I first made with gorgeous lemon raspberry cake for Valentine’s Day a few years ago and WOW I almost forgot how incredible it is. Truly a must-make for all of your spring & summer festivities.
It’s baked up with fresh raspberries, creamy yogurt, lemon juice and zest, plus a touch of almond flavor that makes it taste like your favorite nostalgic lemon poppy seed muffin. To make it extra special and even more beautiful for any occasion, I added a gorgeous lemon raspberry buttercream frosting. Plus, it’s gluten-free and easily made dairy-free, AKA perfect for sharing with loved ones.
Fall in LOVE with this lemon raspberry cake
Besides being the perfect springtime dessert, there’s even more to love about this perfectly moist, delicious lemon poppy seed cake. Its:
- Gluten free: thanks to almond flour and oat flour (which you can make at home!)
- Naturally sweetened: with some honey.
- Deliciously moist: thanks to creamy yogurt, which gives the cake the perfect texture and crumb.
- Easily dairy free: I originally made this cake when I was breastfeeding Viggo and had to be dairy-free. I found that plant-based yogurt (I used siggi’s raspberry) and a vegan buttery stick works really well!
Ingredients in this gluten free lemon raspberry cake
As I mentioned, this beautiful raspberry lemon cake is not only gluten free, but it’s also easily dairy free, naturally sweetened, and bursting with flavor. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:
- Eggs: you’ll need 4 eggs in this cake recipe to give it the right texture.
- Sweetener: we’re naturally sweetening this raspberry almond cake with honey.
- Yogurt: as I mentioned, I used raspberry plant-based siggi’s yogurt because I was dairy-free when I first made this cake, but any type of berry yogurt would be delicious!
- Lemon: that lovely lemon flavor comes from both fresh lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Flour: we’re using a mix of fine blanched almond flour and oat flour as the base of this recipe to keep it gluten free. The almond flour adds a beautiful almond flavor to the cake along with an amazing texture!
- Baking staples: you’ll also need baking soda, salt, and almond extract to really bring out that almond flavor.
- For the lemon raspberry frosting: you’ll need butter (or a vegan buttery stick like Miyokos), powdered sugar, more lemon juice & zest, fresh raspberries, and a little milk of choice.
- For the filling & garnish: don’t forget fresh raspberries for between the layers and on top of the cake!
More raspberry options
This raspberry lemon cake is seriously perfect as-is, but there are a couple of different ways you can use fresh raspberries or raspberry jam that will still be delicious!
- Feel free to bake fresh raspberries directly into the cake layers. Simply toss 1 heaping cup of fresh raspberries in a tablespoon or two of oat flour before adding them to the batter so that the raspberry juice doesn’t spread.
- Instead of using fresh raspberries you can use ¼ cup raspberry jam between each layer on top of the frosting (so ½ cup total). Just don’t spread the top of the cake with the jam!
Can I make it vegan?
I haven’t tried making this healthy lemon poppy seed cake vegan, but if you want to try you can use 4 flax eggs (¼ cup flaxseed meal + ¾ cup water) and allow it to sit for 10 minutes until a gel-like consistency forms. Learn how to make a flax egg with this tutorial, and let me know in the comments how it works out!
Feel free to sub maple syrup for the honey in the cake to make it truly vegan, too!
A note on flour substitutions
Please note that I cannot recommend a substitute for the almond or oat flour as the ratios are what give this cake the perfect texture. See below for how to make your own oat flour for ease!
Make your own oat flour at home
You can easily make homemade oat flour to use in this lemon raspberry cake recipe. Check out my tutorial on how to make homemade oat flour right at home. So easy!
Tips for decorating this raspberry lemon cake
If you’ve never decorated a three-layer cake before, don’t worry! It’s easy and will turn out beautifully with a few tips:
- For the layers: cut the raspberries in half lengthwise to add them between the cake layers and carefully smoosh them into the layers. This will ensure that there isn’t too much space between the layers.
- For the frosting: make sure you only frost your cake once the layers are completely cooled, otherwise the frosting will melt. Do a crumb coat first by frosting the layers as you normally would and then coat the outside of the cake with a very thin layer of frosting then place in the fridge for 10-15 minutes before you finish frosting. This is so that the crumbs stick to this layer of frosting and not your main layer.
- For the top: garnish the entire top of the cake with raspberries by placing whole raspberries upside down onto the cake. See the photos for reference! I recommend doing this just before serving the cake so that the berries stay fresh and juicy!
How to make the lemon raspberry buttercream frosting
Not only is this easy lemon raspberry buttercream frosting gorgeous, but it’s also SO delicious and bursting with flavor. Here’s how to make it:
- Blend the raspberries. You’ll want to start by blending ½ cup of raspberries until smooth. Pour that mixture into a bowl through a sieve to strain the seeds out, and use the back of a spoon to get all of the juice out.
- Whip the butter. Add softened butter (or vegan butter) to a bowl of an electric mixer and whip it on high until it’s light and fluffy.
- Mix the frosting. Add powdered sugar, lemon juice & zest, and the raspberry puree to the electric mixer and beat on high again for a couple more minutes until well combined. You may need to add a tablespoon or so of milk to thin the frosting and make it creamier, but this just depends on how you like it.
P.S. you can make the frosting up to a week ahead of time! Simply store it in an airtight container in the fridge until you’re ready to use it. Let the frosting come to room temp before spreading it on your cake.
If you want to make a regular lemon buttercream: simply leave out the raspberry puree, add an extra tablespoon of lemon juice (so 2 tablespoons total) and 1-2 tablespoons of milk.
How to store & freeze this lemon raspberry cake
To save time you can absolutely make this cake 1-2 days ahead of time! Feel free to make the cake layers ahead and store them in the fridge, or make the whole frosted cake and store it.
- To store: I recommend storing the cake well covered in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days.
- To freeze: feel free to freeze this lemon raspberry cake either frosted or unfrosted for up to 2 months. I recommend freezing it unfrosted in individual layers for the best results. First, wrap each individual layer in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil and then place the cakes in a zip-top freezer bag. When you’re ready to serve it, simply thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and then let the cake come to room temperature before frosting and serving.
Our fav cake baking tools
- 6 inch cake pans
- Parchment paper
- Lemon zester
- Lemon juicer
- Offset spatula for the frosting
- Mixing bowls
- Hand mixer
- A nice cake stand
Get all of our go-to kitchen essentials here!
More amazing cake recipes
- Lemon Blueberry Zucchini Cake with Lemon Frosting
- Lemon Pistachio Cake with Lovely Lemon Frosting
- Inside Out Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake
- Damn Good Peanut Butter Banana Cake
- Healthy Birthday Cake
Get all of my cake recipes here!
I hope you love this wonderful lemon raspberry cake recipe! If you make it be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Gluten-Free Lemon Raspberry Cake
Ingredients
- Wet ingredients:
- 4 eggs, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup honey
- 1 (5.3 ounce) container of raspberry or mixed berry yogurt (or regular or plant-based yogurt)*
- Zest from 2 large lemons
- ⅓ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons almond extract
- Dry ingredients:
- 2 ¾ cups packed blanched fine almond flour
- 1 cup oat flour** (do not pack!)
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- For the lemon raspberry frosting:
- 1 ½ cups (12 ounces) butter or vegan buttery stick (such as Miyokos), at room temperature
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ½ cup raspberries (to make 1-2 tablespoons raspberry puree)
- Optional: 1 tablespoon milk, if necessary
- For the filling:
- 6 ounces fresh raspberries, cut in half lengthwise
- For the garnish:
- 6 ounces fresh raspberries (do not cut!)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line the bottom of three 6-inch round cake pans or two 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper rounds. Spray parchment paper and sides of the pans with nonstick cooking spray. YOU SHOULD USE PARCHMENT PAPER or the cake is likely to stick. Please do not forget.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, honey, yogurt, lemon zest, lemon juice and almond extract. The mixture should be smooth and well combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the almond flour, oat flour, poppy seeds, baking soda and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well with a rubber spatula until smooth.
- Divide batter evenly between pans and spread out with a spatula to smooth the tops. Bake for 18-28 minutes in the two 8-inch pans or 25-35 minutes for three 6-inch pans. Cakes are done when a tester comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting or removing from the pans. The cake should be room temperature when you frost it. This is very important. Cakes can be made a day ahead if you’d like.
- Make your frosting: Add ½ cup raspberries to a blender and blend until smooth. Pour mixture through a sieve over a small bowl and use the back of a spoon to get all of the juice out so you only have the seeds remaining. Set the raspberry juice puree aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, add the softened butter or vegan butter and whip on high until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add 4 cups powdered sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest and 2 tablespoons of the raspberry puree; beat on high for 1-2 minutes more until well combined. Taste and add more powdered sugar to your liking, if necessary. You may need to scrape the frosting down the sides of the bowl and then beat again. Optional: You may need to add in a little bit of milk (about 1 tablespoon) to thin the frosting out so it’s a little more creamy, but it depends on how you like it! I love a thick frosting.
- Now it’s time to frost the cake: place about 1 tablespoon down onto the cake stand and spread out. Invert a cake onto the cake stand, add about ½ heaping cup frosting between each layer. Cut the raspberries reserved for the filling in half lengthwise, and place them over the filling between each layer, covering the entire surface. You want to sort of smoosh them into the frosting as best you can. It’s okay if they break a bit, but it is important that they are well nestled into the frosting so that there aren’t large gaps between the cake layers. Repeat with each cake, then frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining lemon frosting. If the cake is slightly ‘naked’ on the outside, that’s okay, it’s going to be delicious!
- Garnish with fresh raspberries just before serving the cake to make sure they stay as fresh as possible!
- Cake will stay good at room temp for a day or so, then should be placed in the fridge. Cake will stay good for 5-7 days in the fridge, and should be well-covered to ensure freshness.
Recipe Notes
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by The Mindful Hapa
This post was originally published on February 2nd, 2022, and republished on May 7th, 2025.
Made this for my husband’s birthday and wow it is awesome! I am the one with the food sensitivities to gluten and dairy, and I loved being able to eat this with the family instead of having to watch other people eat cake and be sad 😂 not to mention the presentation is beautiful.
So happy to hear that! Many of my cakes are gluten and dairy-free, so let me know if you give others a try 🙂
So yummy!! I was nervous 6” sounded small (and had trouble finding 6” cake pans locally) but wanted 3 layers so I did 1.5x the recipe in 3 layers with 8” pans and that worked perfectly!
Ultimately I think 6” would’ve been fine but it seemed so small in my hands when I was measuring 🤣
It’s moist, springy and just delicious!!
Amazing! I’m glad those pans worked out well 🙂
Can I make this without almond extract and use almond flour instead?
Almond flour would not be a substitute here but you can just take out the almond extract if you don’t have it!
My celiac SIL doesn’t do oats – what would be an appropriate substitute here for the oat flour? More almond flour? Brown rice? Gluten free AP flour? Thank you!
I’ve only tested this cake as-is with the flours listed – sorry! You could try this cake and use raspberries in place of strawberries (it uses almond flour & coconut flour).
Hello,
I am making this recipe now, what happens to the rest of the puree from the Raspberries?
I am assuming that it goes in between the layers? Thanks! Can’t wait to try it.
Hi! I typically just discard it 🙂
Hi! My daughter chose this cake for her birthday this year. I’m wondering if you think it would work to be made in a Bundt cake pan instead of layered cake? (Obviously will not have the layers, but curious about the cake batter baking up okay)
Hi! I’m not sure, I haven’t tried it. It’s a lot of cake, but I think it could work!
This cake was so yummy! I used flax eggs and it turned out great! I also substituted ghee for the butter in the frosting and it worked pretty well, I think it had a stronger butter taste than I would have preferred. My family isn’t big buttercream frosting fans so next time I might try a coconut whipped cream layer instead! Very delicious cake though with all the flavors working very well together!
Perfect! I think ghee tends to have a pretty strong taste, so a coconut whipped cream sounds delicious 🙂
Hi
I tried your recipe and the texture is dense for me, Can I add additional 1 tsp baking powder to the cake? and to reduce the sourness? can I reduce lemon juice by half and add milk to balance?
Hi! I would recommend 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda in this cake for a less dense cake. Also remember that with these types of flour they can be a bit more dense!
Hi! I’d love to make one of your GF layer cakes for a baby shower. They’re expecting a boy – any thoughts on how blueberry would work in this recipe? Or your chocolate covered strawberry cake with a blueberry frosting instead?
Hi! Blueberry would be amazing in here! I’d recommend using 1-2 tablespoons of blueberry jam for the frosting, then fresh blueberries for garnish 🙂
Hi,
Could this be made in a bundt pan?
Hi! I haven’t tried it, but I think it should work! Let me know if you give a try 🙂
This cake was one of the best cakes I ever ate. Moist, flavorful and best of all healthy ingredients. I’m not a fan of buttercream frosting because of all the sugar. I may try it next time with a cream cheese frosting, and maybe some lemon curd in the filling. It was very expensive to make and very time-consuming, but in the end, well worth it and absolutely delicious! Thank you for all your wonderful recipes!
So glad you loved this one! Try my lemon cream cheese frosting here and let me know if you liked it better 🙂
Hello,
I am excited to try this recipe for my mom’s upcoming birthday! Would you have a recommendation for an alternative to oat flour?
Thank you so much!
Hi! I can’t suggest a swap for the flours in this recipe – sorry!
I so appreciate how allergen friendly this recipe is! I made it for my mom who is GF, DF, and allergic to eggs. It works well with the Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer. I made a 3 layer 6″, and it was the prettiest centerpiece. The cake itself is a bit dense, but anyone who bakes with almond flour will know what to expect.
Absolutely! Great for anyone with a variety of allergies.
I followed the recipe precisely and this was divine! I made it for Easter Sunday and it was a hit!! My 3 year old is newly wheat free due to allergies and he LOVED this cake.
Do you have any recommendations for converting this to cupcakes?
So happy to hear that! For cupcakes, you’ll just need to bake this for about 15 minutes (same temperature).
I made this cake recently, and it was so yummy! I filled it with lemon curd and topped it with cream cheese frosting. I also subbed chia seeds for poppyseeds bc I didn’t have them. Thanks for a great recipe!
Amazing! The lemon curd sounds delicious 🙂
The icing was great and the cake was overall delicious but I think I would replace the honey for the cake with regular sugar as it tasted like it needed to be a bit more sweet for me.
Let me know if you give it a try!
Being strictly gluten free, I can’t tell you how happy I am to have found Monique’s cake recipes. They are the only cakes I make. Every recipe I’ve tried comes out great. I made this one for my daughters birthday and people still talk about it. Nobody realizes it’s gluten free either!
So happy to hear that, Maria! Plenty more delicious gluten free recipes to come 🙂
The flavors in this cake are amazing! Such a perfect summer cake but really for any time of year! I typically like my favors simple when it comes to cake but this one is a real winner!
One of my favorite cake recipes!! If I wanted to do a 3 layered 8” cake, how should I change the measurements? Add 1/3 to everything?
Hi Ashley- I am so glad you’re loving this recipe. I haven’t tried making this as a layered cake with 8″ pans so I am not quite sure how to adjust the recipe. Let me know if you give it a try and how it turns out!
So good!
Just made this for Easter, and it came out so good!! Love that there’s no added sugar in the cake.
This looks amazing! Do you have any tips for high altitude (7,000 ft.) baking?
Unfortunately I don’t – so sorry! Let me know if you give this recipe a try!