26 Simple Loaf Cake Recipes

Whether you are baking a birthday cake or you just fancy something with a sweet flavor, cakes are a fantastic food to make.

Many traditional cakes contain multiple layers and are typically round.

Why not break the mold and make a loaf cake? These cakes get their name because they are cooked in a loaf tin that is typically used to make bread, giving these cakes a distinctive appearance. 

Loaf cakes tend to be incredibly simple to bake. So if you want to bake something quick and easy, here are 26 terrific loaf cake recipes to try:

1. Banana Bread

If you’ve got leftover bananas, this banana bread recipe is a brilliant way of using them up. It’s even designed for overly ripe bananas.

What we love about this banana bread recipe is that it is bursting with flavors.

This is thanks to seasoning, such as vanilla extract and lemon juice. While other banana bread recipes can be somewhat bland, this incredible recipe avoids this fate.

2. Coffee And Walnut Loaf Cake

This coffee and walnut cake is best suited to people who like to start their mornings with a warm cup of coffee.

The cake has been seasoned to perfection with brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. These additions pair nicely with the coffee flavor.

What we love most about this recipe is the sinfully creamy coffee buttercream frosting, which complements the cake perfectly.

Topped with halved walnuts, this cake both looks and tastes gorgeous.

3. Chocolate Loaf Cake

Do you consider yourself to be a chocoholic? If so, you’re going to find this cake ravishing! 

The chocolate loaf cake is luxuriously rich. It can be covered with chocolate ganache and strawberries for even more deliciously sweet flavors.

Moreover, we appreciate the recipe variation suggestions, which enable you to customize the recipe.

For instance, you can easily transform this into a chocolate orange cake by adding orange zest.

4. Red Velvet Cake

Red velvet cake is known for its striking red color and its subtle cocoa flavor.

This fabulous recipe makes the perfect red velvet cake. It not only has a deep red color, but it has a nuanced flavor that is seasoned with cocoa and vanilla.

This eye-catching cake is covered with an easy-to-make cream cheese frosting that’s loaded with divine tastes.

We also love the suggestion of decorating with some red crumbs, as it adds a lovely visual contrast with the white of the frosting.

5. Sticky Toffee Loaf Cake

If you adore sticky toffee pudding, then this is the loaf cake for you! You get all of the flavors that you expect from a sticky toffee pudding including walnuts, brown sugar, dates, and, most important, toffee!

To complement the cake, it has been covered with thick and rich caramel buttercream.

When covered with walnuts, fudge, and a drizzle of caramel sauce, this recipe creates a dessert that is perfect for showing off on social media.

6. Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cake

Lemon drizzle cake is an iconic cake. This loaf cake recipe ensures that the result is a pleasantly moist cake with an ideally sharp flavor.

This beautiful cake is topped with a simple lemon icing and some lemon zest, adding even more flavoring to the dish and providing the cake with vibrant yellow.

If you are a lover of all things lemon, you will find this cake divine. 

7. Grapefruit And Greek Yogurt Loaf Cake

This next recipe is a little unorthodox, as grapefruit is often underused in baking. Yet, this recipe excellently uses grapefruit, giving the cake a sweet and tangy taste.

The idea of using Greek yogurt is inspired, as it boosts the flavors and enhances the moisture of the succulent loaf cake.

This ingredient ensures that the cake has a soft and bouncy texture, which is exactly what you want in a cake.

8. Gingerbread Loaf Cake

This gingerbread cake is a fantastic Christmas recipe. It has an eye-catching design that is sure to impress guests over the festive period.

The cake itself is loaded with ginger flavoring. The spiced gingerbread loaf cake is topped with a delicate ginger buttercream frosting and a plethora of festive decorations.

This includes gingerbread men. Could this loaf cake taste any more like gingerbread?

9. Raspberry And White Chocolate Loaf Cake

Raspberry and white chocolate are commonly used together. This mouth-watering loaf cake perfectly uses this iconic flavor combination.

The delicious recipe can be prepared in just 10 minutes, making it both tasty and convenient

When decorated with a light coating of confectioner’s sugar and a drizzle of white chocolate, this loaf cake looks almost too good to eat. 

10. Cinnamon Swirl Loaf Cake

The earthy and spiced taste of cinnamon makes it perfect for baking. This moreish cinnamon swirl cake recipe is ideal for breakfasts or as a dessert, making it a flexible recipe.

Not to mention, it has a cool aesthetic thanks to the cinnamon swirl that can be found at the center of every slice of this cake.

11. Fruit Loaf

In Britain, fruit loaf is an iconic treat. If you wish to make a rich and flavorsome cake that is perfect with a cup of tea, you should use this fabulous fruit loaf recipe.

It uses the ingenious idea of soaking the fruit in tea beforehand, ensuring that the fruit is nice and moist.

The cake contains sultanas, raisins, and candied cherries, providing sweet juiciness to the dish.

12. Cranberry Bread And Orange Glaze

This wonderful cake is bursting with fruity, tangy flavors.

The cranberry cake is covered with an outstanding orange glaze, which maximizes these fruity tastes. Unlike other recipes, this one uses fresh cranberries, thus improving the taste.

The use of fruit ensures that the cake remains moist for a while, so you won’t have to worry about using it immediately.

Another reason to love this recipe is that the orange glaze is incredibly simple to make and only requires 3 ingredients.

13. Peanut Butter Bread

There’s just something about peanut butter that results in it being a magnificent baking ingredient. It instills foods with so much flavor, as evidenced by this glorious peanut butter bread recipe.

It has an enjoyable creaminess and a nutty taste. This peanut butter loaf cake is ideal for kids, especially if you cover it with delicious jelly.

14. Apple Loaf Cake

Ideal for the apple picking season, this apple loaf cake has a spiced and earthy taste. Consequently, it has an autumnal feel to it.

This apple loaf cake is loaded with complex flavors thanks to the seasoning combination of cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. Simply serve with caramel sauce to bring out the luxurious sweetness of the apples.

15. Lime And Pistachio Loaf Cake

The cake is elegantly seasoned with lime and pistachio, a combination that works surprisingly well. They share more than just a green color!

We especially love the decorative elements of this cake. It has been topped with a coating of lime zest and chopped pistachios, creating a vibrant green color scheme.

16. Sweet Potato Loaf

If you’re searching for a healthy cake recipe, this sweet potato loaf may be the answer! It’s bursting with nutrients, especially when topped with pumpkin seeds and oats. These toppings pair brilliantly with the spiced sweet potato cake.

The cake itself has a lovely sweet flavor due to the potatoes and cranberries. These flavors are complemented by nutmeg and ginger seasonings.

17. Blueberry Loaf Cake

Whether you are looking for an easy snack or a dessert for a party, this versatile blueberry loaf cake is a yummy option.

The cake is super straightforward to make. Yet, the delicious and moist cake seems a lot more complicated than it is, which is guaranteed to impress guests.

18. Oreo Loaf Cake

Do you love the sweet and rich taste of Oreos? We find them irritable! This recipe brilliantly incorporates Oreos into a delicious loaf cake.

The cake batter has quite a mild vanilla flavor, enabling the chunks of Oreo cookies to shine through. This recipe is sure to be a hit with kids, especially if they have a sweet tooth!

19. Mango Coconut Loaf Cake

If you are looking for something a little different, why not make this magnificent mango and coconut loaf cake? These two ingredients aren’t often paired together, yet they work wonderfully!

The desiccated coconut and diced mangoes give this cake a sweet tropical flavor that is ideal for the summer.

20. Bara Brith

You may not have heard of bara brith before. This delicious Welsh treat is a sweet bread loaf made from tea, spices, and dried fruits.

If you are interested in making this loaf, simply follow this sensational recipe. It’s simple to make and only needs 6 ingredients, so you won’t have to spend a ton of money on this recipe.

21. Vegan Mint Chocolate Loaf Cake

This fudgy chocolate cake is ideal for chocolate lovers. It is paired with mint, resulting in a divine mint-colored buttercream that contrasts with the dark cake.

Another reason to love this cake recipe is that it’s vegan, meaning that it’s suitable for a large range of people. It also means that vegans aren’t excluded from eating this extraordinary cake. 

22. Orange Loaf Cake

If you like lemon loaf cake, you will likely love this other citrus-flavored recipe.

This cake is made with fresh oranges and orange juice, then topped with an orange glaze. Therefore, every bite is brimming with orange flavors.

Requiring just 10 minutes of preparation time, this is an easy recipe.

23. Marble Sprinkle Loaf Cake

This recipe is incredibly fun! The inside of the cake has a bright marble effect, while the outside is covered with a rainbow of different colored sprinkles. 

Due to its bright rainbow color scheme, this loaf cake is ideal for kid’s parties. Kids are going to fall in love with this vibrant recipe. 

24. Strawberry Loaf Cake

Flavored with fresh strawberries, this stunning strawberry cake is a magnificent summertime recipe. The cake has a delicately sweet flavor that everyone can enjoy.

This loaf cake recipe is sure to grab your attention. The pink strawberry-flavored glaze has a bright pink aesthetic.

25. Millionaire’s Loaf Cake

You’ve likely tried millionaire’s shortbread and found it irresistible. This clever recipe transforms this treat into a loaf cake.

The brown sugar cake is then coated with an opulent caramel sauce and an indulgent chocolate buttercream.

If you love desserts, what’s stopping you from making this ingenious millionaire’s loaf cake recipe?

26. Passion Fruit Loaf Cake

Our final pick is a phenomenal passion fruit loaf cake with an intense flavor. This is thanks to the use of fresh passion fruit and passion fruit yogurt. 

The passion fruit gives the cake a moist and soft texture. So if you want to make a cake that has an appealing aesthetic and a passionate taste, this recipe is for you!

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Loaf Cakes and Pound Cakes the Same?

No, they are not the same type of cake. Pound cakes got this name because they contained the same quantity of ingredients, namely a pound each of eggs, sugar, flour, and butter.

Meanwhile, loaf cakes get their name from the loaf-shaped tins in which they are baked. 

How Do You Serve a Loaf Cake?

Unlike round cakes, which are usually cut into triangle slices, a loaf cake is cut into thin segments. The cake can either be served alone or with extra touches.

For instance, you can serve this cake with chocolate sauce, cream, fresh fruit, or ice cream. Make sure that these flavors match the cake filling.

Final Thoughts

There are so many loaf cake recipes out there for you to try. So what’s stopping you from getting stuck in?!