This gluten free lemon cake is moist, spongey and so easy to make. Just one bowl and a few simple ingredients. Top it off with a sweet and tangy buttercream and candied lemons.
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This cake has been a long time coming and gone through SO many phases! I initially planned on making a vegan lemon cake that would of course be gluten free, but every trial results in a gummy, weirdly chewy or really dense cake.
After about 5 tries, I decided to throw in the towel on the vegan idea and just stick to a really, really good gluten free lemon cake. The eggs provide this cake with structure and help contribute to the perfect spongey texture.
This cake also uses a mix of gluten free all purpose flour and almond flour to provide a nice cakey texture. I sometimes find that just using a GF all purpose flour can yield a slightly gummy texture, but a little bit of almond flour really helps to balance that all out.
This recipe is also dairy free and I opted to top mine with a dairy free lemon buttercream, lemon zest and candied lemons! One bit into this cake and you’re going to fall in love.
How to make this recipe
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line either one 9×13 pan OR 2 9 inch round pans with parchment paper just on the bottom. It helps to lightly oil the bottom then put the prepared parchment paper in so it sticks easily. Set aside.
In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat together all wet ingredients until well incorporated.
Add in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours to measure, don’t scoop from the bag. Use a whisk to mix together until well combined, but careful not to over-mix. It shouldn’t be runny, but definitely won’t be thick either. It should resemble a fairly thin pancake batter.
Pour into your prepared pan(s) and add to the oven. The 9×13 will take about 32-40 minutes (mine took 35), the 9 inch will take closer to 25. Check with a toothpick to test doneness.
Remove from the oven, let cool for about 10 minutes, then carefully flip onto a cooling rack and peel off the parchment paper. If you’re making a sheet cake, you are welcome to leave it right in there and frost it in the pan for easy storage.
Let cool completely before frosting. I suggest sticking in the fridge for about an hour to ensure it’s fully cool.
To make the buttercream, add the room temperature butter, milk lemon juice an zest to the bowl of a stand mixer or large mixing bowl and beat until well combined.
Beat in the sifted powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time until your desired consistency is reached. I used about 4 cups for this recipe. To make it thicker, add more sugar, to make it thinner, add more milk. Frost the cake once cool & enjoy!
Getting the perfect flavor
This cake uses three forms of lemon to achieve the perfect lemon flavor. We’ll be using fresh lemon juice, zest and lemon extract. That might seem like a lot, but I promise it’s good!
The tangy of the lemon gets balanced by the sweetness from the sugar and the richness from the oil.
The best flour
If you’ve made any of my recipes before, you know I’m very loyal to my Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking flour. A lot of gluten free bakers prefer making their own blends, but I find it easiest for me and you to use a blend. Plus, if you’re not GF, just swap it out for regular all purpose flour.
I highly recommend sticking to the Bob’s flour since there is a lot of variation brand to brand, but if you opt to use a different one, just make sure it has xanthan gum in the mix!
This gluten free cake truly tastes no different than a regular cake. I’m the only one in my family who is gluten free and everyone says it tastes just like the real deal. Try it and you’ll see!
Keeping it moist
For whatever reason, a lot of people seem to think gluten free cakes and other baked goods are really dry. Because of that, I make a serious effort to ensure all of my recipes are incredibly moist and stay that way.
This gluten free lemon cake is made moist with the oil, milk, eggs and generous amount of lemon juice. As long as you store it in an air tight container or tightly wrapped with foil, you should have no problem keeping this cake moist!
I even find that it can get more moist as it sits because the buttercream seeps into the sponge a bit overtime. I promise, no dry cakes over here! Once prepared, this cake will keep for about 3 days at room temperature or 5 in the fridge.
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Gluten Free Lemon Cake
Ingredients
Wet:
- 3 eggs (room temperature)
- 1 3/4 cup fine granulated cane sugar
- 2/3 cup oil
- 1 3/4 cup milk (I used almond)
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon extract
- 1-2 tbsp lemon zest (about 1 large lemon)
Dry:
- 2 3/4 cup gluten free all purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill 1:1)
- 1 cup fine almond flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
Lemon Buttercream
- 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) butter at room temperature (I used dairy free)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp milk (I used almond)
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (or to taste)
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line either one 9×13 pan OR 2 9 inch round pans with parchment paper just on the bottom. It helps to lightly oil the bottom then put the prepared parchment paper in so it sticks easily. Set aside.
- In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat together all wet ingredients until well incorporated.
- Add in the dry ingredients, making sure to spoon and level the flours to measure, don't scoop from the bag. Use a whisk to mix together until well combined, but careful not to over-mix. It shouldn't be runny, but definitely won't be thick either. It should resemble a fairly thin pancake batter.
- Pour into your prepared pan(s) and add to the oven. The 9×13 will take about 32-40 minutes (mine took 35), the 9 inch will take closer to 25. Check with a toothpick to test doneness.
- Remove from the oven, let cool for about 10 minutes, then carefully flip onto a cooling rack and peel off the parchment paper. If you're making a sheet cake, you are welcome to leave it right in there and frost it in the pan for easy storage.
- Let cool completely before frosting. I suggest sticking in the fridge for about an hour to ensure it's fully cool.
- To make the buttercream, add the room temperature butter, milk lemon juice an zest to the bowl of a stand mixer or large mixing bowl and beat until well combined.
- Beat in the sifted powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time until your desired consistency is reached. I used about 4 cups for this recipe. To make it thicker, add more sugar, to make it thinner, add more milk.
- Frost the cake once cool & enjoy!
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