Treat yourself to this mouth-watering glazed lemon cardamom quick bread! Sweet, tangy, and bursting with citrusy lemon flavor, the cardamom adds just the right amount of warmth and depth. Crafted with simple ingredients, it’s easy to make and sure to be a hit!
It’s citrus season, and our trees are bursting with sweet and tangy lemons! Combining two of my favorite flavors – lemon and cardamom – I’ve created a quick bread that’s truly delicious. The warm floral spiciness of the cardamom makes the bread irresistible, and the sweet citrus glaze takes it to a whole new level. Perfect for dessert, with a cup of tea, or to share with a friend, this delectable lemon and cardamom quick bread is guaranteed to amaze!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Butter: I use unsalted butter when baking. Different brands of butter use varying amounts of salt in salted butter. Using unsalted butter will help give uniform results when baking. If you’re using salted butter, reduce or eliminate any additional salt.
- Sugar: I used white sugar in this recipe. Brown sugar would be a great substitute.
- Ground cardamom: Adds a lovely floral note that pairs beautifully with lemon.
- Milk: I use whole milk when baking because it contains more fat. Fat adds moisture and flavor, and it makes the bread tender and soft. tenderizes and softens
- Lemon juice and zest: Use fresh lemon juice instead of bottled. It makes a big difference!
How to Make Lemon Cardamom Quick Bread
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Line an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch loaf pan with parchment paper or grease it with butter or cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or an electric mixer), cream together the butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until it’s a light, pale yellow color and fluffy in texture, about 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Add the eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat on medium speed until well combined, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Add 1/2 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then add 1/2 of the milk. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and milk, beating well after each addition.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of loaf comes out clean.
- Remove bread from the oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
- Carefully remove the bread from the pan and place it on a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla and milk. The glaze should be thick. You can adjust the consistency by adding more powdered sugar to thicken it up, or by adding more milk to thin it out.
- When the loaf is completely cool, pour the icing over the loaf.
Expert Tips
- Real lemon juice is the best. You can use bottled lemon juice but it doesn’t have the same bright flavor as fresh lemon juice.
- Don’t zest the pith. When zesting the lemon, make sure to zest only the yellow, outer part of the lemon. If you go too far down you’ll hit the pith which is bitter and you don’t want that to ruin your wonderful lemon bread!
- Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing develops too much gluten which results in a tough bread. Mix until the ingredients are just combined, and you’ll be good to go!
How to Store Lemon Cardamom Quick Bread
Allow the bread to cool completely before storing. Wrap the loaf in plastic wrap or aluminum foil to prevent it from drying out. Store the bread on the counter at room temperature for 1-2 days, or store in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
To freeze, wait until the bread has completely cooled and wrap the loaf in plastic wrap or slice the loaf and wrap each slice individually in plastic wrap, and store in a freezer safe container or zip top bag for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to eat it, thaw it out at room temperature overnight.
For the best results, don’t glaze the bread before freezing it. The glaze can be frozen and thawed, but the texture changes slightly. If you are freezing the bread glazed, wait until it has completely cooled before freezing and follow the same instructions as above.
Other Recipes You’ll Love
- Brown Sugar Spiced Persimmon Bread
- Brown Butter Cinnamon Rye Banana Bread
- No-Bake Orange Oatmeal Bliss Balls
- Cardamom Banana Bread
Glazed Lemon Cardamom Quick Bread
Ingredients
For the bread:
- ½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
- ¾ cup white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup milk
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest
For the glaze:
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp butter, melted
- 1-2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
Make the bread:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Line an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch loaf pan with parchment paper or grease it with butter or cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or an electric mixer), cream together the butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until it’s a light, pale yellow color and fluffy in texture, about 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Add the eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat on medium speed until well combined, scraping the bowl as needed.
- Add the 1/2 of the flour mixture to the butter mix, then add 1/2 of the milk. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture and milk, beating well after each addition.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of loaf comes out clean.
- Remove bread from oven and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
- Carefully remove bread from pan and place it on a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the glaze:
- Whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla and milk. The glaze should be thick. Adjust the consistency by adding more powdered sugar to thicken it up, or by adding more milk to thin it out.
- When the loaf is completely cool, pour the icing over the loaf.
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