This Low-Carb Lemon Loaf Cake is soft, moist, and bursting with lemon flavor! Adding the fluffy lemon frosting makes it absolutely heavenly! Amazingly free from gluten, grains, eggs, dairy, sugar, so you can freely enjoy! (Dairy-Free, Paleo, Vegan, Keto)

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The Ultimate Lemon Loaf You Won’t Believe is Healthy

DELICIOUS tasting cake, a health food? It is now!

Unlike conventional cakes which are mostly refined sugar, dairy, and gluten (extremely high carb & inflammatory), this cake has none of that, and instead actually has healthy ingredients:

• Almonds
• Flaxseed
• Avocado Oil
• Lemons
• and NO added sugar. It’s sweetened with the extracts of leaves and fruit, haha! So is it basically a granola fruit salad?? 😉

I kid, but seriously– have your cake without wrecking your health/lifestyle/well-being. Have cake that actually makes you feel great from the inside out because it’s made with wholesome real-food ingredients.

Disclosure: As a member of affiliate advertising programs, I earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites at no additional cost to you. This post was not sponsored and all opinions are my own.

Tips to Make Your Gluten-Free Cake Tall and Fluffy

I’m here to help you have the BEST result with your cake. I know ingredients can be expensive and you don’t want to end up with something other than AMAZING. So follow my advice 😉

• Tip 1: Use the Tapioca

A soft and fluffy texture in this recipe is achieved by using a combination of almond flour, flaxseed, and tapioca flour. Sometimes I suggest skipping the tapioca and subbing more almond flour for those who don’t want the carbs that tapioca adds, but I strongly suggest you keep it here. It lightens it up so it’s not too heavy. It really helps it taste like a “real” cake 😉

• Tip 2: Finely Ground Flour

For best results when baking with almond flour, be sure to use a *finely ground* blanched almond flour. I recommend Bob’s Red Mill brand Superfine Almond Flour. It has the perfect fine consistency that’s great for baking. And unlike some other brands, it’s certified gluten-free, so it’s safe for celiacs. Yay!

• Tip 3: Don’t Overmix!

Be gentle with the batter! Since this cake is egg-free, I used baking powder, baking soda and lemon juice to create rise. If you overmix the batter, it will pop all those tiny air pockets that are created by the reaction. Mix the batter til it’s just combined and all the “flour” is moistened.

• Tip 4: Use an Extra Small Pan

The smaller the vessel, the higher the rise. I used a small bread pan for this loaf. It’s a couple of inches smaller than traditional loaf pans (approximately 7″x3″)

You can even make these into muffins or mini muffins if you want! Simply adjust the cook time (I would try 15 minutes for muffins and check for doneness)

• Tip 5: Turn the Oven OFF

Keep your cake in the oven (turned off!) for an extra 5 minutes so it can cool more gradually. This prevents sinking that can happen with a drastic temperature change in baked goods, especially gluten-free/egg-free ones!

The BEST Lemon Buttercream Frosting

You may have heard me RAVE about this frosting.. a few too many times, lol! This is THE frosting that I can (and do!) just eat with a SPOON. (I never did that with store-bought frosting, but THIS I absolutely do.)

I talk about this frosting in my cookbook, I went on about it on Instagram stories, I am simply OBSESSED. It has the same flavor and consistency as a gourmet bakery, but it’s much healthier!

Instead of dairy or partially hydrogenated oils (trans fat) this is made with palm oil, which is solid at room temp and completely flavorless on its own.

Adding finely ground lemon zest, lemon juice, and powdered monkfruit to create the most AMAZING lemon-flavored buttercream. It’s totally keto-friendly, too, with close to ZERO CARBS. So grab a spoon and get ready to dive in! 😀

Side note, since I didn’t use homemade monkfruit this time, I added just a bit of tapioca flour to help with the texture. But if you use homemade which is double the volume of Lakanto, you don’t need any tapioca.

*For more in-depth tips on making the BEST dairy-free Keto frosting, check out my Red Velvet Cupcakes recipe post.*

MOIST

Haha, I know, I know. But it’s true: this cake is MOIST.

And lemony, and soft and has a wonderful texture. I don’t know how else to describe it other than moist lol. Sorry if you hate that word. 

This cake is not at all DRY.

It’s tender and just melts in your mouth. It sorta reminds me of poppyseed bread (and you could totally add some poppy seeds here for lemon poppyseed bread– yum!!) This is the perfect cake for snacking, brunching, or dessert!

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If you try it, be sure to leave a rating and review below. I’d love to hear what you think! ENJOY 😀

Low-Carb Lemon Loaf Cake

A soft, moist cake that's bursting with lemon flavor! Add fluffy lemon buttercream to make it absolutely heavenly! Free from gluten, grains, eggs, dairy, sugar, so you can freely enjoy cake that fits your dietary needs. (Paleo, Vegan, Keto)

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Servings: 9 slices

Author: Emily

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

• 2   cups fine almond flour
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour
• 2 Tbs monkfruit granules
• 1/3 cup ground flaxseed
• 1/2 Tbs baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp pure stevia powder
• 1/8 tsp pink salt
• Pinch of turmeric - or 2 squirts natural yellow food coloring, optional for color
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 Tbs  lemon juice
• Zest of 2 lemons
• 1/4 cup avocado oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Lemon Buttercream Frosting

• 1/2 cup palm oil - shortening, at room temp
• 1/4 cup Lakanto powdered monkfruit - to taste
• 2 tsp  lemon juice - or 1/2 tsp lemon extract or 3 drops lemon oil
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 tsp tapioca flour - optional for texture
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• dash pink salt

Instructions

To make the cake:

• Preheat the oven to 325. Line a small bread pan with 2 strips of parchment paper (crossways) for easy removal
• Whisk together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix together water, lemon juice, zest, oil and vanilla in another small bowl.
  
• Pour wet over dry and gently mix by folding the batter until the flour is moistened (it will be a little thick)
• Scoop batter into the pan.
  
• Bake for about 35-40 minutes until the top springs back when pressed. *Important* Turn the oven off, but leave the loaf in the oven for another 5 minutes with the door shut to cool gradually. Then remove and cool the loaf on a wire rack before cutting.
• Allow to cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting:

• Add palm shortening to a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (a hand mixer works, too).
• Mix for about 5 seconds to soften. Add remaining ingredients and beat until fully mixed. Taste and adjust.
  
• Smooth frosting generously onto cooled cake. Top with extra zest, if you like. Enjoy!
  

Notes

To store: Stays fresh at room temperature for about 2-3 days in a glass cake dome.

• For longer storage, keep refrigerated (bring back to room temp before serving as the frosting will harden when chilled).
• Frosting can be stored separately in an air-tight container at room temp for up to 2 weeks.
• To freeze cake, leave off the frosting. Cut into slices and place on a baking sheet. Freeze for 1 hour, then individually wrap and place in a freezer bag. 

For the frosting, Use Spectrum brand palm oil. Do NOT use Nutiva brand palm shortening. It is mixed with coconut oil and the taste and texture is too oily and not nearly as good as Spectrum.

Sweetener Alternatives: *always sweeten to taste*

• Replace 1/2 tsp stevia extract with 1/2 tsp pure monkfruit extract 50% mogroside, or 3/4 tsp 30% mogroside)
• OR replace 1/2 cup water with Lakanto monkfruit syrup or pure maple syrup for non-low-carb
• Monkfruit granules may be replaced with another granulated sweetener such as erythritol (or coconut sugar for non-low-carb)

Need help with a sweetener conversion? Comment below 

Save 20% on monkfruit sweeteners at Lakanto.com with code PRETTYPIES

Nutrition Facts

Low-Carb Lemon Loaf Cake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 346.55 Calories from Fat 296

% Daily Value*

Fat 32.9g51%

Saturated Fat 7.7g48%

Sodium 96.24mg4%

Potassium 115.51mg3%

Carbohydrates 18.55g6%

Fiber 4.26g18%

Sugar 1.08g1%

Protein 6.39g13%

Vitamin C 0.42mg1%

Calcium 96.26mg10%

Iron 1.38mg8%

Sugar Alcohol 8g

Net Carbs 6.3g

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Tried this recipe?Tag @emily.likes.food #prettypies!

Looking for more Low-Carb CAKE recipes?

Vanilla Cupcakes from my cookbook, PS It’s Healthy

Chocolate Cupcakes from my cookbook, PS It’s Healthy

Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel from my cookbook, PS It’s Healthy

Red Velvet Cupcakes