The classic combination is what makes this amazing blueberry lemon bread so spectacular. Blueberries and lemon go together like Woody and Buzz, Luci and Desi, or Thelma and Louise.
It's a proven flavor combination of tart lemon and plump, sweet blueberries baked together in a tender loaf that tastes more like cake than bread. Adding a lemon glaze and lemony sanding sugar on top makes this a purple ribbon contender at the State Fair!
You can make this yummy bread quickly and easily any time of year! Thanks to our amazing grocery distribution system, beautiful blueberries and fresh lemons are always available. The bread is quite simple, with just sugar, butter, flour, eggs, and milk as the main ingredients.
The magic happens when you add the lively flavor of fresh lemon juice and zest, and you don't need any fancy equipment to get it! The "zest" of citrus fruit is the outmost layer of the peel, the most colorful part. Be sure to wash the lemon well and dry it before you begin.
You don't need a special tool to zest a lemon; your trusty vegetable peeler will work nicely! Peel off only the thin outer layer, and try to avoid the white "pith" beneath the skin as much as possible.
It's easiest to zest the lemon before you cut it in half to squeeze out the juice. Remove all the lemon seeds from the juice before using it in the bread recipe.
When I was growing up, we didn't have a juicer. I remember my mom squeezing the juice by hand with a strong grip. When every drop of juice was squeezed out, the lemon was little more than a limp outer skin!
Now, take that lovely zest and use a chef's knife to cut it into confetti-like pieces. When I have more lemons to zest, for instance, when I make my favorite Orange Marmalade, I love my Cuisinart mini food processor, a gift from my youngest daughter!
Please reserve a tablespoon or a little more lemon zest for the topping and set it aside.
Before you begin, wash the blueberries and pat them dry, then toss one cup of them with a tablespoon of flour in a separate small bowl.
This step keeps the berries suspended in the batter so they don't all sink to the bottom. Keep back one-fourth cup of the berries to toss on top of the bread before you put it in the oven to bake.
Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then add the eggs and milk. I used light cream because I had some on hand. Stir in one tablespoon of the lemon juice.
Stir in the baking powder and salt into the batter first to ensure they are well combined, then add in the flour, stirring just enough to incorporate all the flour. Over-mixing can make the bread tough.
Finally, gently mix in the lemon zest, then fold in the whole blueberries.
Spray a nine-by-five-inch loaf pan with non-stick spray. I love to use Baker's Joy Cooking Spray With Flour. A "sling" of parchment paper helps ensure you can lift the freshly baked, tender bread out without breaking!
Scatter the remaining blueberries on top, then pop the loaf into a 350-degree oven for about 50-60 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean and the top is a light golden brown.
Stir the remaining lemon juice and one-fourth cup of powdered sugar, ensuring no lumps remain. Set that aside while the bread bakes. Gather up the reserved lemon zest and mix it with about a tablespoon of coarse sanding sugar.
When the bread comes out of the oven, poke holes all through the hot loaf with a skewer or chopstick, then pour the glaze slowly over the bread, allowing it to soak into the bread. While it is still warm, sprinkle the lemony sanding sugar over the loaf.
Blueberry lemon bread is a tender loaf. Let it cool in the pan until you can it without burning your fingers, then use the parchment paper to lift the loaf carefully out of the pan and let it cool completely before slicing it.
If you skipped the parchment paper (I don't recommend that you do- and wax paper works, too), I suggest you let it cool longer to firm up before removing it from the pan.
Quickbreads are a delight to make; by reducing the baking time, you can easily bake them in small and mini loaf pans. Wee loaves of quickbread make a wonderful little gift for someone who could use a hug.
You'll also love One-Bowl Rustic Rhubarb Bread and Easy Cinnamon Bread. Hungry for more? Type bread in the search bar!
A beautiful tender loaf of lemon bread bursting with fresh blueberries then topped with lemon glaze and lemony sanding sugar.
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I am going to make this lemony blueberry quick bread with glaze
It looks good.
AWesome!! Thank you! Be sure and let me know what you think of it!! It's been popular! B
Sprinkle the sanding sugar on before you bake it. Thank me later.
You are so cute! I bet that works great!! I'll try it next time, soon!! Thanks for taking time to stop by and say hi!
I just made this. It took 80 minutes in my oven and I used glaze instead of sugar on top but it came out good and very tasty. I wanted to post a couple of photos but it looks like we can only leave comments.
Thank you for this recipe.
Wow! How nice of you to take time to share your results and I'm so glad it turned out well for you!! if you'd like to send me a picture, you can email it to gb@gbskitchen.com and I will watch fot it!
Nice . I can't wait to try it 😋
Well my friend made it twice in a week!! I need to bake another loaf!!Let me know how it goes!
when do you take it out of the pan?
Hi, interestingly enough, a friend messaged me earlier in the week asking the same question. I need to add that information, thank you for the reminder. This blueberry lemon bread is a tender loaf, so let it cool just til you can touch the pan without burning your fingers, then use the parchment paper to lift it out and let it cool completely before slicing it. If you skipped the parchment paper, I suggest letting it cool a bit longer to firm up.
You have no idea how much I love hearing from a reader and getting the chance to answer questions. Bless you for taking the time!💗
Can 2% milk, or almond milk, be used instead of whole milk? Thanks!
I'm sure it would work just fine. The almond milk could give it a slightly different flavor profile, but it should be pleasant. let me know!
I popped it in the oven & began reading the next directions that said to mix the rest of the lemon zest and sanding sugar. I had used all the zest in the batter! Did I miss a direction to set a certain amount of zest aside for after baking??
Oh I feel terrible for overlooking that step but your bread will still be amazing with the glaze and sanding sugar on top. Thank you for telling me so I can fix it. You are the first.
My late momma was from the old country (Iceland) and she loved learning English as spoken in Iowa and Nebraska. Sometimes a phrase would tickle her and she'd use it as often as she could. Here's what she would have said to you if she could speak for me now: "Right now I feel lower than a snake's belly button in a wagon rut." I do. I bet your bread is great anyway and I'm jumping right in to fix my oversight!!
You were correct about the bread being delicious even though I added all the zest to the batter. It was very yummy! I’m sorry that you felt so badly about the omission of the direction. I appreciate all the work you put into your recipes. Thank you!😊 (No need to post this publicly, just wanted to respond to your comment.)
Wow!! You are someone special! I wish we were neighbors! Some people are so mean!!
Directions are fixed! Thank you! I made muffins out of this recipe and used all the zest in the batter, just FYI. I'll be posting that soon. They were awesome!
Sounds delicious plan on making it this weekend. Can I use frozen blueberries?
Yes you can, I haven't tried it but Betty Crocker (while not a real person 😉) has been around longer than I have, and this is what she has to say about it. https://www.bettycrocker.com/how-to/how-to-bake-with-frozen-blueberries
The two biggest issue tbout baking with frozen berries is they can release more moisture and by making the batter colder, could change the baking time. You can be sure I'm real, but I would take Betty Crocker's advice! She's been at this much longer than me!