This blackberry lemon bread is a moist quick bread made from scratch with light lemon flavor, added blackberries and lemon glaze.
This is an easy quick bread to make and isn’t your average bread. The combination of the sweet and tart blackberries and the light lemon flavor works so well together.
The lemon flavor in this loaf cake is light and not over-the-top, but the great thing about it is that you can adjust the strength of the lemon extract and make it even stronger if you like.
Once the blackberry lemon loaf is baked and cooled, you can then add a yummy lemon glaze over it. Don’t forget the glaze as it adds that special extra touch.
Hey there! Before you scroll, there’s lot’s of important stuff in the post!…including the FAQ section, which may answer any questions you might have about this recipe. Enjoy!
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Ingredient Notes:
Now let’s talk about just some of the ingredients that are in this quick bread. (The list of all ingredients are in the recipe card below.)
All-purpose flour: No special flour is needed for this bread. It’s just your average all-purpose and that makes things really easy.
Baking powder and baking soda: You’ll need both for this bread, so make sure not to omit either or substitute them.
Sour cream: This is what makes this bread super moist and it adds a hint of flavor.
Unsalted butter: Butter gives such a nice flavor to quick bread. I chose unsalted for this recipe, so the amount of salt added to it can be controlled and doesn’t end up too much.
Lemon juice, lemon zest, and lemon extract: You’ll use a combination of these to get that zesty lemon flavor. Try not to omit the lemon zest as that really lends a lot of flavor to the cake.
The lemon extract can be omitted, but if you want more than a light lemon flavor, then you’ll want to add it.
Fresh blackberries: You won’t need a large amount of these because you’ll be cutting them a bit smaller. Fresh blackberries seem to work best here.
Confectioners sugar and lemon juice: It only takes a couple of ingredients to make a super yummy lemon glaze. This really just finishes off the bread beautifully.
How to make this bread:
Let’s talk about how to make this blackberry lemon bread. (The exact instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Step 1:
The first thing you want to do is to preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Then spray or grease a 9″ loaf pan with non-stick spray and set aside.
Make sure to spray your pan even if it’s already non-stick.
Step 2:
Next, wash the fresh blackberries and pat them dry. Take any large blackberries and cut them in half and set the blackberries aside for now.
Step 3:
In a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt). Whisk well and set aside.
Step 4:
In another mixing bowl, add the sour cream, sugar, melted butter, oil, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, optional lemon extract and vanilla extract. Mix well with a whisk.
Step 5:
Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture and mix well with a spoon. Make sure not to add the blackberries yet.
Also, be careful not to over-mix at this point. Only mix until all the ingredients are well incorporated. Don’t worry if there are a few small lumps in the batter.
Step 6:
Pour only about ⅓ of the batter into the sprayed or greased loaf pan.
Step 7:
Now, to the rest of the batter that’s left in the bowl, gently fold in the blackberries, but be careful only to fold it a few times so that they don’t completely discolor the entire batter.
Step 8:
Next, add the rest of the batter (with the blackberries in it) to the loaf pan. (Adding the batter this way will help keep the blackberries from sinking to the bottom.)
Step 9:
Bake the bread at 325 degrees F for approximately 55-60 minutes. If you use very light-colored or disposable foil pans, you’ll need to bake longer.
A toothpick inserted into the center will come out with a few moist crumbs on it or clean, but no raw batter on it.
Step 10:
Cool the bread in the pan on a cooling rack for about 20 minutes, then turn the bread loaf out of the pan and let cool completely on the rack.
Step 11:
Next, make the glaze by adding all of the glaze ingredients to a bowl and then mix well with a whisk or a spoon.
Step 12:
Spoon the glaze over the bread once the bread has cooled to room temperature.
Tips & FAQs:
This recipe is a ‘quick bread’ recipe and those types of breads do not generally include yeast. Quick breads are more of a cake or muffin texture.
Make sure not to pack the flour down into the measuring cup when it’s measured. Spoon flour into the measuring cup, then level off, but you don’t want to scoop the flour as that can add too much and make the bread dry.
No, you don’t want to do that. Those are different and cannot be substituted for each other equally. If you’d like more information on the difference, check out this post: Baking Powder vs Baking Soda
If you can’t get sour cream, you can use plain yogurt instead.
Unsalted is always best because you can estimate the proper amount of salt that will be added plus salted has a different water content than unsalted.
However, if you’re unable to get unsalted butter, you can use salted in the cake and the buttercream, but omit the additional salt that each recipe calls for.
You do not, however, it does give the bread an extra boost of lemon flavor.
Yes, you can use bottled lemon juice.
You do not, however, it will add extra lemon flavor to the bread if you use it.
I have not tested out this recipe with frozen blackberries, but I think they would work just fine.
If you add them to the batter frozen, the baking time may need to be extended a bit. If they are defrosted, the color from the blackberries will swirl a bit more than if they were fresh.
You do not need to mix this batter with an electric mixer. Go ahead and just mix with a large spoon like a wooden spoon. Also, be very careful not to mix the batter too long.
Quick breads should not be mixed for minutes at a time, or they will become dense. You can stop mixing once the ingredients are well incorporated.
A toothpick inserted into the center will come out with a few moist crumbs on it or clean, but no liquid batter on it.
This bread can be made ahead of time and frozen if desired. Let the baked bread cool completely, then wrap in plastic wrap and foil and place in the freezer for up to a month.
To thaw, place the wrapped bread on the counter at room temperature and let thaw completely, then remove the wrapping. Once defrosted, add the glaze.
This bread should be stored wrapped well or in an airtight container in the refrigerator and can last up to about 4 days.
Probably, although I haven’t tested that out with this particular recipe.
If you want to try it, you can add liners to a cupcake pan, add a bit of the plain batter to each liner, then add the blackberries to the rest of the batter, then fill up the cupcake liners to about ⅔ full.
Bake at 350 degrees and start checking at about 20 minutes or so.
This bread can be served either cold or warmed for about 10 seconds in the microwave.
If you want to add a little something special, you can add a cup of white chocolate chips.
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Supplies Used for this Cake:
Video:
Note About Recipe Measurements: I write recipes using volume (cups) measurements because here in the U.S., this is what people are more familiar with and I don’t want anyone to feel intimidated when baking. For metric/weight measurements, click the ‘metric’ button under the ingredients in the recipe card below. The weights are converted by a program, not me, and it’s just a best guess. I can’t guarantee that weighing the ingredients will produce the exact same results, since I test recipes using volume measurements.
Recipe
Blackberry Lemon Bread with Glaze
Ingredients
For the bread:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup lemon juice (or the juice of 2 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 1-2 lemons)
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract (use if you want more than just a light lemon flavor in the bread)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 oz fresh blackberries, chopped or halved
For the glaze:
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- leftover lemon zest
Instructions
For the bread:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray or grease a 9″ loaf pan with non-stick spray and set aside.
- Wash the blackberries and pat dry. Cut any large blackberries in half. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt). Whisk well and set aside.
- In another bowl, add the sour cream, sugar, melted butter, oil, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, optional lemon extract and vanilla extract. Mix well with a whisk.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture and mix well with a spoon. (Don't add the blackberries yet.) Make sure not to over-mix at this point. Only mix until all the ingredients are well incorporated. It's okay to leave a few small lumps in it. The batter will be thick.
- Pour only about ⅓ of the batter into the sprayed or greased loaf pan.
- Gently fold the blackberries into the remaining batter in the mixing bowl. Be careful only to fold the blueberries in a few times so they don't completely discolor the batter.
- Add the rest of the batter (with the blackberries in it) to the loaf pan. (Adding the batter this way will help keep the blackberries from sinking to the bottom.)
- Bake at 325 degrees F for approximately 55-60 minutes. (If you use very light- colored or disposable foil pans, you'll need to bake longer.) A toothpick inserted into the center will come out with a few moist crumbs on it or clean, but no raw batter on it.
- Cool the bread in the pan on a cooling rack for about 20 minutes, then turn the bread loaf out of the pan and let cool completely on the rack.
- Once cool, add the glaze.
For the glaze:
- Add all of the glaze ingredients to a bowl and mix well with a whisk or a spoon. Spoon over the bread once the bread has cooled to room temperature.
Notes
This bread can be served either cold or warmed for about 10 seconds in the microwave.
Nutritional values are an estimate.
Make sure to check out the TIPS & FAQs for this recipe in the blog post, which may answer questions you may have.
*This recipe card may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition
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Tom
I’m assuming you mean 1 cup of butter (2 sticks) in the frosting, not 2 cups which would be 4 sticks.
Kara Jane
Hey Tom, thanks for catching that typo. I actually do mean 2 cups which is 4 sticks. I’ve corrected it in the post.
Mary
Can this marshmallow buttercream frosting be used for piping?
If not, will it support using a regular buttercream to add a design to the cake?
Thanks! It looks fabulous!
Kara Jane
The marshmallow buttercream is a little soft, so I’m not sure you’d want to pipe with it although you could probably pipe simple rosettes or something. The cake is sturdy enough to hold a firm buttercream with piped designs though. Thanks, Mary!
Rachel
Any tips or ideas on the best substitute for the sour cream to make this dairy free? I have a good vegan Butter that I like to use, but not sure on the sour cream.
Kara
That’s a good question. I’ve tried vegan sour cream before (not for cakes though) and I just couldn’t stomach it. lol It might be ok if baked in a cake or bread though. I think you could try coconut yogurt. That’s much more palatable to me and I’m thinking it would work just as well.
Nicole Willard
I was out of lemon and sugar, so I didn’t add glaze, but honestly it didn’t need a thing! So delicious warm with a coffee! I wouldn’t change a thing. I have also made similar with blueberries. This batter was even better than my regular recipe!
Kara
Oh yay!!! So glad you loved it and thanks so much for the awesome review!
Bonny Kirby
Since I’m not a huge icing person, I melted some butter and mixed in a little lemon juice in it, then brushed it on the top of the still warm loaf. I then sprinkled some Turbinado Sugar on top. It worked really great and everyone loved it. They are already asking me to make it again.
Kara
Hi Bonny, I think the melted butter with lemon juice was an excellent idea! I’m going to try that myself. Thanks for the great review!
Iris Maczollek
It’s lovely BUT needs to be baked at least 15 minutes longer than stated and preferably in a springform pan.