Lemon Bread
Updated Jan 22, 2026
This lemon bread loaf is tangy, sweet, easy to make, and so good! Made with Greek yogurt and olive oil, it's light, fresh and lemony!
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Try My Lemon Bread!
I’m obsessed with this lemon bread that is literally bursting with lemon flavor from the zest and juice in the bread to the lemony glaze on top. If you’re a home baker like me and you’re looking for a simple bread to bake especially during the spring, this lemon bread is a must try.
It’s a standard type of quick sweet bread recipe with easy pantry ingredients. And I think what makes it special is that I rub the lemon zest with the sugar before adding the rest of the wet ingredients. That step alone is a) so therapeutic and b) totally worth it to infuse the lemon flavor into the every crumb of the lemon bread. And if you try it and love it, make it using mini loaves for gifting!
Lemon Bread Ingredients
- Lemons: I use the juice and the zest to really bring out the fresh lemon flavor. Pick lemons that have a good squeeze to them. By the way, you can actually try this with oranges! One reader was successful in swapping out lemon juice and zest for orange juice and zest for a whole new flavor profile.
- Greek yogurt: I use plain whole milk Greek yogurt, but you can swap it for a lemon flavor yogurt for a more lemony flavor. You can also swap it out entirely for sour cream.
- Olive oil: I love the combination of olive oil with lemon, but you can also make this with melted butter or avocado oil.
- Eggs: You can help to make this recipe vegan by using a flax egg.
- Dry ingredients: Sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt.
“Excellent, made Limoncello and then used the zest and fresh lemons to make the bread. Made double batch using plain Greek yogurt.. Made 1 Loaf and one Bundt, perfect!!!” – Melissa
How to Make Lemon Bread
Lemon Bread
Video
Ingredients
For the Bread
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup Whole Milk Greek yogurt room temperature
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice
For the lemon glaze
- 1 ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8×4-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In another large bowl, place the sugar and lemon zest and use your fingers to rub them together until well blended and fragrant. Add the eggs, yogurt, olive oil and lemon juice and whisk to combine.
- Transfer the dry ingredients on top of the wet ingredients and mix until no streaks remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 55-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. If necessary, tent the pan with foil after 45 minutes of baking to prevent the top from browning too much.
- Remove from the oven and allow the bread to cool completely in the pan, set on a wire rack before slicing.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze. Whisk all ingredients until smooth. Drizzle glaze over cooled bread and serve immediately.
Notes
- My Top Tip: Don’t skip the lemon zest and sugar rubbing. Use your hands and rub them together until the sugar almost looks yellow. This step really will give you the best lemon flavor in this bread.
- Storage: Once the bread is cooled, place it in an airtight container. It will keep at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for up to 7 days. Cover it with foil or a plastic bag to prevent it from drying out.
- Freezing: You can freeze the bread for up to 3 months. Just thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
Lemon Bread Variations
- Use brown butter instead of olive oil: If you have time to brown some butter on the stovetop, you can use melt and brown 1 stick and it really adds a richness that goes so well with the lemon flavor.
- Add lavender or thyme: A small amount of dried lavender or fresh thyme adds a subtle floral or herbal note. It makes it a lot more aromatic, which is great for gifting!
- Fold in pistachios: Maybe it’s the Lebanese in me, but I love pistachios with lemons, and this lemon bread would be so delicious with an added crunch from some pistachios. You can use up to ½ cup of chopped pistachios.
- Change the glaze for frosting: If you want it to be more decadent like the Starbucks lemon loaf, try using frosting instead of the glaze. You can buy frosting or try my easy homemade frosting recipe.
Recipe Tips
- Grease the loaf pan and use parchment paper for easy removal. I love this double greasing method for quick breads because nothing sticks to the bottom and the overhanging parchment paper makes it so easy to lift from the pan.
- Don’t over mix the batter. The dry ingredients should be just combined; if you over mix it the bread won’t be light and fluffy.
- Don’t skip the lemon zest and sugar rubbing. Use your hands and rub them together until the sugar almost looks yellow. This step really will give you the best lemon flavor in this bread.
- Cover the bread with aluminum foil if necessary. If you notice after 30-40 minutes of baking that the top of the bread is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with aluminum foil to help it bake evenly on all sides.
FAQs
There could be a few reasons for this: possibly underbaking the bread, an oven temperature that was too low, using expired baking powder or possibly over mixing the batter.
If you can, take out the ingredients 30 minutes before you start making this lemon loaf that will help because warm ingredients will combine more easily and trap air to create a fluffy bread. But if you’re in a rush, it will still turn out fine…it may just have more cracks in it.
“Beautiful! Needed to use up leftover buttermilk, so swapped it for yogurt, turned out beautifully moist and tasty!” – Caitlin
Comments
This recipe is amazing- I will definitely be repeating! I used limes, and it was so good! Just wish I had coconut extract for the glaze. A food processor worked great to incorporate the zest with the sugar and was able to avoid getting my hands dirty.
Yay! So glad it turned out amazing. Using a food processor for that is a great idea! Enjoy!
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