using for medical purposes, please verify information using your own nutritional calculator. Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This recipe has been tested several times. If you choose to use other ingredients, or change the technique in some way, the results may not be the same.
Ellie H. says
This looks Wonderful! My friend & I Love Starbuck’s Lemon Pound Cake! I’m gonna try this! It will make the house smell spring time fresh & lemony! Thanks for posting!