A perfect afternoon of reading magazines in English, baking a lemon bundt cake, and a little taste of home. A light dessert for light reading.
Wes went to Canada for a conference and brought me a stack of magazines home. After being a single mom for a few weeks, a morning to myself with a cup of coffee and lots of current magazines was a delight. Not to mention that there was a new royal baby that week, so that made it even more exciting.
I also loved that Wes brought me home a Canadian Living. We lived in Nova Scotia for a few years (Ava is our Canadian souvenir from our time there) and that magazine was one of my favorites. I’ve cooked so many things out of it through the years.
Anyway, I was flipping through and found a recipe for Lemon Bundt Cake. Ava had asked me to make her a lemon cake a few days before that, and I had all of the ingredients so I made it for her. Not only did I have a lovely morning reading magazines, but then I had a lovely afternoon baking my daughter a cake.
The cake is light and bright, and we all loved it. I love a really citrusy cake, and this is it.
What Is A Bundt?
Bundt is the name of the pan — a Bundt pan — and is actually trademarked by an American company called Nordic Ware. The origin of the cake lies in Germany where it is known as “Bundkuchen”. Its chief characteristic is that hole in the middle, which separates it from your run-of-the-mill cake. It’s a popular item at pot lucks and receptions and the like, perhaps because it possesses a certain elegance. I find it partners really well with hot beverages (coffee, tea) so I usually serve it at lunch or tea parties.
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 4 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 4 eggs
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 2 3/4 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon water
Lemon Icing:
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
How To Make – The Steps
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray baking spray generously in a 10-cup Bundt pan.
- Add sugar and lemon zest to a bowl of an electric mixer. Turn on low and let the oils rub into the sugar.
- Add butter and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add lemon juice.
- In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir dry ingredients into butter mixture, alternating with buttermilk, making 3 additions of flour and 2 of buttermilk.
- Scrape batter into prepared pan, smoothing top. Bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes, invert onto rack and transfer to cake plate.
- In a microwaveable bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice, and water. Microwave until warm, about 30 seconds. Brush over warm cake. Let cool completely.
- To make the glaze, whisk sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Whisk in water 1/2 teaspoon at a time if necessary. Drizzle over cake and let set before serving.
Variations
One of the great things about Bundt cakes is that they can cater to your particular tastebuds. They are very versatile and can be made over and over without each one tasting alike. The version here — lemon — is very popular but you may want to try others. Vanilla, chocolate, and almond work well. Then you’ve got the frost/glaze to think about. Powdered sugar, chocolate ganache, or caramel can be used. THEN there’s the fruit, nuts, or chocolate chips that can be added to the batter. With so many options, you’ll want to think ahead about what the cake will taste like to mitigate the possibility of clashing flavors.
FAQs
How do I make this more lemony?
Rub the lemon zest into the sugar, it releases the oils in the zest and brings out even more lemon goodness.
Will the glaze make the cake soggy?
Brush generously with the glaze. Keep brushing until you’ve used it all. I promise it doesn’t make the cake soggy, it just keeps it nice and moist.
How do you get your cakes a nice golden color? Mine always come out brown.
I’d check your oven temp. It sounds like your oven might go hot. And I’d also check during baking and cover loosely with foil to prevent the top from browning too much.
How To Store Lemon Bundt Cake
Let the cake cool completely then put it in an airtight container. It can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days. If you want to keep it around longer, you can put it in the fridge for up to 7 days or the freezer for up to 3 months. When you’d like to eat it, let it come to room temperature. If you’ve been keeping it in the fridge, you may want to take it out 30 minutes before you plan to eat it to let the icing soften.
Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups sugar
- 4 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 cup butter room temperature
- 4 eggs
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 2 3/4 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
Lemon Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon water
Lemon Icing:
- 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Spray baking spray generously in a 10-cup Bundt pan.
- Add sugar and lemon zest to a bowl of an electric mixer. Turn on low and let the oils rub into the sugar.
- Add butter and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add lemon juice.
- In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir dry ingredients into butter mixture, alternating with buttermilk, making 3 additions of flour and 2 of buttermilk.
- Scrape batter into prepared pan, smoothing top. Bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes, invert onto rack and transfer to cake plate.
- In a microwaveable bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice, and water. Microwave until warm, about 30 seconds. Brush over warm cake. Let cool completely.
- To make the glaze, whisk sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Whisk in water 1/2 teaspoon at a time if necessary. Drizzle over cake at let set before serving.
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