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Cream Cheese Cake – Keto Lemon Pound Cake

Tangy delicious keto lemon pound cake with cream cheese is the perfect low carb lemon pound cake with a creamy tart frosting just like you remember but in a gluten-free, sugar-free package.

Keto lemon pound cake

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Does anyone else out there absolutely love the fresh tangy flavor of lemons in summer desserts and bakes? Please tell me I’m not the only one who was incredibly sad to give up the coffee shop slice of lemon pound cake in favor of a keto diet?

Or if you’re a Keto Chocolate Pound Cake fan you can find that keto recipe too!

Yes, I’ve always loved baked goods and had more than a little of a sweet tooth. Actually, that sweet tooth was one of the biggest motivations for me to change my way of eating. I hated being so dependent on sugar and seeing statistics everywhere about how Americans consume more and more of the stuff.

Your brain cells like sugar just like you, and the more you eat, the more they crave it. I made the choice to cut processed sugar from my diet, but that in no way means I’ve completely lost a sweet tooth. I went through a major sugar withdrawal but no longer have the cravings I used to. Have you had a similar experience?

However, all that means is that I needed to come up with low carb baked goods and sweets. In fact, I just had to learn to make keto lemon cream cheese pound cake, among other things.

This tangy and delicious Keto lemon pound cake recipe is sugar-free, gluten-free, and 9 grams of protein a slice! Enjoy for a low carb breakfast or dessert. #ketodessert #ketobreakfast

While I think you’ll love my super helpful tips and fun stories, I also realize we are sometimes pressed for time and just need a good recipe! Scroll down to the bottom of the page for the printable recipe or PIN it here for later!

A little lemon juice makes everything taste better.

– Virginia Sanbar

Do I have to use a blender to make the keto lemon pound cake?

I get this question every now and then because I do use a blender in so much of my keto baking. Do you have to use a blender?

The straight answer is no, of course not! Any of my recipes can also be made using a regular hand or standing mixer. However, if you do use a mixer, the ingredients all must be at room temperature or even a little warmer. If they’re cold, they don’t combine as easily.

Personally, I love to use a blender with baking, soups, just about anything, because it makes my life easier. Vitamix has some great tips on how to use your blender and makes it such a go-to cooking gadget for me.

If I want to make a keto lemon pound cake with the blender I don’t have to set out the ingredients early or figure out how to warm them up. On the other hand, if I use a mixer I’m forced to get all the ingredients out and ready way ahead of time to warm up.

Often, at our crazy house, I prepare and set out everything. Then what happens? Some “emergency” or urgent call for help on the child’s craft, book, or other activity distracts. One thing leads to another and you never get around to actually baking the keto lemon pound cake!

Quelle catastrophe!

Yes, it is a catastrophe because then I sadly put all the ingredients back into the fridge to try again the next day. Does it sound familiar? To be perfectly honest, I’ve had this happen several days in a row and decided it was time to put my foot down and find a better way to prep for baking.

The blender for low carb baking

I use a Vitamix blender and have had it a little over 5 years now. At first, I was hesitant to put so much money into a blender. A blender!? So much so that I sat on the idea for about two years before I finally bought it.

After the first week, I could not imagine going back to life without it. Also, now if faced with the question of if I could do without it for a while if it were to go out I shrink in horror. I might say please no!, sort of like I might do with the washing machine.

It is not an appliance I would want to do without, and have used it nearly every day since its purchase. Mine came with a 7-year warranty, but it’s shown no signs of slowing down. Needless to say, I’m very happy with it.

And it’s great for blending up cold ingredients like cream cheese and eggs directly out of the fridge. Perfect!

A low carb lemon keto pound cake recipe, a deliciously tangy gluten-free breakfast treat.  #ketobreakfast #ketodesserts

🍽 Equipment

For a Keto Lemon Pound Cake you’ll need:

🥘 Ingredients

  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 8 eggs
  • ½ cups butter, softened
  • 1 ½ cups sweetener, Swerve or another equivalent
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp lemon extract, (can alternatively use 5-6 drops of lemon oil)
  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • ¼ cup coconut flour
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest

🔪 Instructions

How to make a lemon keto pound cake

I love this cake because it’s actually really easy to throw together. It’s also super-delicious. And, did I tell you it has 9 grams of protein per serving? Pretty awesome for a keto lemon pound cake recipe, right?

A piece of lemon keto pound cake is the perfect low carb breakfast or gluten-free dessert. #lowcarbdesserts #lowcarbdessertsketo

Begin by preheating the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Take a loaf pan and line it with buttered parchment paper so the cake’s easy to remove from the pan.

Now for the ingredients.

First, start with the blender. In it, place the cream cheese, butter, eggs, sweetener, vanilla, and lemon extract. Then blend from slow to high for about 40 seconds or until completely combined. Also, at this point, add in the lemon zest (if using) and pulse or stir it in until completely mixed in.

Second, take out a large mixing bowl. Is this an almond flour lemon pound cake or coconut flour lemon pound cake? Well, actually it’s both, as I like the texture of the mix.

Whisk together the coconut flour, almond flour, salt, and baking powder. Perfect, the dry ingredients are done.

Third, pour the wet ingredients into the almond flour mixture and combine well with a spoon or spatula until no lumps remain.

Next, pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake it for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Unfrosted keto pound cake #ketodesserts #ketobreakfastrecipes

Put the lemon cream cheese pound cake on a rack and let it cool almost completely before removing it from the pan and parchment paper. Take out the beautiful keto cream cheese pound cake and set it on a large serving plate or the cooling rack to frost.

How to make the sugar-free frosting

Again, this cream cheese frosting is super easy to make and use to decorate the low carb lemon cake. It’s quick and easy to use a hand mixer to mix all ingredients until smooth. Then, use a knife or icing spatula and spread it over the top of the lemon keto dessert.

Lastly, slice the keto lemon cake with cream cheese frosting evenly into 16 pieces and serve for breakfast, dessert, or even high tea!

This flavorful keto lemon pound cake recipe is the perfect low carb recipe for a gluten-free high tea or a protein packed breakfast. Easy and tangy, have a slice with your coffee or for a fabulous keto dessert. #ketopoundcake #ketobreakfast #ketodessertrecipes #lowcarbdesserts

💭 Top tips

and tricks for the perfect keto pound cake

Hint #1: After about 30 minutes I place a piece of foil over the top of the cake so it doesn’t darken too much. It can form a crust around the edges, which I think tastes amazing, but provides a deep contrast to the light lemon yellow insides.

Hint #2: If you are worried about the appearance of the keto lemon cake and whether or not there will be a crack running down the middle, there are a couple of things you can do.

  • Place an open pan of water on the rack in the oven below the lemon keto pound cake. The water will make the oven moister and decrease the chance of a crack.
  • I’ve found 325 degrees to be the perfect temperature for my high altitude cakes. However, if you continue to get a crack in your bakes even with the pan of water in the oven, there is another option. Turn the heat down slightly and it should improve your chances of a crack-free loaf. Of course, the bake time in total may then need to be increased.

Hint #3: This can also be made as a keto lemon bundt cake. Just switch out the pan with a bundt cake pan and be sure it’s well-buttered so the cake will come out easily.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Almond flour vs. coconut flour

Which flour do you prefer? Almond or coconut for keto baked goods? I’ve come to appreciate a mix of the two, but often use almond flour only due to a sensitivity to coconut in the family.

1 cup of almond flour is equivalent to about 1/4 cup coconut flour. Therefore, sometimes you can mix it up depending on who you’re baking for or what your goal is.

What are your favorite Keto summer desserts lately? Or do you have any recipes you’d love to see have a low carb or keto makeover? If you’re loving lemon, these Keto Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins are pretty fabulous as well. I’m always up for a challenge so put those ideas in the comments below!

I hope you try out this awesome sugar-free lemon pound cake and enjoy it as much as I do!

Pin the recipe here!

Delicious lemon keto pound cake recipe. It's fabulous for a gluten-free tea time, to replace your favorite coffee shop snack, or sugar-free breakfast. Did I mention it's also packed with 9 grams of protein? #ketobreakfast #ketorecipes #lowcarbrecipesketo

Tag me in your recipe pics on Instagram @explorermomma.

If you LOVE this recipe please consider giving it a five-star rating in the review area below!

This lemon keto pound cake is amazing in the Keto Berry Trifle centerpiece recipe! Believe me, it’s worth it!

Ready to impress, Keto Berry Trifle is a delicious centerpiece for Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, or any summer party. Filled with gluten-free, sugar-free lemon pound cake, custard, berries, and cream, what's not to love!? #ketodesserts #lowcarbdesserts

🥣 More summer keto dessert recipes

  1. Low carb lemon blueberry cream cake
  2. Low carb chocolate pie
  3. Butter and jam keto thumbprint cookies
  4. Keto blackberry cobbler

📖 Printable recipe card

Perfect summer coffee shop Keto lemon pound cake. Tangy, gluten-free, sugar-free and delicious for breakfast or dessert. #ketodessert #ketobreakfast

Keto Lemon Pound Cake

Yield: 16
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes

Tangy delicious low carb cream cheese cake is the perfect keto lemon pound cake with a creamy tart frosting just like you remember but in a gluten-free, sugar-free package.

Ingredients

Keto Pound Cake

  • 8 oz cream cheese
  • 8 eggs
  • 1/2 cups butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups sweetener, Swerve or other equivalent
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 tsp lemon extract, (can alternatively use 5-6 drops of lemon oil)
  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • 1/4 cup coconut flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest (optional for extra lemon flavor)

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 3 oz cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/3 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tbsp powdered sweetener (Swerve Confectioners or other)
  • 1/2 tsp lemon extract

Instructions

Keto Pound Cake

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and line a loaf pan with buttered parchment paper.
  2. In a blender, place the cream cheese, butter, eggs, sweetener, vanilla, and lemon extract. Blend from slow to high for about 40 seconds or until completely combined.
  3. Add in the lemon zest (if using) and pulse or stir it in until combined.
  4. Take a large bowl and whisk together the coconut flour, almond flour, salt, and baking powder.
  5. Pour the wet ingredients into the almond flour mixture and combine well with a spatula until no lumps remain.
  6. Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

  1. Use a hand mixer to mix all ingredients until smooth. Spread over the top of the pound cake when completely cooled.

Notes

Nutrition Facts

Servings 16.0 Amount Per Serving Calories 266  Total Fat 24 g Saturated Fat 9 g Monounsaturated Fat 7 g Polyunsaturated Fat 2 g Trans Fat 0 g Cholesterol 140 mg Sodium 211 mg Potassium 127 mg Total Carbohydrate 5 g Dietary Fiber 2 g Sugars 2 g Protein 9 g Net Carbohydrate 3 g

*Nutrition Facts per MyFitnessPal.com. For most accurate facts, calculate your own with the exact ingredients you use in the recipe.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 266Unsaturated Fat: 0g

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @explorermomma on Instagram and hashtag it #explorermomma. Thanks a bunch!

Nutrition Disclaimer

Please be aware I am not a medical specialist or nutritional professional. On this blog, I share recipes and what works for me. Please do not take anything on this blog as medical advice and always consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I use MyFitnessPal.com to calculate nutrition facts as a courtesy to my readers, and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count because does not affect my own blood glucose levels.
 
 
This is as accurate as possible, but it’s best to independently calculate nutritional information on your own with the specific ingredients you use. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.

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Lilly

Sunday 18th of June 2023

Can you fix the recipe to say where to add the lemon zest? I forget to add it.every.single.time. :(

Lauren

Tuesday 20th of June 2023

Done! Thanks for asking! And now I'm thinking I need to make this tomorrow! 😊

Lilly

Sunday 10th of April 2022

This was so good! I was nervous about it being too lemony, so I didn't use the lemon zest but next time I definitely will. The lemon flavor is fantastic. I bet orange extract and zest would also be good. I baked it in a silicone loaf pan with room to spare. The glaze is to die for! I used liquid sweetener for that and it came out perfectly and perfectly sweet. "Glaze" though is the wrong word as it's more of a lusciouscream cheese frosting. I will definitely be making this again. Thank you!

Misti Lefevre

Saturday 25th of December 2021

Why does it say add butter in the blender with cream cheese and then again after it says add butter for 30 more secs? So just add butter at the end not at the beginning?

Lauren

Monday 27th of December 2021

Agree! You can just add it with the cream cheese and the listed ingredients for that step. I updated the recipe to make it more clear, thanks!

Tracy

Thursday 9th of December 2021

Very good cake I added 1/2 cup of sour cream. Moist.

Beth

Wednesday 6th of October 2021

I’m wanting to make this pound cake but I’d like to know what size loaf pan to use. I’m thinking an 8.5x4.5 might b3 too small. Thanks.

Lauren

Friday 8th of October 2021

I prefer to use a 9x5-inch pan as it's a good-sized pound cake. However, if you line it with parchment paper and fill it about 1 cm from the top, the paper should guide it as it bakes. If there is a lot of excess batter, I would use it to make a couple muffins and bake at 325F for 25-30 min.

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This post may include Amazon or other affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. However, I only mention products or services I genuinely love and would recommend to a friend.
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