A Lemon Poppy Seed Bread recipe with a sweet lemon glaze is one of my favorite easy quick bread recipes. It’s tender, moist, and perfect for breakfast or brunch with friends.
Looking for more bread recipes? I love this Lemon Blueberry Bread, Banana Bread, Beer Bread, and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread!
Why I love this recipe:
- Quick – No rising required with this easy quick bread recipe. Just 15 minutes of prep and it’s ready for the oven.
- Delicious – Light, fluffy, and moist; this easy lemon poppyseed bread will become your new brunch staple!
- The Glaze – The sweet lemon glaze is optional, but I love the elegance and bold flavor it adds.
How to make Lemon Poppy Seed Bread:
Stir Dry Ingredients: Whisk together flour, baking powder, poppy seeds, and salt.
Mix Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, beat together sugar, oil or butter, yogurt, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla.
Combine: Slowly fold in the dry ingredients, just until incorporated.
Bake: Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 55 minutes – 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Serve: Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Freezing Instructions:
To Freeze: Allow bread to cool completely then wrap this lemon poppy seed loaf in plastic wrap and place in freezer safe container or bag. Freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in refrigerator or at room temperature.
More Popular Bakery Treats:
- Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cranberry Orange Muffins
- Apple Coffee Cake
- Peach Scones
- Broccoli Cheese Quiche
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake
- Lemon Zucchini Bread
- Overnight Cinnamon Rolls
- Blueberry Muffins
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Recipe
Lemon Poppy Seed Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Bread:
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ Tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter , melted, (or sub oil or coconut oil)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 3 large eggs , room temperature
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest , (about 1 large or 2 small lemons)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze (Optional):
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3-4 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a 9×5’’ pan with parchment paper, and grease with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, poppy seeds, and salt. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, oil or melted butter, yogurt, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla.
- Slowly fold the dry ingredients, just until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 55 minutes – 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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*I first shared this recipe in June 2013. Updated August 2018 and July 2023.
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I haven’t tried this recipe but I have a different recipe from you that makes 2 loaves and doesn’t use Greek yogurt. It has more oil and 1 1/2 cups of milk. Did you revise the recipe?
I didn’t have plain yogurt so I used blueberry instead. Everything I used as listed. This bread is amazing. My husband used it to make fresh toast and loves it.
Excellent, fluffy, full of flavor. I put oil instead butter. Very good. I didn’t do the glaze, but it was ok. Thank you for the recipe 😘
great desserts
Great lemon bread, moist and fluffy! I prepared it with oil. To recommend !
There is no lemon taste to this bread or even the icing. After reading the comments I did decide to use lemon extract to the icing. Need to use lemon extract and even double the teaspoons.
I use your base recipe, to make your lemon poppy seed bread. Also I make a cranberry orange , banana nut, lemon blueberry, and chocolate pecan breads. All turn out wonderful with this recipe. Thank you Tim Brown
I’ve made this two times and everyone raves about the lightness and fresh taste. I added a few extra poppy seeds and vanilla but its lovely to make just like the recipe. Thank you.
This bread is amazing. When I made a second batch, I used lemon extract instead of lemon juice and it made all the difference, especially in the glaze. I gifted loaves to my friends and they all are clambering for the recipe! It is that good!!!
This one is a winner!! Delicious and super easy to make. Cut down on the sugar significantly and it still came out just great. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Made a delicious gluten free, dairy free version! Substituted all-purpose flour with King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour. Earth balance buttery sticks (melted) for the oil, and coconut milk for the milk. The bread turned out perfect. Thank you!
So easy and delicious! Thank you
I have made this recipe twice now, it is easy and delicious! I now make sure to always have poppy seeds on hand just so I can make it, usually have all other ingredients. I like to gift someone the second loaf! Thank you so much!
Super yummy and fool proof loafs. I personally cut down on sugar for 2 cups to 1 3/4 cup and add the juice and zest of a full lemon. I also add an extra table spoon of poppyseeds because why not? Baking for an hour and 15 minutes does the trick in my oven and I will be making this again!
Delicious and very easy to do.
I was buying the large lemon poppyseed muffins before going on our ATV trips to have for breakfasts in the morning. Came across this recipe and OMG tastes just like store bought. Love the flavor and how moist they are.👍🏻👍🏻
I made this tonight on a whim because I had all the ingredients. It is a little too cake-y and dense for my liking, and I *knew* I should have included more lemon zest. I didn’t make the glaze solely because I don’t like super sweet baked goods, so I can’t comment on that part. The light sweetness of the loaf was perfect for me. It came out moist on the inside and had a nice crunch on the outside. I would make this again but adjust the dry to wet mix ratio to get a lighter, fluffier loaf.
This is awesome!!! You’re an amazing baker!!! Was wondering what the serving size for the nutrition facts was tho? It’s so good I’m gonna eat the whole loaf and just keep calling it calling it 200 cals lmao
This turned out horrible!!! . . . It fell in the middle about 25 min into the baking and never raised all the way . .
I was very disappointed in this recipe. . . .I definitely wont be wasting my time with this one again. .
You must have done something wrong then?? I’ve made it several times and it has always turned out great. I’d give it another go and mind the ingredients & instructions step by step with a checklist. My guess is you missed one. Good luck.
Bread doesn’t just collapse in the oven. Try not stomping around next time so it doesn’t fall.
This was absolutely delicious! I made this last weekend (July 2020), and it was perfect! Lemon poppyseed anything is my favorite, and I was so happy to find this recipe that made such a yummy bread. The bread was cake-y and moist, and had just the right amount of golden crust. Because I love lemon, I added a little lemon extract as well. I almost didn’t make the glaze because the bread tasted so good by itself, but I ended up making it and I’m so glad did-it just made it over the top delicious! My whole family loved this, so glad it makes 2 loaves, I will definitely be making this again!
This is such a good recipe. It is moist, flavorful and hard to resist.
Made this yesterday (June 2020) and it came out perfect. It was so good I didn’t even make the glaze. It’s a very light lemon flavor which is how I like it, I doubled the vanilla extra just because I love vanilla. I noticed a lot of the reviews said their loaves came out gummy so I wanted to chime in with my experience. I checked my loaves at the 1 hour mark and they still weren’t quite done, so I let them keep baking. It took some time, but I made sure to wait until a chopstick I pushed down into the middle came out completely clean, and the loaves were cooked perfectly- a nice crunchy browned top and soft, fluffy middle. I want to say it was closer to the one hour, fifteen minute mark but I wasn’t paying super close attention to the time. Be patient with the baking part, don’t take it out until it’s actually done. If you like a really strong lemon flavor consider adding some lemon extract, but for me the taste was perfect.
My daughter and I baked this together and followed the recipe almost exactly. We only added a little extra lemon juice and baked it for the full hour. I was a little nervous because the batter seemed did seem runny compared to other similar breads I’ve made, but I was really impressed by how incredibly moist and delicious it turned out to be. We’ll definitely make this again.
Don’t listen to the other bad reviews!! I didn’t read the reviews until the loaves were already in my oven, so I was a bit nervous as to how they would turn out. Aside from an extra five minutes of baking time, nothing was different than what the recipe says. It seems to call for lots of liquids (milk, oil and eggs), but it turned out perfectly moist and absolutely delicious! I will be using this recipe lots in the future, and gifting some fresh loaves to my family and friends!! This is a must try!!
It doesn’t taste like lemon and I even put in extra. Very disappointed.
I was so excited to make this bread…but very disappointed in the results. As I read the ingredients, I’m thinking to myself…too much liquid. Sure enough, the batter was very runny. Needless to say, the bread didn’t bake correctly.
I will try this again, but alter the wet ingredients.
Hopefully, it will come out as it should.
Tried this recipe not sure why it turned out ‘heavy’. It doesnt came out crumbly like the normal one we tried. Or maybe because i put too much oil? Very disappointed tho 🙁
Great taste. I loved it. I halved the recipe but I ended up adding another 1/3 cup flour because the batter seemed too liquidy. I didn’t put the icing on it but I imagine it would be great with it. We are just watching our sugars.
I just made this recipe for my family and it was an instant hit! We didn’t even make the glaze because we loved the plain loaf so much. Thank you for this delicious recipe, I can’t wait to make it again!
Very good, easy to assemble everything. I zested one lemon with a microplane and used the juice of the lemon, it may have been more lemon juice than called for but it turned out delicious. Wasn’t too sure about putting the parchment on the pan bottoms but it worked out.
I made this today. YUM ! I did add more lemon juice and zest because in this case, more is better. The bread is so soft and light. Thanks for a great recipe.
The bread turned it ok but I ended up using at least 4 times the amount of lemon zest and juice in my bread and it still could use more. The recipe simply does not have enough lemon for real punchy flavor.
Hello!! I love your skinny banana bread recipe and am excited to try this. Would it work if I used light brown sugar or would it alter the taste a lot?
That would be fine.
Delicious! Easy to make, and came out perfect! Definitely adding to my recipe book.
This is my go to lemon bread!! Its awesome thank you so much
Made into mini-loaves for my grandchildren to take to school as snacks…👍🏼
Did you have to alter the time any for this-was wanting to do something like this myself…
How many mini loaves did it make?! TIA:)
I made this recipe for my husband, and one for my Boss & his wife!! They loved it!! My husband at the whole thing in one day!! Sadly left me one piece. Not sure why this bread brightens you up, but it does!! My husband was having a very difficult time, and I made this too cheer him up, and it worked! Thank you so much for this incredible recipe! What’s nice is it makes two so I could share!!
This bread is amazing, but I did alter the recipe a little bit: I used nondairy milk and had to increase the flour by about 1/2 cup because the batter was so runny! I also added double the amount of lemon zest—2 tsp just didn’t seem like enough! Really great stuff though, thank you 🙂
I made this recipe this more and added some zucchini to the bread. It is phenomenal. Just
…. DELICIOUS! I’m entering the bread in this afternoon’s zuchinni festival baking contest! I’ll let you know if I win!
How fun! I’m so happy you liked it, and I hope you win!
Can I make this into muffins?? LOVE this recipe have made it a bunch.
This is one of my favorite recipes, holidays or not.
Could this be baked in a bundt pan? How would you change the timing?
Yes, that would be fine! Be sure to grease and flour the pan really well! Bake for 45-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Is it possible so sub the milk with soy milk? I wonder.
That should be just fine! Good luck!
Looks so good! Have you ever made it in smaller tin pans? Wondering what the cook time might be for that and if it would be fine that way! Thanks!
Sure, you can use mini loaves! I’d check on them around 30 minutes.
We made this for a bake sale fundraiser and the loaves sold for big money! They were delicious! I went a little heavy on the lemon zest, based on some reviews that it wasn’t lemony enough and the flavor was spot on. I was using the aluminum foil bread pans from the grocery store since we were wrapping them up to sell, and the baking time in those smaller pans was about 65 min to perfection. Making more now!
If I were to freeze the poppyseed bread, would I put the glaze on then freeze, or defrost, then glaze.
Thanks!
Hi Donna,
You can put glaze on before freezing! Make sure your glaze is a little more on the thick side!
Can you freeze this loaf glazed?
Sure, that would be fine 🙂
What adjustments would I need to make for high altitude in this recipe? I live at 5,000+ feet.
You could add an extra tablespoon or two of flour 🙂 enjoy!
I make this bread every Christmas for family and friends and they love it! The only thing I do differently is omit the almond extract and use only the lemon extract in the bread.
That sounds delicious!
This doesn’t have almond extract stated in the recipe.
This hit the spot! I love the lemon flavor. Definitely will be making again!
Can you substitute the vegetable oil with anything else?
You could use any type of oil, or coconut oil, or try using half applesauce and half oil.
Hi – thinking of making this for Mother’s Day. Can this bread be freezed?
Hi Nikole,
Yes, You can definitely freeze this bread. After it is fully cooked, let it cool completely. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer bag. When you are ready to eat it, let it completely thaw at room temperature.
The bread stayed moist and the texture is good, but there is hardly any lemon flavor. It’s a bid bland.
Hi Zach,
I’m sorry the flavor turned out bland for you. If you ever make it again you could try adding extra lemon zest to kick up the lemon flavor!
Making for a brunch – looks delish! Please tell me, though, that the per-serving calorie count on the Nutrition Panel is wrong! 🙂
Hope you love it! I’ve fixed the serving size 🙂
This is a simple and easy recipe but taste amazing! I love it! I will make some of this for the bread ministry at my church.
I love lemon poopy seed bread! Think I will try it as muffins!
Anything with lemon in it is a hit for me and this loaf looks delicious! I can only imagine the wonderful aroma coming out of your kitchen as it was baking. My favorite lemon dessert is a lemon cupcake, I’ll do anything for a lemon cake! LOL!
I only need to go and buy two of the ingredients, otherwise I have everything I need to bake this beauty.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
I’m pretty sure I’ll be making this soon!! I love anything lemon! 🙂 Pinned for reference later!
Oh my! This looks delicious! I love lemon! =)