This gluten free raspberry loaf cake is the perfect easy, no-fuss bake. It’s wonderfully moist and tender, with a plush crumb and generously studded with raspberries. You can easily whip it up in about 20-30 minutes and then let it do its thing in the oven, and it works great with both fresh and frozen raspberries.
This simple raspberry loaf cake is my favourite kind of bake: minimal effort and no-fuss, and it tastes and looks AMAZING. The cake is perfectly soft, moist and tender and it’s packed full of lemon zest and juicy raspberries.
The great thing is that it works with both fresh and frozen raspberries – because while I love using fresh ones, frozen berries are usually what I have on hand. And don’t worry, the raspberries won’t sink to the bottom of the cake: I’ve optimised the recipe so that they’re evenly distributed in every slice (just make sure to get them evenly distributed throughout the batter before you pour it into the loaf tin).
This is basically a one-bowl recipe: there’s no creaming involved, you just whisk together all the wet and all the dry ingredients into a smooth batter, fold in the raspberries and then bake. It really is that simple.
And it’s really quick to make: you can whip it up in about 20-30 minutes and then let it do its thing in the oven – it’s honestly the perfect everyday bake. I finished it off with a simple lemon icing and a sprinkling of freeze-dried raspberry pieces, but you can also just dust it with a bit of powdered/icing sugar if you’re particularly impatient or you just don’t like that kind of icing.
Before we get to the bits and bobs of making this amazing raspberry cake – if you like what you’re seeing, subscribe to my newsletter to keep up to date on the latest recipes and tips!
Note: the whole recipe, including the ingredient quantities, can be found at the bottom of this page – just scroll down to the bottom, or click the ‘Jump to Recipe’ button at the top of this post.
How to make this easy gluten free raspberry cake
Making this raspberry loaf cake is incredibly straightforward, you can whip it up in about 20-30 minutes and then let it do its thing in the oven. There’s no creaming required or anything like that: you just whisk together the wet and the dry ingredients separately, and then combine them into a smooth cake batter.
Then, fold in the (fresh or frozen) raspberries – and make sure that they’re evenly distributed throughout the batter. That way, they’ll be evenly distributed in the final, baked cake, so you get some in every single slice.
Finally, transfer the batter to a lined 9×5-inch (23x13cm) loaf tin, smooth out the top and bake!
Baking the raspberry loaf cake
You need to bake the cake at 350ºF (180ºF) and the baking time will vary depending on whether you’re using fresh or frozen raspberries:
- If using fresh raspberries: bake it for about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes.
- If using frozen raspberries: bake it for about 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes.
The exact baking time can vary depending on your oven, so always check the doneness by inserting a toothpick, skewer or cake tester into the centre of the cake: it should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. If you see any raw or half-baked batter, the cake needs to bake a bit longer.
Because of the relatively long baking time, you need to control the amount of browning on top of the cake – if it starts browning too much, cover it with a sheet of aluminium foil (shiny side up) and continue baking until done.
The simple lemon icing
The lemon icing is a simple combination of powdered/icing sugar, lemon juice and a bit of vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract) – it adds an extra layer of freshness and zing to the cake, and it also makes it look even prettier.
Whenever you’re making this type of icing, I recommend making it slightly thicker than you think is necessary. This will make sure that you get a generous layer of icing on top of your cake, along with those gorgeous drips down the side.
As a finishing touch, I added a sprinkling of freeze-dried raspberry pieces, but you can skip that if you don’t have them on hand.
Top tips for making gluten free raspberry loaf cake
Use unwaxed (ideally organic) lemons. Because you’ll be using lemon zest in the batter, I recommend using organic unwaxed lemons – that will give you the best flavour and you’ll also avoid any pesticides or fungicides that the “regular” lemons are treated with.
Rub the lemon zest into the sugar. This helps to release the maximum amount of essential oils from the lemon zest, which will make your cake extra fragrant.
You can use either fresh or frozen raspberries. Both options work great, but you’ll need to bake the cake for about 10-15 minutes longer if using frozen berries (all these details are included in the recipe card below).
Use room temperature ingredients. Whenever you’re making any type of butter-containing cake batter, it’s important to use room temperature ingredients (eggs, milk and yoghurt in this case, in addition to melted butter that’s been cooled until warm). This preserves the emulsion of the butter in the batter, and it results in a lovely, soft cake crumb. Using cold eggs, milk or yoghurt, on the other hand, will result in a split, curdled looking batter and that can negatively affect the texture of the final, baked bake.
For best results, weigh your ingredients, especially the flour. If you’re using cups/volume measurements, it’s very easy to over-measure your flour (especially because different brands of gluten free flour blends can vary A LOT in terms of density). Too much flour can make the cake too dense and dry – so, to get the best possible texture, I recommend using a digital food scale.
For the perfect split/crack along the centre, cut very thin strips of butter and arrange them on top of the batter to create a line of butter running down the middle. This creates a natural weak spot on top of the cake and thus controls where the cake will crack during baking – and it guarantees a perfect split along the centre every single time. Make sure to cut your butter strips VERY thin, they should be 1-2mm or less than ⅛ inch thin.
And that’s it! This covers everything you need to know about this incredibly delicious (and super easy) gluten free raspberry loaf cake. I’ve already made it three times just in the last week, and I still can’t get enough of it. It really is the perfect cosy treat – and it’s absolutely effortless to whip up.
I really hope you’ll love it as much as I do.
Happy baking!
More raspberry dessert recipes
If you can’t get enough of raspberry-packed deliciousness, you’re definitely in the right place!
- Lemon Raspberry Crumble Bars
- Raspberry Curd Lemon Cookies
- Easy Baked Raspberry Cheesecake
- Small Batch Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
- Gluten Free Raspberry Doughnuts
- Raspberry Brownie Cupcakes
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Gluten Free Raspberry Loaf Cake
This gluten free raspberry loaf cake is the perfect easy, no-fuss bake. It’s wonderfully moist and tender, with a plush crumb and generously studded with raspberries. You can easily whip it up in about 20-30 minutes and then let it do its thing in the oven, and it works great with both fresh and frozen raspberries.
Print Rate SAVE
5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 25 minutes mins
Cook/Bake Time 1 hour hr
Total Time 1 hour hr 25 minutes mins
Servings 10
Author Kat | The Loopy Whisk
Ingredients
Raspberry loaf cake:
- 200 g (1 cup) caster/superfine or granulated sugar
- zest of 1 lemon (Ideally, use organic unwaxed lemons.)
- 85 g (¾ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm
- 55 g (¼ cup) sunflower or vegetable oil (or other neutral-tasting oil of choice)
- 80 g (⅓ cup) whole milk, room temperature
- 75 g (⅓ cup) full-fat plain or Greek-style yoghurt, room temperature
- 3 US large/UK medium eggs, room temperature
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
- 240 g (2 cups) plain gluten free flour blend (I used Doves Farm Freee plain gluten free flour that doesn't have any xanthan gum added.You can also mix your own gluten free flour blend using this recipe.Note that for this homemade blend, 1 cup = 150g, so ideally use a digital food scale for best results.)
- 50 g (½ cup) almond flour (If you have a nut allergy, you can replace it with an equal weight of extra gluten free flour blend.)
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp xanthan gum (Omit if your gluten free flour blend already contains xanthan gum.)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 200 g (1⅔ cups) fresh or frozen raspberries
Lemon icing:
- 120 g (1 cup) powdered/icing sugar
- 5-7 tsp lemon juice
- ½ tsp vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
- freeze-dried raspberry pieces (optional)
Instructions
Raspberry loaf cake:
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position, pre-heat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC) and line a 9x5-inch (23x13cm) loaf tin with parchment/baking paper.
Add the sugar and lemon zest to a large bowl, and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar.
Tip: This helps to release more essential oils from the zest, and it will make your cake even more lemony and aromatic.
Add the melted butter, oil, milk, yoghurt, eggs and vanilla, and whisk well until combined.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the gluten free flour blend, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt, and add them to the wet ingredients.
Whisk well until you get a smooth cake batter with no flour clumps.
Add in the (fresh or frozen) raspberries and mix well until they're evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and smooth out the top.
Optional extra step: Cut cold butter (straight from the fridge) into very thin strips (about 1-2mm or less than ⅛ inch thin) and arrange them in a line on top of the batter, along the middle (see blog post for photos).
This creates a natural weak spot on top of the cake and thus controls where the cake will crack during baking – and it guarantees a perfect split along the centre every single time.
Bake at 350ºF (180ºC) for about 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes (if using fresh raspberries) or for about 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes (if using frozen raspberries), or until the cake is well risen, golden brown on top and an inserted toothpick or cake tester comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. The loaf should have a large crack running along the centre.
If the cake starts browning too quickly or too much, cover it with a sheet of aluminium foil (shiny side up) and continue baking until done.
Allow to cool in the loaf tin for about 10-15 minutes, then transfer the cake out of the tin and onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Lemon icing:
Stir the powdered/icing sugar and 5 teaspoons of lemon juice together until you get a thick mixture with no clumps. If your icing is too thick, add an extra 1-2 teaspoons of juice. This should give you icing of the optimal consistency. Add the vanilla and mix well to combine.
Tip:You can add more lemon juice to make it runnier, or more powdered/icing sugar to make it thicker, as required. However, note that you should make the icing thicker than you might think is necessary, especially if you want to have a generous layer of icing on top of the cake, along with lovely thick drips running down the sides.
Drizzle the lemon icing over the cooled cake, spreading it evenly across the top with the back of a spoon, and letting it drip down the sides.
Sprinkle on freeze-dried raspberry pieces (optional), and allow the icing to set and dry out slightly (about 30 minutes at room temperature) before slicing and serving.
Storage:
The gluten free raspberry loaf cake keeps well in a closed container in a cool dry place for about 3-4 days.
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