With desserts and coffee on the same menu, Dunkin’ always compels me to eat cake for breakfast. That undeniable urge brought me back to the drive-thru for its new summer menu. The Iced Strawberry Lemon Loaf Cake cried out to my sweets-for-breakfast-loving heart, and it ultimately further encouraged my habit. How?
This loaf cake tastes a lot like Trix cereal. Thanks, Dunkin’. In my mind, cake that tastes like cereal = cereal = breakfast = a sensible morning meal. Right?
Ignore my flimsy rationalization for several moments, and let’s return to the cake. In smell and taste, the loaf’s fruity flavor is very similar to Trix, Fruity Pebbles, and any candy, snack, or sweet inspired by such sugary cereal icons. It’s definitely an enjoyable and nostalgic, although nondescript, flavor that pairs well with the cake’s rich, buttery taste. While I could discern lemon flavor (but very little strawberry) primarily in the aftertaste, I wish that the loaf tasted more specifically fruity as opposed to generically fruity.
The loaf lists lemon juice, strawberry puree, and natural flavors among its ingredients, so it’s funny that the resulting taste is so similar to products that lean on cocktails of artificial fruit flavorings. I wonder if sticking to one flavor would have yielded a result similar to the lemon loaf from Starbucks, which I haven’t had in years but still remember as tasting like lemon zest.
Despite the unexpected flavor, the Iced Strawberry Lemon Loaf Cake is not a bad bite. The slice is thick, moist, and dense in crumb—a perfect, filling pound cake consistency. The layer of strawberry-flavored icing coating the top is semisoft powdered sugar icing, neither crusty nor runny. It adds an extra touch of moisture and sweetness without being cloying, although the purported strawberry flavor is pretty mild. Bonus points for the cool marble swirl effect that paints the cake yellow and pink. In these respects, the loaf satisfies, rivaling similar products you’d find at other coffee or grocery store chains.
Pre-packaged for on-the-go convenience, Dunkin’s seasonal Iced Strawberry Lemon Loaf Cake is here for a limited time. For breakfast, snack, or dessert, it won’t serve up a slice of summer flavor, but fruity cereal fans won’t leave any crumbs.
Purchased Price: $3.29
Size: 4 oz (113 g) slice
Rating: 7 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 450 calories, 21 grams of total fat, 6 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 75 milligrams of cholesterol, 310 milligrams of sodium, 58 grams of total carbs, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 40 grams of sugar, and 5 grams of protein.
