When Life gives you lemons, make Sugar Free Lemon Brasadella Italian Coffee Cake! What is the sourest lemon sentence you can give a foodie? A doctor demanding a reduction in sugar, threatening diabetes gave this Ninja Baker a wake-up call. Good news is I lowered my numbers and am no longer on the diabetes precipice. I also learned to eat protein before diving into dessert. Previously I skipped the bacon and filled up a ginormous frozen yogurt cup.
![](sites/default/files/lemon-glutenfree-cake-maneki-neko-ninja.jpg)
Sugar-free, gluten-free lemon Brasadella Italian coffee cake goodness.
Adapting a gluten-free donut recipe from BabyCakes Covers the Classics by Erin McKenna (vegan and gluten-free guru to the stars, popular owner and cookbook author), I was inspired to experiment like Ms. Erin in the baby stages of BabyCakes. Plus I had great success baking a Paleo Pound Cake using stevia and erythritol (an aspartame-free sugar substitute)…Sooo I decided to put my many lemons, bottles of lemon extract and Penzeys Spices lemon peel into a sugar free, gluten-free Italian coffee cake.
![](sites/default/files/lemon-glutenfree-cake1-ninja.jpg)
Coffee cake with a lemon pucker Italian style.
Sugar-free, gluten-free Lemon Brasadella Italian Coffee Cake baking in the oven smells luscious. Lemon scents wafting through the apartment had me hopeful. Turning the lemon coffee cake out of the bundt pan proved promising, too. I drizzled a simple lemon glaze (made with organic lemon juice and real powdered sugar) over the coffee cake. I sliced a sliver of Lemon Brasadella; said a quick prayer and took a bite. The texture, the crumb of the moist lemon Italian coffee cake were splendid. A+. Lemon definitely said hello – which is a good thing if you like lemony baked goods. However, there was a slight stevia aftertaste. Next time, I’ll increase the erythritol and reduce the stevia measurements. (Both corrections are reflected in the recipe below. (Originally I used one cup of erythritol and a ½ tablespoon of stevia.) If you were born without a sweet tooth you might like to keep the erythritol to a cup. Plus, if you want to keep true to the tradition of the Italian Brasadella Cake, baking more lemon pucker and less sugar is right in line.
![](sites/default/files/lemon-vegan-glutenfree-cake-2lemons-ninja.jpg)
A drizzle of lemon glaze brightens Italian Brasadella coffee cake with a touch of true sweetness.
Love to hear how you’ve turned lemons into sweetness in your life!