Gluten-Free Lemon Drizzle Cake (Vegan)

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Easy gluten free lemon drizzle cake recipe made with chickpea flour, tapioca starch, and drizzled with delicious icing for one amazing sweet treat that rivals Starbucks lemon loaf. Naturally vegan, dairy-free, and egg-free, too!

A loaf cake topped with a white glaze and candied lemons.

Move over Starbucks lemon loaf! This gluten-free lemon drizzle cake is most definitely my new favorite gluten-free dessert. It is sweet and decadent but not over-the-top-so. It has a satisfying texture and bite to it and best of all — you only need one bowl! I tested this recipe numerous to times to get it just right and I truly hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Fluffy, moist, rich, and flavorful.
Perfectly sweet.
Rich in fiber and protein.
Super easy to make—one-bowl recipe.
Naturally vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, soy free, and can be made refined sugar-free!

Top view of a yellow loaf cake drizzled with white glaze and candied lemon slices resting next to a black bread knife.

🗒️ Ingredient Notes

Chickpea flour: Chickpea flour, also known as garbanzo bean flour, is a nutritious gluten-free flour that has wonderful binding properties, not unlike conventional flour. It eliminates the need for eggs, egg replacements, or xanthan gum. Having said that, if do not have or cannot eat chickpea flour, you can use brown rice flour or sorghum flour as a replacement, with similar results.

Tapioca starch: Tapioca starch, also known as tapioca flour, adds both a chewy texture and a lightness to the batter and works great in combination with other flours as a gluten-free flour blend, so to speak. If you do not have tapioca starch, you can replace it with corn starch, arrowroot starch, or potato starch.

Sugar: You can use regular white cane sugar, coconut sugar, or a granulated sugar-free alternative in this recipe. I prefer using golden coconut sugar, as it’s a touch healthier, but also lighter in color than regular coconut sugar, resulting in a beautiful yellow loaf.

Baking soda: This adds some rising power to this loaf mixture. If you do not have baking soda, you can use baking powder as a replacement in a pinch.

Salt: As with most recipes, a touch of salt enhances all of the flavors.

Milk: If you are vegan or dairy-free, oat milk makes an excellent plant-based milk choice for this loaf, as does coconut milk or almond milk. If you are not vegan or dairy-free, you can use buttermilk for a more traditional touch or regular whole milk.

Butter or oil: Plant-based butter, regular salted or unsalted butter or oil works in this cake recipe. My top oil choices for this loaf are avocado oil, sunflower oil, or coconut oil.

Lemon juice and lemon zest: Using fresh lemon juice and fresh lemon zest results in wonderfully bright lemon flavors, but in a pinch, you can omit the zest and use store-bought lemon juice if need be.

Vanilla extract: A touch of vanilla mellows some of the sharper lemon notes, enhancing that perfect sweet lemon flavor.

Powdered sugar: If you choose to make the lemon glaze, powdered sugar will be needed. Conventional white powdered sugar works best, but if you are looking for a healthier alternative, you can use maple sugar powdered sugar instead.

A sliced loaf cake topped with white icing and lemon slices.

🥣 How to Make Gluten Free Lemon Loaf

A mixing bowl filled with a light yellow batter. — Step 1: Mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients all in one mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth.

A copper cake loaf tin with droplets of oil. — Step 2: Preheat the oven. Grease or line a loaf pan with parchment paper.

A copped bread pan filled with a light yellow mixture. — Step 3: Pour the gluten-free cake batter into the prepared loaf tin.

A loaf cake resting on a copper wire rack, drizzled with white icing and topped with candied lemon slices. — Step 4: Bake, glaze and enjoy!

🥡 Storage

This gluten-free lemon cake keeps lightly covered at room temperature for about 48 hours. Any longer, I recommend slicing and storing in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. If stored in the fridge, let the cake slices sit at room temperature for about ten minutes before eating.

A dark yellow loaf cake drizzled with white glaze and topped with slices of lemon.

💭 Top Tip

Let the loaf cool completely before glazing and/or slicing for the best results. Slicing gluten-free bread or cake before it has cooled results in a completely different textured result.

A sliced cake topped with white icing and lemon slices on a light pink table.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

How do I apply a glaze to gluten-free cake?

After you mix the glaze, you can simply drip the glaze right out of the bowl while moving your hand in a zig-zag pattern over the cooled cake.

Can I use a stand mixer with this recipe?

Absolutely! If you would prefer not to hand mix in a bowl, you can combine all of the ingredients in a stand mixer bowl instead. Low to medium speed is all that is needed and you can simply mix until smooth.

Top view of an iced loaf topped with fresh lemon slices.

🍰 More Delicious Gluten Free Cake Recipes

Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcake

Gluten Free Banana Cake