My lemon tree is blooming so I decided to remake my lemon bread recipe. This loaf is packed with fresh lemon juice and zest. The crumb is really nice and soft. I made a lemon icing to spread on top and believe me I think this is better than the Starbucks one because it is less greasy and the glaze looks and tastes better.

Guess what! Tomorrow is my birthday and for the first time ever, I have zero plans because covid of course. I decided to not bake my own cake so I’ll go to a bakery to get one. 38 years here I come!

The videos for this recipe are posted on my Instagram so don’t forget to follow me here.

Let’s start with the recipe.

Yield 1 loaf pan

Ingredients

For the bread

1 and 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup white granulated sugar

1/3 cup Greek Yogurt

2-3 tablespoons lemon zest

2 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

3 eggs, room temperature

1 and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 and 1/2 tablespoons poppy seeds

optional : 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

For the icing

1 cup powder sugar (sifted)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon cream or milk

1/4-1/2 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)

Directions

For the bread

1.- Preheat oven to 350 F. Flour and butter a loaf pan. Set aside.

2.- In a medium size bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. This will be your dry ingredients

3.- In a bowl and using a mixer, mix the butter for a couple of minutes. Add sugar and mix for another 2 minutes. Your mixture should look light and fluffy. Add eggs one by one and mix well after each addition.

4.- Add yogurt and mix for about 30 seconds. Add lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla. Mix. At this stage, the mixture will curdle but don’t worry because it will all come together

5.- Add dry ingredients to our wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. At this point taste the batter and see if you want to add a little bit of lemon extract but if you don’t want to that’s ok too.

6.- Add poppy seeds and mix for 10 seconds. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

7.- Bake for about 45-50minutes. If the top of the bread gets too dark, grab a piece of foil and cover the top. Keep baking until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean. Do not overbake.

8.- Let it cool completely on a rack.

For the icing

1.- In a bowl mix powdered sugar, cream and lemon juice. If it’s too thick you can add more cream/milk. Add 1/4 teaspoon of lemon extract. Mix well until everything is well combined. Taste it and if it needs more lemon flavor you can add a tiny bit more of the extract.

2.- Spread icing on the top. You can use a spatula. Try to make a thick layer of icing. Let the icing to set for at least 30 minutes and then cut.

Enjoy!