Make a delicious blackberry and lemon bread with plump, juicy berries, citrus flavor, and a sweet, comforting glaze.
Delightfully moist, sweet, and lemony, this blackberry lemon bread or loaf cake is bursting with the flavors of summer. And it's so easy to make that you will keep returning to the recipe.
Check out more blackberry recipes: Blackberry Sponge Cake, Blackberry Crumble Pie, or a savory recipe for Blackberry Sauce Chicken.
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Why should you bake this quick bread?
- Quick: You can whip the blackberry lemon bread up in about 15 minutes; the oven will do the rest.
- Versatile: It’s great for breakfast or as a dessert with a cup of coffee or tea. It can also be a quick school or afternoon snack.
- Easy: A beginner’s recipe, all you must do is stir a few ingredients and bake.
- Texture and flavor: This blackberry bread is moist, tart, and sweet. The oil in the batter keeps the cake from drying, and all the flavors work perfectly together, making it a delight.
Check out other great loaves of bread, for instance, Blackberry Rhubarb Loaf, Pumpkin Almond Flour Bread, or Irish Sweet Soda Bread.
Recipe ingredients
Blackberries: I used fresh blackberries. If fresh berries are not available, use frozen ones.
Lemon: You will need an unwaxed, preferably organic lemon, as you will use both zest and juice for the recipe.
Oil: Neutral-tasting oil, like canola. Oil instead of butter makes the bread moist and keeps it so for longer.
Yogurt: I use full-fat, tangy Greek yogurt. Together with the oil, it impacts the texture of the lemon blackberry bread. You can use sour cream instead.
Eggs: You will need three large eggs.
Sugar: The blackberry lemon loaf is not overly sweet; we love it this way. However, you can increase the sugar by about 35 g/ ⅓ cup.
All-purpose flour: Please measure it correctly, especially if using cups.
Baking powder: The raising agent that makes baked goods soft and fluffy.
Salt: Just a pinch helps increase the flavor in any sweet recipe.
Vanilla extract: To increase the flavor as well.
Glaze ingredients: Icing (powdered) sugar and a little fresh lemon juice.
Equipment needed
I prefer the stand mixer because the sugar and the eggs need to be beaten for 5-6 minutes. However, a regular electric mixer is perfectly ok; you will just have to hold it the whole time.
Loaf cake tin of about 8x4x3 inches/ 20x10x7 cm.
How to make blackberry lemon bread?
- Preheat the oven to 160°C/ 320°F. Butter the loaf cake tin, sprinkle it with a bit of flour, and shake it to coat it with the flour. Turn it into the sink and gently pat it on the bottom side to help remove the excess flour.
- Beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract on medium speed in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment for 5-6 minutes until pale and creamy. Scrape the sides of the bowl halfway through with a rubber spatula (1).
- Add the yogurt, oil, lemon juice, and zest and beat shortly to mix (2).
- Mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) in a medium bowl. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix shortly on low speed until just combined (3).
- Cut the blackberries in half if they are huge (commercial ones are huge, while wild blackberries are smaller). Mix them with 2 teaspoons of flour in a separate bowl (4).
- Fold about ¾ of the berries into the cake batter (5).
- Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Place the remaining berries on top and press them gently into the batter (6).
- Bake the blackberry and lemon bread for 65-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Check after 30 minutes; if the top of the bread is already brown, cover it loosely with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent it from getting too dark.
- Cool: Once baked, remove it from the oven and let the hot loaf cool completely in the baking dish.
- Lemon glaze: Stir the powdered sugar and about 2 teaspoons of lemon juice in a small bowl. Add more lemon juice or icing sugar to get the right consistency. The glaze should be thick yet slightly pourable. Place the lemon blackberry bread on a cooling rack and the rack on a baking tray or a piece of parchment paper or paper towels.
- Pour the glaze on top, letting it drip slowly on the sides of the loaf cake.
Expert tips
Use a digital kitchen scale to make the blackberry lemon bread recipe; it ensures the best results (Amazon affiliate link).
It’s essential to beat the eggs and the sugar thoroughly (as long as instructed).
Remember to toss the berries with flour before adding them to the bread batter; this will prevent them from sinking into the cake.
Don’t substitute the oil with butter; you cannot do it 1:1, and this recipe is developed to work when baked with oil.
How to store lemon blackberry bread?
Room temperature: Keep it covered with a clean towel; it will stay moist and delicious for at least 2 days.
Refrigerate it in an airtight container to store it for longer; it will be fine for about 5 days.
Freeze it; it will be fine for at least 3 months. You can freeze the whole bread (wrapped in plastic wrap and then in foil), but I prefer to freeze individual slices. To do that, freeze the pieces in a single layer on a baking tray or similar. Once solid, wrap them in plastic wrap or foil and place them in freezer bags or airtight containers.
Defrost in the fridge or on the counter.
Moist Blackberry Lemon Bread
Equipment
- Loaf cake tin of about 8x4x3 inches/ 20x10x7 cm.
Ingredients
Blackberry lemon bread:
- 3 eggs large
- 125 g granulated sugar ⅔ cup/ 4 oz, Note 2
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 150 g yogurt full-fat , ½ cup + 1 tablespoon/ 5 ½ oz, Note 3
- 120 ml oil neutral-tasting (canola), ½ cup/ 4 fl.oz
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest Note 4
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 210 g all-purpose flour 1 ¾ cups/ 7 ½ oz
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 125 g blackberries fresh or frozen, 4 oz, Note 5
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
Lemon glaze:
- 75 g icing sugar ¾ cup/ 2 ½ oz
- 3-4 teaspoons lemon juice as required
Instructions
- Preparations: Preheat the oven to 160°C/ 320°F. Butter the loaf cake tin, sprinkle it with a bit of flour and shake it to coat it with the flour. Turn it over the sink and pat it gently on the bottom side to help remove the excess flour.
- Wet ingredients: Beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract on medium speed in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment for 5-6 minutes until pale and creamy. Add the yogurt, oil, lemon juice, and zest and beat shortly to mix.
- Dry ingredients: Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in another bowl. Add to the wet ingredients and mix shortly until just combined.
- Blackberries: In the meantime, cut the blackberries in half if they are huge. Mix them with 2 teaspoons of flour in a small bowl. Fold about ¾ of the floured berries into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf cake tin. Place the remaining berries on top and press them gently into the batter.
- Bake for 65-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Check after 30 minutes; if the top of the cake is already brown, cover the baking dish loosely with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent the bread from getting too dark on top.
- Cool: Once baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool completely in the baking dish.
Lemon glaze:
- Mix: In a small bowl, stir the icing sugar and 2-3 teaspoons lemon juice. Add more lemon juice or icing sugar to get the right consistency. The glaze should be thick yet slightly pourable.
- Glaze the bread: Place the bread on a wire rack and the wire rack on a baking tray or a piece of parchment paper or paper towels. Pour the glaze on top, letting it drip slowly on the sides of the loaf cake.
Notes
- Use a digital kitchen scale for best results (Amazon affiliate link).
- The blackberry bread is not overly sweet; we love it this way. However, you can increase the sugar by about 35 g/ ⅓ cup.
- Creamy yogurt, Greek-style.
- From an organic, unwaxed lemon.
- Don’t defrost the blackberries if frozen.
Roland says
Fruity and moisty, that´s my favorite