Lemon Coconut Loaf

An easy recipe for a Lemon Coconut Loaf

Lemon cakes are the stuff tea parties and picnics are made of. Add a sharp lemony drizzle to that and it is a cake no one can resist. Are you looking for a lemon cake recipe that is literally easy peasy lemon squeezy (sorry, I just had to use that here)!

This lemon coconut loaf will fulfil all your lemon cake dreams.

If you are not a big fan of coconut, don’t go away yet! This loaf can easily be converted into a lemon drizzle loaf by making a couple of easy substitutions (and omissions).

While coming up for the title of this recipe, I was wondering if this should be called Lemon Loaf of Lime Loaf. All I know is that the lemons are yellow and limes are green, and the fruits I used for this recipe were yellow 🙂

There are a couple of varieties of lemons sold in the Indian markets. I mean the regular markets and supermarkets and not the high end gourmet stores where you get the fancy Italian lemons for Rs.3000 a kilo. I’ve seen smaller green ones with somewhat leathery skins and a little larger yellow ones with a thinner skin. Then there is the Gondhoraj Lebu that adds aroma to Bengali dishes (as you see in the picture above). Beyond this the lemon and lime nomenclature continues to baffle me. Care to explain? Leave me a comment below 🙂

Love teacakes? Then don’t miss my post on 21 easy tea cake recipes

Sunday evenings and sagging spirits go hand in hand for me. They hit me harder than the Monday blues. And what better thing to cheer up the mood than the happy citrussy scents. Rubbing the lemon zest into the sugar is the perfect aromatherapy. I urge you to try it out. Even if you are not baking this recipe, make a pot of citrus sugar, which you can sprinkle on crepes or pancakes. Happy times!

When I spotted this paper bag half filled with lemons, the words “lemon loaf” just popped in my head and then my hands just reflexly started gathering all equipment and ingredients. Coconut and lemon pair so well together. I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed by the end result, even though I have never baked this cake before. The addition of coconut and coconut oil adds an extra flavour dimension to what would otherwise be a slightly tart, mildly sweet lemon loaf.

The recipe does not make a very tall cake, so it bakes fairly quickly. After the cake was out of the oven, I cleared up the counter of all the prep, and the husband made ginger chai. The lemon coconut loaf slices were just the sort of thing to make for a happy Sunday evening tea time.

Shinkanji – An Indian lemonade with ginger, mint and holy basil

before it goes into the oven

Winter perfect – Lemon Coriander Soup

Lemon Coconut Loaf

A dainty loaf full of citrussy flavours, perfect to have with tea or coffee

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Servings: 1 loaf

Course: Dessert, Snack

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup desiccated coconut plus extra for topping
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder optional
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 - 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1/4 cup lemon juice~4 lemons zest the lemons first
• 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 1 egg
• Water as required
• butter to grease loaf tin

for topping:

• 4-5 thin lemon slices
• 1 teaspoon desiccated coconut

for icing:

• 2-3 tablespoons icing sugar
• juice of half lemon

Method

 

1. Preheat the oven at 180°C.
2. Combine the flour, desiccated coconut, baking powder, baking soda, salt and turmeric powder in a large bowl. Run a whisk through the ingredients or pass through a sieve.
3. In a medium bowl, rub the lemon zest along with the sugar with your fingertips, until you get a nice citrussy aroma. Add the lemon juice, coconut oil, yogurt and egg into the sugar, along with 2-3 tablespoons of water. Using an electric whisk, beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. Tip: Ensuring all ingredients are at room temperature is ideal or the coconut oil may turn into slightly solidified bits. No harm done, it will all get incorporated when you beat in the flour.
4. Coat the bottom and sides of a regular loaf tin (9 X 5.5 inches) with 1-2 teaspoons of soft butter.
5. Scrape out the prepared batter into the loaf tin and smoothen out the top with a spatula.
6. Arrange a few lemon slices on the top and sprinkle some desiccated coconut all over.
7. Bake in the preheated oven at 180C for 30 minutes. If you are using a narrower loaf tin, the cake will have more height in which cake bake for a while longer until a tester comes out clean.
8. Once the cake is out of the oven, in a small cup combine the icing sugar with juice of half a lemon. Pour this drizzle into the crevices of the cake.
9. Wait for 5-7 minutes to unmold the cake. Cool on a wire rack for 15-20 minutes and cut into slices of desired thickness.

Notes

Tips:

Check the packaging date on the desiccated coconut. Taste it before using it in a dish as it has a tendency to go rancid.

To make a simple lemon loaf, use any neutral flavoured oil or melted butter instead of coconut oil and replace the 1/4 cup desiccated coconut with all purpose flour. Garnish the loaf with lemon slices alone.

For an intensely lemony flavour, whisk in 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract into the batter. It is tough to get this in India, so I have not used it.

This recipe yields a very mildly sweet cake, but the icing makes it up for it a little. Add 1/4 cup more sugar to the recipes if you like your cake to be sweeter.

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