Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf (2024)

Published: Sep 10, 2021 by thesugarfreediva. · This post may contain affiliate or amazon links.
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Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf Cake, a tasty sugar free copycat version of the popular Starbucks lemon loaf dessert recipe.

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Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf cake that tastes just like Starbucks!

If you love the popular lemon loaf cake but, not the sugar in it, this recipe is for you!

Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf

This is the sugar free copycat version of the popular Starbucks dessert.
However, this version has been modified to no added sugar.

Did you try my recipe for Sugar Free Lemon Loaf Cake?

That popular lemon loaf cake recipe is more of a traditional lemon loaf cake.
This lemon loaf cake is made more like the the Starbucks lemon loaf with the lemon icing!

This recipe for lemon loaf is made in a loaf pan.
You can find loaf pan here.

You may be wondering what is lemon loaf.

Lemon loaf is another name for a cake made with lemon.
It is called a loaf, rather than a 'cake' because it is baked in a loaf pan.

Think of a lemon loaf cake as a kind of pound cake.

While it does not have the overwhelming flavor of butter like regular pound cake, this recipe is made with butter. Also, this cake does have an abundance of lemon flavoring, thus the 'lemon' in the name.

Here is how to make the tangy lemon icing for this recipe.

What makes the Starbucks recipe so unique is the lemon flavored glaze which is really more like an icing.
This icing coats the loaf cake and makes it so delicious to eat!

In a medium bowl whisk together the following ingredients until a thick icing forms.

Sugar Free Powdered Sugar- 2 cups.
Lemon Juice- 1 tablespoon. Please use fresh lemon juice with nothing added to it.
Whipping Cream or Unsweetened Nut Milk- 1 tablespoon. Mixing the two can give a consistency more like regular milk.

Here are some tips for making a copycat version of Starbucks Lemon Loaf Cake with no added sugar.

I just provided you with the recipe for how to make the icing that covers the cake. If your icing is
too thick add additional nut milk a teaspoon at a time until you reach that perfect consistency.

More helpful tips for you.

When choosing a sugar alternative it is important that you choose an alternative that is granular and measures 1:1 with sugar in order to keep the ingredients in balance. Also, make sure that your sugar alternative can also be baked with.
It is really important that your ingredients are fresh rather than out of date. This is especially true for you dry ingredients.
Butter is important to this recipe to make it more like the famous version. However, for a lighter and more moist cake, you can simply substitute in vegetable oil instead.

How to store lemon loaf cake.

Just in case there may be leftovers, you can wrap this cake in plastic wrap to keep for up to five days. Or, you can store it in an air tight container or plastic wrap in the freezer.

Keep up to date with my recipes

You can check out my guide on baking with sugar alternatives on Amazon

I have some great tips on which alternatives may work in a recipe such as this one.

Be sure to follow me on facebook and subscribe to my recipes via email to keep up to date as well.

How to make this a Starbucks copycat lemon loaf with cake mix.

This is actually an easier way to make this recipe.
The icing can be used over the cake just as the recipe below.

You will need to purchase sugar free yellow cake mix.

Use the cake mix and omit the dry ingredients listed below. I would also use a non instant sugar free lemon pudding mix (if you cannot find the lemon use a white non instant pudding and add additional lemon flavoring.).

Ingredients needed to make a Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf Cake

All purpose flour- 1 ½ cups.
Baking powder- ½ teaspoon.
Baking soda- ¼ teaspoon.
Salt- ¼ teaspoon.
Unsalted butter- ½ cup (1 stick) room temperature.
Granulated Sugar Alternative- 1 cup. Please use a product that measures 1:1 with regular sugar.
Eggs- 3, also at room temperature, large preferred.
Vanilla Extract- 1 teaspoon.
Lemon Extract- 1 teaspoon.
Also, Lemon Zest- 1 tablespoon (about one large lemon).
Lemon Juice- 2 tablespoons.
Sour Cream- ½ cup. You can sub in buttermilk.

How to make Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf

Preheat your oven to 350 and double prep a loaf pan. I spray mine with nonstick and then dust lightly with flour.
In a medium bowl, use a whisk or a fork to blend together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set this bowl aside.
Next, in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and the granulated sugar alternative until light and fluffy. This can take up to five minutes to get light and fluffy depending on your alternative.
Add in the eggs one at a time to the mixing bowl, beating after each until incorporated and scraping down the bowl after adding. Then add the vanilla, lemon extract, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
For the next step we will add the dry ingredients from the first bowl to the mixing bowl. Do this by adding half of the dry ingredients at a time and gently mixing between additions. Then you can blend in the sour cream.
Transfer the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes and a skewer comes out clean. Cool completely before adding icing from the recipe earlier mentioned.

The Recipe Card for Sugar Free Copycat Starbucks Lemon Loaf

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4.72 from 32 votes

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Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf

Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf Cake, a tasty sugar free copycat version of the popular Starbucks lemon loaf dessert recipe.

Prep Time16 minutes mins

Cook Time55 minutes mins

Equipment

Loaf Pan

Ingredients

1 ½ cups All Purpose Flour
½ tsp Baking Powder
¼ tsp Baking Soda
¼ tsp Salt
½ cup Butter - see post for details
1 cup Splenda - see post for details and alternatives
3 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Lemon Extract
1 tbsp Lemon Zest
2 tbsp Lemon Juice
½ cup Sour Cream - see post for alternative

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 and double prep a loaf pan. I spray mine with nonstick and then dust lightly with flour.
In a medium bowl, use a whisk or a fork to blend together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set this bowl aside.
Next, in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and the granulated sugar alternative until light and fluffy. This can take up to five minutes to get light and fluffy depending on your alternative.
Add in the eggs one at a time to the mixing bowl, beating after each until incorporated and scraping down the bowl after adding. Then add the vanilla, lemon extract, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
For the next step we will add the dry ingredients from the first bowl to the mixing bowl. Do this by adding half of the dry ingredients at a time and gently mixing between additions. Then you can blend in the sour cream.
Transfer the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45-55 minutes and a skewer comes out clean. Cool completely before adding icing from the recipe earlier mentioned.

Recipe Notes

Nutritional values do not include the lemon icing.

*Please check the nutritional labels to assure that you are sticking to your diet restrictions for any substitutions used.

- see post for alternatives
Please see recipe post for further details on this recipe.
Nutritional Information is only an estimate and can vary especially with ingredients that are used.

See thesugarfreediva.com for details on this recipe.

most recently updated:

September 10, 2021

*About Sugar Alternatives

Specific sugar alternatives are not given in the recipes presented on this site. Only suggestions are given as to the 'kind' of alternative to use. It is up to you to select the alternative to use that suits your needs best. If the recipe is heated or cooked, it is best to use an alternative that can be heated or cooked with for best results. This site does not endorse any specific ingredients,

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This means that the links on this website, and specifically on this post, that lead to other sites may be affiliate links.

Nutrition

Please note: Nutritional data has been calculated using a tool that comes with this recipe card and not by me. This means that Nutritional Information is only an estimate and can vary especially with ingredients that you use. The accuracy of this tool may differ from other tools as expected. Also note that there is no instructional value to the video that may be attached to this recipe. It is only there for visual pleasure. For more information about the images in this recipe, please refer the the recipe instructions. Thank you!

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Nutritional Information is only an estimate and can vary especially with ingredients that are used.

Sugar Free Copycat Lemon Loaf, a tasty sugar free copycat version of the popular Starbucks lemon loaf dessert recipe.

Please see recipe post for further details on this recipe.

You can see items that have been featured on my Sugar Free Sunday Spotlight here.