Lemon Raspberry Streusel Quick Bread

Since Mother’s Day is just a few days away, I wanted to give you one more recipe to round out your Mother’s Day brunch ideas—Lemon Raspberry Streusel Quick Bread. In case you missed it, check out the other quick bread recipes: Ginger Pear and the Orange Blueberry. You could make all three for a variety of flavors.

Baking muffins or loaves with fresh lemon flavoring and fresh raspberries inside are a feast for the senses; they smell divine and are so eye-catching. They are typically the first muffin I pick when I have a choice. So, why include this recipe when my goal was to give you less common flavor pairings? Because lemon and raspberry are just so good together!

Often a lemon quick bread recipe includes lemon extract. I don’t love the extract after taste. So, when I developed the add-ins for this recipe, I used fresh squeezed lemon and fresh lemon zest. Real, fresh ingredients will make a big impact on the lemon flavor.

This recipe was again adapted from Baker Bettie’s Better Baking Book. I really enjoy the texture of this quick bread as the base for all my different add-ins.

This post might contain affiliate links, please check out my full disclosure policy. I only refer products I have tried and tested.

Ingredients for Lemon Raspberry Streusel Quick Bread:

• All-purpose flour: All-purpose flour is used in this recipe. Cake flour is not needed for the light, airy texture. However, if you desire a gluten-free alternative, this quick bread recipe works great. My favorite GF flour mix is Cup4Cup Multi-purpose flour. Substitute Cup4Cup 1:1 with the all-purpose flour. However, I typically add an additional 2 Tablespoons of GF flour to create the perfect dome in the baked product.
• Baking powder: This is the main form of leavening for this recipe. Keys for getting the best rise with baking powder: add wet ingredients last, mix the wet ingredients together with the dry ingredients as little as possible, use the correct baking heat to allow the rise to happen without drying out the final product.
• Egg and Milk: Room temperature ingredients are essential for this recipe. Room temperature ingredients mix easier and coat the flour best, keeping the gluten formation at a minimum—making the crumb less chewy—and giving a light texture to the quick bread. Room temperature ingredients also soak into the flour better, creating a moist quick bread.
• Oil: A neutral flavored oil, like canola, avocado, grapeseed, will be a better choice to allow the lemon flavor to stand out.
• Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice: Fresh squeezed lemon juice yields a better flavor than bottled lemon juice.
• Lemon zest: Zest just the yellow part of the peel, trying not to get too much of the white part, and you will get a better flavor.
• Fresh raspberries: Lightly toss the raspberries with flour before adding them to the batter. Then carefully fold the berries into the batter, while trying to keep the berries whole.
• Streusel Topping: This mixture includes all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, unsalted butter, and lemon zest.

How to Make Lemon Raspberry Streusel Quick Bread:

1. Take the wet ingredients, including eggs, out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before baking so they can come to room temperature. A quick method of bringing eggs to room temperature is to place them in tap hot water for about 10 minutes. Milk can be microwaved slightly, about 20 seconds, to take the chill off.
2. Make the streusel topping by whisking together sugar, flour and zest. Stir in the melted butter and mix with your hands until crumbly. Set aside.
3. Preheat oven to 400° F and prepare muffin tins with liners. Or for a loaf, preheat oven to 350° F and spray loaf pan with non-stick spray. This recipe will make approximately 14-16 muffins or one loaf.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients—flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Then, in a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients—egg, milk, oil, fresh squeezed lemon juice and 2 Tablespoons lemon zest.
5. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl. Stir for about 30 seconds with a spoon or rubber spatula until just combined. The batter should still be lumpy. Then, gently fold in the raspberries—keeping them whole.
6. Fill the muffin liners with batter to about a ½ inch from the top of the liner. Or fill loaf pan. Sprinkle each muffin or loaf top liberally with the streusel topping. Bake muffins at 400° F for 18-22 minutes (or bake loaf at 350° F for 50 minutes) or until lightly brown and the tops spring back when gently touched, or a toothpick is inserted in the center and comes out almost clean (with a few small crumbs attached).
7. Let the muffin trays or loaf pan cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes before serving. Store uneaten muffins/loaf covered in foil or plastic wrap in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Lemon Raspberries muffins are amazing! But maybe for this Mother’s Day, try this recipe as a loaf and gift it to someone you love.

–Kim

Print Recipe

Lemon Raspberry Streusel Quick Bread

Luscious lemon quick bread with fresh raspberries dispersed throughout and topped with a light lemony streusel. Perfect for muffins or a loaf.

Prep Time25 minutes mins

Cook Time22 minutes mins

Loaf Baking Time50 minutes mins

Total Time47 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Keyword: lemon, loaf, muffin, quick bread, raspberry

Servings: 14 muffins

Author: Kim Melanson

Ingredients

• (recipe adapted from Baker Bettie’s Better Baking Book)
• 2 1/4 cups (272g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon (10g) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 large egg room temperature
• ⅔ cup (151g) milk
• ½ cup (113g) neutral flavored oil (canola)
• 4 Tablespoons (56g) fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 4 Tablespoons grated lemon zest
• 2 cups fresh raspberries lightly tossed with 1 Tablespoon flour

Simple Streusel Topping

• **Make before starting the muffin batter.
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 Tablespoons lemon zest

Instructions

• At least 30 minutes before baking, measure the milk and set out with the egg and raspberries to allow to come to room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 400° F and prepare muffin tins with liners. Or for loaf, preheat oven to 350° F and spray loaf pan with non-stick spray. (Recipe will make approximately 14-16 muffins or one loaf.)
• Make streusel before beginning to make the muffin batter: Whisk together sugar, flour and zest. Stir in the melted butter and mix with your hands until crumbly. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients—flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
• In a small bowl, lightly toss fresh raspberries with 1 Tablespoon flour (enough to lightly coat each raspberry—but not break the raspberries apart).
• In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients—egg, milk, oil, lemon juice and 2 TBS lemon zest.
• Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl.
• Stir for about 30 seconds with a spoon or rubber spatula until just combined. The batter should still be lumpy.
• Gently fold in the raspberries—trying to keep the fresh raspberries whole.
• Fill the muffin liners with the batter to about a ½ inch from the top of the liner.
• Sprinkle streusel liberally on each muffin or across the top of the loaf.
• Bake at 400° F for 16-20 minutes for muffins (or a loaf at 350° F for 50 minutes) or until lightly brown and the tops spring back when gently touched, or a toothpick is inserted in the center and comes out almost clean (with a few small crumbs attached).
• Let the muffin trays/loaf pan cool on a cooling rack for at least 10 minutes before serving.
• Store uneaten muffins/loaf covered in foil or plastic wrap in refrigerator for up to 3 days.