Gluten Free Lemon Cake (No Waste, Whole Lemon Cake)
This gluten free lemon cake is a fabulous cake, and will please just about everyone! Moist, delectable crumb, full-on lemon flavor (from a whole lemon), and a sweet and sticky glaze makes it a winner, all around!
If you’re counting, this is my fourth “whole citrus” cake recipe. I’ve shared the original Sicilian whole orange cake, then a lemon version, a gluten free orange adaptation, and now this one.
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I must say, neither of the gluten free cakes taste “gluten free,” in fact, I wouldn’t hesitate to say they are simply just as good as the original recipe!
My advice to you is to be sure to get the best quality, organic lemons you can find, preferably the Meyer variety. It’s really worth it for this cake.
Can I Freeze Gluten Free Lemon Cake?
Absolutely! I freeze my cakes all the time, and they freeze beautifully. I would say keep them in the freezer no longer than a month, though.
Why not bookmark this lemon raspberry trifle recipe to make with some of this cake?
May I Substitute Ingredients?
Although the original version of these cakes are rather flexible, the gluten free versions are not so much. Do not substitute the cream cheese as it’s a vital part of making this cake not taste gluten free, and for giving it its lovely texture.
Try these peanut butter cookies, too! So good, no one will know they are gluten free.
I tried substituting the rice flour with cassava flour, and although it was still good, it wasn’t nearly as good as with rice flour, so I wouldn’t recommend it.
I have a more traditional gluten free pound cake recipe, too. As always, for all my baking recipes, I recommend using a scale for the very best results.
Gluten Free Lemon Cake
(No Waste Whole Lemon Cake)
Make one 8″ cake Adapted from my Gluten Free Orange Cake recipe
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
Ingredients
- eggs
- sugar
- gluten free baking flour
- rice flour
- baking powder (or 1 packet Italian Paneangeli vanilla baking powder)
- xanthan gum
- butter, softened
- cream cheese, at room temperature
- organic lemon
Glaze
- organic lemon juice
- sugar
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)
Directions
Prepare an 8″ springform pan by spraying with oil (or butter) and lining in parchment paper (sides optional, if you want really clean sides), then spray the paper, too.
Place the sugar and eggs in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until light and fluffy.
Mix the gluten free flour with the rice flour, Paneangeli powder (or baking powder) and xanthan gum. Add to the mixture in the bowl a little at a time along with the softened butter.
Continue to mix until completely blended, then mix in the softened cream cheese.
In a food processor, process the whole lemon until it is almost pureed. It should look like this~
Add the processed lemon to the cake mixture and stir until evenly combined, then put the batter into the prepared tin.
Bake for 50-60 minutes (depending on your oven), but test with a cake tester or skewer to make sure the gluten free lemon cake is done before removing from the oven.
Make the Lemon Glaze
(You can do this just before the cake is ready if you choose.) Prepare the glaze by melting the sugar in the lemon juice and allow to simmer for a few minutes, just until the liquid has a syrupy consistency. The glaze is completely optional, as the cake is great without the glaze, also. Note: if you cook the glaze down a lot, it will form a hard, candy-like topping (I did this by accidentally overcooking it once, and I loved it!)
Spoon and brush over the top of the cake, while it’s still hot, and allow to cool completely before serving.
Decorate as desired (if desired!)
Cut into 8 to 12 slices.
Serve with a cup of tea or coffee, or with a scoop of ice cream, or even a glass of lemonade or shot of limoncello! Delicious, anyway you choose! (Drizzling with this gluten free lemon cake with limoncello isn’t off the table, btw!) 🍋🍸
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Gluten Free Lemon Cake (No Waste, Whole Lemon Cake)
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 1 ⅛ cups sugar
- 1 cup gluten-free baking flour
- ½ cup rice flour
- 3 tsp baking powder (or 1 packet Italian Paneangeli vanilla baking powder)
- ¼ tsp xanthan gum
- ⅓ cup butter (softened)
- ⅓ c cream cheese (at room temperature)
- 1 large organic lemon (washed and cut into pieces with the rind - remove seeds)
Glaze
- 2 oz organic lemon juice
- ¼ cup sugar
Instructions
Make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C)
- Prepare an 8" springform pan by spraying with oil (or butter) and lining in parchment paper (sides optional, if you want really clean sides), then spray the paper, too.
- Place the sugar and eggs in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until light and fluffy.
- Mix the gluten free flour with the rice flour, Paneangeli powder (or baking powder) and xanthan gum. Add to the mixture in the bowl a little at a time along with the softened butter. Continue to mix until completely blended, then mix in the softened cream cheese.
- In a food processor, process the whole lemon until it is almost pureed.
- Add the processed lemon to the cake mixture and stir until evenly combined, then put the batter into the prepared tin.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes (depending on your oven), but test with a cake tester or skewer to make sure the gluten free lemon cake is done before removing from the oven. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes, then remove the side of the springform pan.
Make the lemon glaze:
- Prepare the glaze by melting the sugar in the lemon juice and allow to simmer for a few minutes, just until the liquid has a syrupy consistency.
- Spoon and brush over the top of the cake, while it’s still hot, and allow to cool completely before cutting.
Notes
- Try my other gluten-free variation of this recipe: orange
Nutrition
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Just made the whole orange cake an whole lemon cake. Both turned out amazing. Thankyou.
Wonderful, Jennie! Thank you so much! I’d really appreciate it if you could click on the 5 stars above the PRINT button on the recipe cards as it helps with google. :)
I am excited to try this recipe!
My GF flour already contains xanthum gum, do I still have to add it, plus more rice flour, or can I just use the GF flour mix?
Thanks, Audrey
Hi Audrey, given that this recipe is super forgiving (seems to work no matter what) I would say skip the rice flour and xanthan gum and just use your baking mix (mine didn’t have the xg). Let me know how it turns out! CC
This lemon cake recipe is so easy and amazing Christina. Thank you for sharing!
Does the 1/3 c mean 1/3 cup?
Yes! :)
Thank you :)
Hi, Thanks for posting this amazing recipe. I loved it please keep posting and keep inspiring us.
Recepi is too good..I will share this recipe with my friends…
This sounds absolutely amazing, Christina – the big question for me is this: can I just replace the GF flour, rice four, and xanthan gum with regular flour? Would I still need the cream cheese? I know – its a GF cake but I don’t want to by GF flour when I have so much invested in wheat flour! :)
No need! Use the original lemon cake recipe, HERE! I also have the whole orange cake recipe which is super popular! Find the recipe here. Enjoy, David!
Thanks – I will be making it soon. I should have thought to look on your site for the original! Figuriamoci! :)
That lemon cake looks fabulous!
Thank you, Sandra! Hope you try it!