Lemon Blackberry Bread

Lemon Blackberry Bread tastes like a bright and sunny burst of summer, studded with juicy blackberries and drizzled with a puckery citrus glaze. A delicious treat that's satisfying enough for breakfast and sweet enough for dessert.

A freshly baked loaf of Lemon Blackberry Bread never lasts long in our house.

This sweet lemony bread recipe is the perfect breakfast, snack, and dessert, so we have reasons to reach for it several times throughout the day.

Kind of like my Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread and Blueberry Cornbread Streusel Bars. It's one of those treats that's equally delicious with morning coffee, an afternoon cup of tea, or as an after-dinner sweet treat.

This blackberry lemon bread recipe is super moist and packed with juicy, fresh berries, and zingy lemon flavor. The tangy lemon glaze on top is the perfect finishing touch -- it really doesn't even need butter.

It's so soft and tender, almost like cake.

You’re going to love this

Super lemony. With the zest and juice of three lemons, AND a tablespoon of lemon extract, it's safe to say this blackberry lemon loaf cake is, what’s the word … lemony. 

Easy. This is a basic recipe with simple ingredients and a cinch to stir together. 

So many blackberries. This blackberry bread is beautifully studded with juicy bites of berries.

Sweet anytime treat. Lemon blackberry bread is delicious for breakfast, coffee with friends, dessert, or anytime!

Ingredients

Softened butter. Use unsalted butter that's softened to room temperature so it will cream together with the sugar.

Eggs. It's important to use room temperature eggs in this recipe. Otherwise, if you add cold eggs to warm butter, it could curdle the batter.

Fresh lemon juice and zest. Squeeze the most flavor out of the lemons as possible by using the lemon juice and zest. Please do not use bottled lemon juice, it just won't taste as bright and fresh.

Pure lemon extract. One full tablespoon of pure lemon extract punches up the citrus flavor in this lemon bread recipe.

Low-fat vanilla Greek yogurt. I've used plain, vanilla, and lemon Greek yogurt, just depending on what was in my fridge. Full-fat Greek yogurt should substitute just fine, but stay away from using nonfat, as it could adversely affect the texture.

Flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, rather than scooping the measuring cup into the flour bag to ensure the proper measure of flour.

Fresh blackberries. If your blackberries are large, cut them into halves, thirds, or quarters to keep them from sinking and provide better distribution throughout the loaf.

Step-by-step Instructions

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350. Line loaf pan with parchment paper.

Wash and rinse the blackberries and pat them dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture. Halve or quarter the blackberries if they are very large.

Step 2

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Step 3

Mix in the eggs one at a time. Add lemon extract, lemon juice and zest, and Greek yogurt. Mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl to get everything incorporated.

Step 4

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda into the wet ingredients. If you don't have a sifter or strainer, whisk the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.

Use a wooden spoon to stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined. Do not over mix.

Step 5

With a rubber spatula, gently fold in ⅔ of the blackberries into the lemon bread batter.

Step 6

Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan.

Place the remaining blackberries onto the top of the bread, pressing some of the berries down into the batter.

Use a spatula or knife to smooth out the top of the batter.

Step 7

Bake on the middle rack for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown and a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean or with moist crumbs.

If the top starts to get too dark before it's done, place a piece of foil over the top.

Step 8

Let bread cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes.

Remove the baked loaf from the pan and place it on a cooling rack until it's completely cooled.

Step 9

Make the glaze.

Add the powdered sugar, fresh lemon zest, and melted butter to a medium bowl. Add the lemon juice, one tablespoon at a time, and stir until it reaches your desired drizzling consistency. I usually end up using two tablespoons of lemon juice.

If the glaze becomes too thin, add a little more powdered sugar.

Drizzle the glaze over the blackberry bread. Let the glaze set, then serve!

Storage & Freezing

Store at room temperature tightly covered in plastic wrap or foil for 2 days. For longer storage, place in the refrigerator.

This lemon blackberry bread freezes well. Cool the loaf completely, then wrap in plastic wrap and again in aluminum foil. You can freeze the glazed loaf, but for best results, freeze the loaf unglazed and make the glaze fresh before serving. Thaw in the refrigerator.

Expert Tips

Line the pan with parchment paper to ensure even browning and make it easy to lift the bread right out!

Use room temperature butter, eggs, and Greek yogurt.

If you forget to take your eggs out ahead of time, which I do all the time, place them in a bowl of warm water for about ten minutes. 

To get the most juice from your lemons, press down on them with the heel of your hand and roll them around on your counter. This will loosen them up and give you way more juice. You can also throw them in the microwave for about 30 seconds. 

Be careful not to overmix the batter. Stir until the flour mixture is just incorporated.

Pat the blackberries dry after washing them.

Cut the blackberries into halves, thirds, or quarters to keep the large, heavy berries from sinking.

Gently fold ⅔ of the berries into the quick bread batter and add the remaining ⅓ to the top to give better berry distribution throughout the bread.

This recipe was made with fresh blackberries. If you're using frozen berries, I recommend keeping them frozen, cutting them into smaller pieces, and tossing them in about a tablespoon of flour before folding them into the batter.

Recipe FAQs

My Recipe Essentials

These sheets of parchment paper are so handy -- and much easier to use than a roll.

Pure lemon extract gives this sweet lemon bread even more citrus flavor!

Hungry for More Sweet Treats?

Let's Stay in Touch

Follow Midwestern HomeLife on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, and subscribe via email to receive all of the latest recipes!