Try this sweet keto lemon bread for a healthy breakfast treat or a sugar free dessert.
With bold lemon flavor, each bite MELTS in your mouth.
The classic lemon bread can be completely dairy free, gluten free, oil free, low carb, paleo, and vegan, with no coconut flour required.
Leftovers freeze well too! Just pull a few slices out of the freezer to enjoy any time you’re craving that iced Starbucks lemon loaf taste, without all the flour and sugar.
The recipe was adapted from my Keto Pumpkin Bread
Sugar Free Lemon Dessert
I first made the keto lemon bread when my parents came to visit a few months ago.
Although neither of them is on a keto diet, they are trying to watch how many white or refined carbs they consume. My mother’s favorite food is Oreo cookies, and my father could easily eat two cups of rice with dinner.
Enter this low carb lemon recipe that calls for almond flour instead of wheat flour.
It’s also free of corn syrup, guar gum, xanthan gum, buttermilk, palm oil, and soybean oil, which are all ingredients you’ll find in the Starbucks lemon loaf recipe.
We loved the recipe’s flavor and dense texture that reminded us of lemon pound cake.
You can also make Keto Lemon Bars
How To Make Keto Lemon Bread
Assemble the ingredients, and grease a 9×5 loaf pan or line it with parchment paper.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Combine all of the gluten free lemon bread ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir until well mixed.
Smooth the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake the lemon cake bread on the oven’s center rack for one hour. After this time, it should be cooked through but still moist and dense, because low carb bread recipes have a denser and more fudgy texture than traditional lemon bread recipes.
If you leave the keto lemon loaf to cool completely before going around the sides of the baking pan with a knife and then popping it onto a plate, I found this protects against cracking or breaking in half.
For a glazed lemon bread, see the frosting recipe ideas below.
The dessert can be left out overnight, loosely covered in paper towels or a cloth. After that, store any remaining leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days. Or slice and freeze leftover almond flour lemon bread for a month or two.
Readers also like this Almond Flour Banana Bread
Keto Lemon Loaf Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make the recipe: lemon juice and lemon zest, almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, salt, eggs or flax eggs, and yogurt or coconut cream.
The lemon zest is important, because it adds a ton of lemon flavor, so do be sure to include it when making the lemon bread.
To make lemon zest, wash your lemon and use either a zester or grater to shred the lemon peel. Or peel the fruit with a vegetable peeler, then finely dice the skin with a sharp knife.
Almond flour is the only flour I’ve tried and recommend with this recipe. You can of course experiment with other flours at your own risk and with the knowledge that some of the measurements might need to be changed in order for the recipe to work.
For example, I imagine that trying to substitute coconut flour for almond meal would mean you’d at least need to add extra liquid to the recipe.
Plain yogurt or coconut cream add moisture to the keto lemon bread. Use an unsweetened yogurt for a sugar free recipe. Vegan yogurt works too.
For a lemon bread without yogurt, use an equal amount of either coconut cream or the thick part at the top of a can of coconut milk.
Lemon Bread Frosting Ideas
You can enjoy this keto lemon bread unfrosted or with sugar free frosting, melted butter or coconut butter, packaged cream cheese or homemade Vegan Cream Cheese.
Or ice the sugar free lemon bread with half a cup of powdered sugar or powdered erythritol whisked into a glaze with one tablespoon milk of choice or lemon juice and an optional eighth of a teaspoon of pure vanilla extract.
Watch the keto lemon bread recipe video, above
Keto Lemon Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour (for nut free, try this Vegan Lemon Bread)
- 1/3 cup granulated sweetener (for sugar free, I like Lakanto)
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup plain yogurt or coconut cream
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 3 eggs or flax eggs
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
Instructions
- Grease a 9×5 loaf pan or line it with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325 F. Stir all ingredients until smooth. Pour into the pan. Bake for 50 minutes. I found that letting the keto lemon bread cool completely before going around the sides with a knife and popping out the loaf will ensure it doesn't break, because the recipe is super moist and soft! The lemon bread can be loosely covered and left out overnight. Or refrigerate leftovers up to 5 days, or slice and freeze for up to 2 months. Do be sure to include the lemon zest, as it adds so much of the lemon flavor.View Nutrition Facts
Notes
Have you made this recipe?
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Keto Breakfast Ideas
Sue in Ottawa says
This looks amazing but I am not a fan of sweeteners. Could I replace it with either maple syrup, raw cane sugar, brown sugar, etc. And how much would you recommend? Thanks so much!
Amy says
I’ve made Katie’s copycat Starbucks lemon loaf many times in the past along with other recipes and always use regular sugar and it turns out delicious every time.
Cher says
Would substituting Greek yogurt work the same?
CCK Media Team says
Yes that is fine to use for the yogurt.
CCK Media Team says
Hi, yes! 1/3 cup granulated sweetener can be regular sugar or cane sugar, same amount 🙂
Annie says
What about maple syrup?
elizabeth kazee says
you can use maple syrup, but it will take longer to bake
Patti says
Hi
I just made this and the batter was very thick. More of a dough. Will it be ok? It’s in the oven and I’m hoping for the best. I double checked the amounts so I have no idea what happened
Anna says
What type of yogurt did you use for the recipe?
CCK Media Team says
We have made this multiple times, but if we remember correctly the yogurt in the video is trader joes unsweetened cashew.
Janine says
Is the yogurt full fat, nonfat, low fat?
CCK Media Team says
Any of those will work!
Marissa says
Could you use Greek yogurt?
CCK Media Team says
Yes!
Lucy says
Can I substitute ground almonds instead of almond flour? I’m in the U.K. Thanks
Janine says
Thank you!
Sharlyn says
Hi Katie, I can’t wait to try this! Have you ever made it with Meyer lemons?
CCK Media Team says
Hmm we have not but that sounds like a fun idea!
Caroline Pennypacker says
Hi Sharyn. I made it with Meyers and added lemon essential oil as well and it turned out wonderful.
jean says
By using cane would the carb a amount change? By how much
CCK Media Team says
Hi, yes it will be more if you sub cane sugar.
Emily says
recipe for the icing that goes on top of the lemon bread?
Jean says
Where is the icing recipe for the lemon loaf?
CCK Media Team says
Hi, it is in this post above, right above the video under the heading “Lemon Bread Frosting Ideas.”
Patti R says
This is amazing! Couldnt wait for it to cool completely. Yep, it cracked! But who cares it was delicious! I used lemon extract in the glaze, oh my! Thank you, I will be trying your muffins next!
CCK Media Team says
Thank you so much for trying it! We think you are the first one to make it 🙂
Jennifer says
Could you make t with regular floùr? Same amount?
CCK Media Team says
Hi! Here is the flour version: https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/vegan-lemon-bread-recipe/
Maggie says
I’m kind of freaking out because I just put it in the oven then when I watched the VIDEO – there are NO eggs added to the recipe and the batter looks way thicker! In other words – your video does not match your recipe which calls for THREE eggs!!
I hope I didn’t waste my time, as my batter looked loose with 3 eggs.
Please be careful – that’s quite a difference.
CCK Media Team says
Hi Maggie, there are two options and the video goes with the flax egg version. Both versions work 🙂
MAGGIE 2 says
Wow, NO NEED TO FREAK OUT MAGGIE. Drama Queen! 🙄
Rose says
Can you use flavored yogurt, (lemon, coconut)?
CCK Media Team says
Absolutely, you can!
Franny papaneri says
I love this lemon bread! It was easy to make and very good! I will definitely make it again!
CCK Media Team says
Thank you for trying it!
Diane says
Do you think I could use sour cream or softened butter instead of yogurt or coconut cream? I don’t have coconut cream and I’m not a yogurt eater. Even though you didn’t make it with sour cream or butter – just wondering. Thanks for your opinion. Recipe looks delish!!
Chocolate Covered Katie says
I haven’t tried so don’t know about taste; but texture wise, sour cream should be fine.
Laura Kennelly says
Super good and easy. I took a few shortcuts. Mixed almond flour and baking powder plus dried ginger (Trader Joe’s packet) and the tea from a Macha tea bag (TJs again) as dry mix and then used the Vitamix to combine the Coconut Creme, one whole Meyer lemon, and three eggs. I added that to the dry mixture and did the rest as instructed. We do not eat sugar or sugar subs, but we didn’t miss them at all.
Love it and can’t wait to fiddle around with the mixture again. First time using almond flour. Love it too. Signed, Happy Cook.
CCK Media Team says
Your version sounds wonderful!
Lynn says
You don’t not eat sugar or sugar or sugar substitutes all?? In intrigued!
MIR says
I tried making this today and I found that it didn’t taste lemony enough and it wasn’t as yellow as yours. I will try to make it again and possibly add more lemon zest and lemon juice.
Patricia says
I’d say add a little yellow food coloring or smidgon of tumeric for the yellow color.
Robin says
Do you have nutritional information for this recipe?
CCK Media Team says
Hi! Just go to the nutrition facts link at the bottom of the recipe under the ingredients/instructions 🙂
Allison says
This was delicious! I’m a newbie with almond flour recipes and this one was easy to follow and surprisingly delicious!
Chris David says
Really delicious recipe
Barbara M says
Love it! Not too sweet, the lemon is bright and refreshing. I used sour cream instead of yogurt, and I added a handful of blueberries. Perfect keto treat! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
CCK Media Team says
Thank you for trying it 🙂
Pat says
Tried this today. I substituted mayonnaise for the yogurt. Used my convection oven
at 325 for 40 min. It turned out beautiful. Will make the glaze to go it.
CCK Media Team says
That sounds so interesting! Katie has made chocolate cake with mayonnaise and we love that one so we definitely want to try your idea now 🙂
Miranda Eads says
I have made this a couple times with coconut cream and it’s amazing! I’m wondering if it would be good with lime juice instead of lemon? Would love to know what you think.
CCK Media Team says
Absolutely!
J says
Do you think I can sub applesauce for yogurt?
CCK Media Team says
We don’t see why not, as long as you don’t need it to be keto. If you experiment, be sure to report back!
Marcy says
made into muffins last night, used sour cream instead of yoghurt/coconut cream. made 11 muffins, took 24 minutes at 325 for my oven. had 2 for breakfast this morning with a little ‘frosting‘ using sour cream, erythritol, vanilla, and True Lemon – scrumptious!!! great recipe, thanks so much, can’t wait to make your keto brownie recipe!
Andrea Yacyshyn says
The flavour is really good. Mine didn’t rise like your picture but it’s really dense and fudgy like. Sort of collapsed but I will definitely make it again.
CCK Media Team says
Thank you so much for making it 🙂
Rob says
Please confirm.
The recipe calls for 1 TBSP of baking powder. Is that correct? I’ve never seen a recipe call for such a large amount. I’m looking forward to trying it.
Lena says
Yummy recipe. Will definetly make again:)
CCK Media Team says
Thank you so much for trying it!
Trish says
Can you substitute coconut flour? If so, how much?
CCK Media Team says
We do not think it would work as written. You may be able to make it work by adding a lot more liquid to counter the dryness from the coconut flour, or if you sub some coconut flour but keep some of the almond, but we have not tried. If you experiment, be sure to report back!
Lynnea says
I typically have plain Greek yogurt on hand. Has anyone used that and, if so, does the recipe need any adjustments? Thank you!
CCK Media Team says
That will work just fine 🙂
Gaddemon says
Katie, this recipe is incredible!! I used lemon flavored yogurt and the bread turned out beautifully. I also had chocolate at home that I wanted to use so I chopped it and put it on top. Super delicious! Next time I’ll try it with coconut yogurt for a little bit of a coconut taste.
CCK Media Team says
Chocolate lemon??? Now we are so intrigued!
Linda Freeman says
My husband loves lemon products! He absolutely loved it, because he is also diabetic too. Made a great dessert for him as a snack in the evening.
CCK Media Team says
Thank you both for trying it!
Maria J. Moore says
This was so delicious , what a fabulous recipe!
Tabatha says
This is my favorite keto dessert! It’s delicious and easy, plus my husband and I agree that it doesn’t have the general odd texture most almond flour desserts have. I’m thinking it’s the yogurt added that helps. I make it often and have it in the fridge for a tasty treat when I want something sweet. If my husband gets his hands on it, it’s gone.
Lee says
I just made it today, I just pulled it out of the oven. I tried the batter (baker’s prerogative,) and it tasted fantastic, I used a 1/3 cup of sour cream and a 1/3 cup of buttermilk instead of the yogurt, and added another 1/2 cup of almond flour to absorb the extra liquid from the buttermilk.
CCK Media Team says
This makes us so happy, thank you!
Rose says
My dad was recently diagnosed with diabetes and loves orange flavored treats. I wanted to bake him something orange flavored that’s diabetic friendly and delicious. So I adapted this recipe by swapping the lemon for orange and making it into muffins. I got 11 muffins, like another commenter, and followed that commenter’s advice to bake at 325 for 24 minutes. I made the recommended icing, again swapping orange for lemon, and spread that on top of the muffins. They came out amazing! This is a great recipe! Thank you for delicious diabetic friendly recipes, Chocolate Covered Katie!
CCK Media Team says
This makes us so happy, thank you!
Janice says
Thank you for sharing about using orange instead of lemon. I was wanting to try that also as my husband is not a lemon fan.
Katie says
I followed the advice of another comment and made this into 12 muffins! I increased the sweetener to 1/2 cup and topped them with powdered erythritol mixed with lemon juice and zest. Beautiful keto dessert!
Teri Smith says
hello, wanted to know about adding in other food options like adding zucchini for lemon zucchini bread or adding blueberries for lemon blueberry bread. Thoughts ???
Can’t wait to try this out! Thank you
CCK Media Team says
We don’t see why you couldn’t add blueberries to this one. That sounds wonderful. As for zucchini, Katie will have to experiment. The only other keto bread recipe she has so far is the pumpkin bread, but we are hoping to try out a chocolate one soon. https://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/keto-pumpkin-bread/
Erica says
Delicious! The texture makes me think of cheese cake! Will definitely make again and again! I omitted the glaze will try it next time. A must have recipe!! Easy to make too!
Love it and Thank You!
Connie says
My husband and I loved this, I did increase the sugar to a 1/2 cup. I also used lite coconut cream. No glaze needed. We put a small amount of blueberry jelly on it!! Very moist
Karen W says
Can I use coconut sugar as the sweetener?
CCK Media Team says
That works!
Connie says
I’ve never used it but I would google the conversion from coconut to regular sugar. Im sure it would work well.
L.A. says
Hi! This looks like a great recipe! I’ve tried a few of the other CCK recipes and they’ve been delicious (love the coconut flour cookies!!!).
Do you think I could use honey or maple syrup in this recipe?
(I typically don’t eat sugar….it’s fine if your team doesn’t feel like honey/maple syrup would taste good….1/3 cup isn’t a lot of sugar for a whole loaf)
CCK Media Team says
Hi! We haven’t ever used a liquid sweetener so honestly can’t say how the texture would turn out here. But be sure to report back if you experiment!
Janine says
This is a winning recipe. It’s like a moist pound cake, and the lemon flavor is nice and strong. I’m getting ready to make a couple of batches and freeze the slices. Thank you Katie!
Judy says
This is the most moist and delicious lemon cake I’ve had. My husband loved it so much he brought some to his friends! Little did he know it was keto, with no sugar or carbs!
TONI says
What an awesome recipe! I used coconut cream, a little vanilla, and ground ginger. I can’t believe something so perfect was so easy to make. Thank you so much!!
Patricia says
looks wonderful. So excited to make this. How do you make the icing on the lemon cake?
CCK Media Team says
Hi, you can ice the sugar free lemon bread with half a cup of powdered sugar or powdered erythritol whisked into a glaze with one tablespoon milk of choice or lemon juice and an optional eighth of a teaspoon of pure vanilla extract.
Ruth Brown says
How many calories per serving?
Rose M. says
Super yummy! So easy to just combine all the ingredients and that’s it. Everyone loved it; thank you 🙂
Shruti A says
My husband loved it. The lemon rind added tgat extra punch. Thank you.
Pujitha says
Hello! I tried this recipe and it came out amazing! I used chia eggs :). I was wondering how long this will last in an airtight container?
CCK Media Team says
Hi, it should last for about three to four days, just like with a traditional quick bread recipe. We recommend storing in the fridge after a day for freshness.
Anne says
Looks great, but would love to see nutritional info. How many carbs per slice?
CCK Media Team says
Hi! Katie has full nutrition facts for all of her recipes 🙂 Just click the “view nutrition facts” link in the recipe box for each recipe.
Nicole says
Phenomenal! The best lemon and keto cake ever! So fluffy but slightly dense! This is the perfect cake for the almond flour texture, genius. Made a simple lemon juice/almond milk/powdered swerve glaze and I can’t wait to bring this to Easter!
Candi Cushman says
How did you get your lemon bread so yellow I like lemons. And the texture is a little grainy. Flavor was good.
De Anna Winterrose says
I dread trying a new keto recipe, as so many I’ve tried have miseraby failed expectations, but this one – perfection!
Delicious and moist – satisfied that craving for Starbucks lemon pound cake – will bake this again and again.
* I used 1Tbs lemon juice and 1 of water for the glaze.
Kelly says
can this be made into muffins or cupcakes?
CCK Media Team says
We don’t see why not, but we haven’t tried so can’t advise about the baking time. Have fun experimenting!
Janice says
Love this recipe! Was easy to make and was delicious!
Monica says
This turned out GREAT! Moist, and tasty – thank you!
Kelly says
I made this poundcake last night and it’s absolutely delicious. I did use plain Greek yogurt and it came out super moist, I also added a little lemon extract for extra lemon flavor… Highly recommend. I did let it cool overnight and sit in the refrigerator before I tried it.
Trude Gear says
Absolutely as good as it looks!
Easy and so delicious!
Beth Rhodes says
I had cut up some strawberries earlier in the day for strawberry short cake and after making this decides to just sub the short cale with this lemon bread and it was fantastic!!!
Kaye says
It tastes so good! The batter is insufferably thin though, so blueberries sank right down, even when compensating. Oh well.
Donna says
Thinking of baking in mini loaf pans. Any suggestions on how long to cook them? Does the toothpick test work?
Brenda says
Really wonderful recipe I had to make some substitutions, used lime instead of lemons and low carb yogurt and a bit of sour cream, also added ginger in mine. It did crack because I didn’t let the bottom cool long enough….but I love the flavor~~
Kathy says
Fantastic! I had to replace the yogurt for coconut cream (as I needed dairy-free) and it was soooo tasty and moist and yummy lemony!
Margaret says
Hi! I tried the keto keto lemon loaf recipe today and it didn’t turn out the same as yours. It was dense and didn’t rise. I used the flax egg and followed the recipe exactly. Suggestions?
Tammy Ward says
Would lemon flavored yogurt be ok to use instead of plain?
CCK Media Team says
Sure 🙂
Cheryl L Barber says
I used lemon sugar free yogurt and a few droplets of lemon extract, and don’t forget the lemon zest.
My wife fell in love with this recipe. It’s so easy to make I’ll have no problem making it again and again. Definitely a
5.0 star recipe.
Rene says
Tastes like cornbread
Nola G. says
I normally never leave a review. But this recipe deserved one! I love lemon cake and needed a good substitute to satisfy that lemon craving that’s lower in carbs, sugar, and calories… I knew once I saw 5 stars this would be a good recipe to try. Cooked it this evening and did a happy dance once I took a bite! I left the recipe as is, but made very small additions… tbs of olive oil, tsp lemon extract, tsp of almond, upped sweetener to 1/2 cup. Used nonfat Greek yogurt. It was so easy to prepare and very moist. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!
Colleen says
I followed the recipe exactly and the texture was perfect. However, I found the taste of baking powder overwhelming. I want to try the recipe again but was wondering if i can add less baking powder.
Jen says
Very Good and Very Moist. I added 1/4 cup of Chia seeds for the protein and used unsweetened coconut yogurt. It was perfect. A little too moist in the middle so I may add an extra tablespoon of flour next time.
Korin Lanier says
I am always so skeptical of following keto desserts, as they sometimes do not come out as good as they say. I’m a pre-diabetic and have to stay away from sugars, so I always need an alternative! This recipe?? OMG! To die for. I kind of made up my own frosting. I did cream cheese, vanilla extract, and lakanto brown sugar. Great job on this recipe, as it is actually AMAZING! I could eat the entire loaf. Thank you!! 🙂
Celina says
I’d leave 10 stars if I could! So Yummy! I follow a keto diet and have eaten my fair share of terrible Keto breads….This was not one of them! This recipe is a definite KEEPER! Delicious and easy! Fool proof and so yummy with a cup of tea. REALLY DELICIOUS! THANK YOU!
Sandy says
Absolutely delicious. I would like to make again. The only issue I had is that my batter was a bit runny and the cake didn’t rise as high as I expected. Sunk a little in the middle even though it was baked through. I used jumbo eggs. Wonder if I had too much liquid. Should I try adding a little more almond flour next time or perhaps just 2 eggs?
Thanks.
Valerie says
May I ask, what yogurt did y’all use? I need to use plant based so if anyone has used one, please share. I used Juno’s plain coconut but my loaf came out way too tangy.
Jenn says
Can I sub almond flour for buckwheat flour?