Blackberry Lemon Loaf
Tender, perfectly moist lemon loaf with fresh blackberries and a sweet-yet-tart blackberry lemon glaze. This loaf will keep its bright flavors and perfect texture for days, taking your morning coffee or weekend brunch to the next level!
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Ugh. The weather. It’s been soooooo cold in Northern California this week. And I know, 25 degrees in the morning is warm for a lot of states. But not here! Not when I have to have my windows and doors open in my classroom! Not when we eat lunch outside and I have to roam the campus outside. California (and Californians) was not built for this kind of weather!
Which has nothing to do with this recipe, other than the fact that thinking about bright and springy blackberry lemon loaf makes this weather so much more annoying. That, and the fact that we just had our second false spring (we always get a warm week or two in January then another one in February, always followed by sudden, frigid winter).
Honestly, it makes me wish I lived where it snows. Because then I could at least be expecting this and not thrown off from climate whiplash.
Anyway, blackberry lemon loaf. I made this last July (when it was gloriously hot and probably around 100 degrees, which was why I carted my convection outside to bake). The fresh blackberries added such a beautiful pop of color as well as that sweet and tart pop of flavor.
It’s so bright and springy/summery but will brighten up even a dreary winter morning.
Why this recipe works
The combination of butter and oil helps make this moist yet not dense, since oil brings the moisture but can make desserts dense and butter does the exact opposite. As well, I’ve adjusted the amount of flour here to keep this loaf from being dry while also ensuring the blackberries don’t sink to the bottom And finally, the combination of lemon juice and lemon zest helps pack in the lemon flavor. Stirring the zest in the sugar releases its oils, making the flavor even more bright. Then it’s all topped with a delicious glaze that adds a beautiful color, a touch of sweetness, and a great pop of tart blackberry and lemon flavor.
Key ingredients
Flour. Be sure to spoon then level this so it’s not packed in. And don’t skip sifting!
Baking powder. This helps create rise, so be sure it’s nice and fresh.
Salt. Sea salt is ideal.
Lemon juice and zest. The combination is what makes the lemon flavor so vibrant. Be sure to use a microplane zester or something similar so you have finely grated zest.
Sugar. Use granulated. If you have raw sugar or larger crystals (some organic sugars come that way), you can pulse it in a small food processor with the zest a few times to break it up a bit.
Eggs. Be sure they are fresh and room temperature.
Oil. I like avocado or grape seed, as they are “healthy” fats. But vegetable or canola oil will work, too.
Greek yogurt. Use full fat, plain, room temperature yogurt. You can also sub whole milk sour cream.
Melted butter. Don’t brown the butter, just melt it. And try to use European style if possible.
Fresh blackberries. If needed, wash and dry these before using. Also, cut any large berries in half.
Blackberry jam (optional). You can also use a large handful of blackberries, mashed and strained.
Powdered sugar. For the glaze. Sift if you live in high humidity.
How to make blackberry lemon loaf
1. Prep ingredients. Prep your loaf pan. Zest and juice lemons. Wash and dry blackberries (optional). Melt butter.
2. Sift and whisk dry ingredients. Sifting helps ensure everything mixes well.
3. Stir sugar and lemon zest together. This releases the oils from the zest.
4. Mix eggs, oil, yogurt. Mix until very well blended, with no separation of eggs and oil.
5. Stream in melted butter then lemon juice. Do this while whisking quickly to avoid scrambling the egg or curdling the mix, respectively.
6. Fold in flour. Leave a few dry streaks of flour and ignore the lumps.
7. Fold in blackberries. This should fold in the last of the dry flour, but don’t worry about lumps in the batter—that will dissolve as it bakes. If you mix all the lumps out, it will create a dense loaf.
8. Bake. Tent with foil about halfway through. Check early to ensure it doesn’t over bake.
9. Make the glaze. You can do this when the loaf is completely cooled. You can make this as thick or thin as you’d like. I went for a thinner glaze, but you can create more of a frosting type spread. It’s up to you!
10. Glaze cooled loaf. You can glaze it in the pan or out, but I prefer out so it’s glazed all over.
Enjoy!
Tips and FAQ’s for this recipe
Use finely grated lemon zest
I love this microplane zester my mother-in-law gave me. It makes it much easier to avoid the pith (see next tip) and gets the zest nice and fine. There’s nothing worse than having to chew your zest while eating lemon loaf.
Don’t zest the pith
It won’t be the end of the world if you get some pith, but it’s best to zest lightly to avoid the white pith. It’s rather bitter and won’t add any extra lemon flavor.
Spoon then level your flour
Don’t scoop your flour! I never knew this until I started blogging, but it seriously makes a big difference. You will end up with roughly 25% more flour than the recipe called for if you just doonk (official baking term right there) your measuring spoon into the flour container and scoop. Gently spoon your flour into your measuring cup then level it off with the back of a knife. Trust me! It makes a difference.
Increase recipe for a 9x5 pan
*This also works in a 9x5 pan, but may be a little shorter. You can increase the recipe by 50% (or multiply each ingredient by 1.5) to get a full-to-the-top 9x5 loaf. That would equate to the following amounts (the glaze recipe will cover either sized loaf):
2 ¼ cups (306g) all-purpose flour (plus 1 tablespoon for the blackberries), spooned then leveled
2 ¼ teaspoons (9g) baking powder
¾ teaspoon (4g) salt
2 tablespoons (12g) grated lemon zest
½ cup (115g) esh lemon juice, room temperature
1 ½ cups (300g) granulated sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
6 tablespoons (84g) avocado or vegetable oil
1 cup (226g) full fat plain Greek yogurt or sour cream, room temperature
6 tablespoons (84g) melted butter
⅔ cup (127g) fresh or frozen blackberries (don’t thaw if using frozen)
My loaf tools
Here are my must-have tools I use for making this loaf. Affiliate links provided.
Mesh sieve (because sifting is KEY for a fluffy cake)
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Blackberry Lemon Loaf
- prep time: 5-10 minutes
- bake time: 45-50 minutes
- total time: 1 hour
servings: 8-12
Ingredients:
for the loaf
- 1 ½ cups (204g) all-purpose flour plus 1 tablespoon (for the blackberries), spooned and leveled
- 1 ½ teaspoons (6g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3g) salt
- 2 tablespoons (12g) grated lemon zest
- ⅓ cup (77g) lemon juice, room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 4 tablespoons (56g) avocado or vegetable oil
- ⅔ cup (150g) full fat Greek yogurt or sour cream, room temperature
- 4 tablespoons (56g) melted butter
- ½ cup (95g) fresh or frozen blackberries (don’t thaw if using frozen)
for the blackberry lemon glaze
- 1 cup (200g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons (about 40g) blackberry jam (or a handful of blackberries mashed/pureed and strained)
- 1 tablespoon (14g) lemon juice
Instructions:
- Preheat your oven to 350F/175C. Grease and flour an 8x4 loaf pan (see note above for making in a 9x5 pan). If it’s prone to sticking, you can line it with parchment as well.
- Prep your ingredients by washing and drying your blackberries, zesting and juicing your lemons, and melting your butter. If the blackberries are large, cut them in half. Mix the dry blackberries with the 1 tablespoon flour.
- Using a large fine mesh sieve, sift then whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In another bowl, stir or whisk the sugar and lemon zest until fragrant.
- In another, larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, and yogurt until well mixed. Slowly stream in the melted butter while whisking quickly (this prevents scrambling the eggs). Slowly whisk in the lemon juice.
- Add the sugar to the wet ingredients and whisk for about 1 minute.
- Add the flour mixture and stir gently until fully combined. It should still have some lumps in it, but it shouldn’t look separated, chunky, or dry in spots.
- Stir in the blackberries (omit any flour that sank to the bottom of the bowl.
- Pour into your prepared pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes (longer if using a 9x5 pan), until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with some moist crumbs. Check early so it doesn’t over bake. If it starts to brown too quickly, tent the pan loosely with foil. Let cool in pan at least 10 minutes.
- While the loaf cools, make the glaze. Mix the lemon juice and blackberry jam together then strain through a small fine mesh sieve. Mix with the powdered sugar until smooth. If the glaze is too thin, add a little powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add some lemon juice in small splashes.
- Pour over cooled (or slightly still warm) loaf, either in the pan or on a plate or cooling rack. Slice and serve.
Enjoy with your morning coffee!
Store leftovers in an airtight container.