This Lemonade Bundt Cake Recipe is a sweet, tart, dense and moist lemon cake. It’s bursting with fresh lemon flavor thanks to the lemon zest, freshly squeezed lemon juice and sweet lemon glaze. Make this lemonade cake the next time you need a refreshing and easy dessert.
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Why Should You Make This Recipe?
I absolutely love to bake with lemon. My Lemon Poke Cake, Lemon Muffins, Lemon Dump Cake, Lemon Loaf, Lemon Lavender Cookie Bars and Lemon Olive Oil Loaf Cake are just a few that I'm always baking. I am so excited to add another easy lemon cake recipe to the blog.This buttery, sweet and tart lemon bundt cake will be your go-to lemon bundt cake recipe. I know you’ll love it because:
- It has the perfect moist, dense and tender texture. This lemonade cake has the perfect pound cake like crumb.
- Tons of lemon flavor. From the lemon zest, to the freshly squeezed lemon juice, to the sweet and tart lemon glaze, there’s luscious lemon in every bite!
- Easy to make with simple ingredients. This from scratch lemonade cake is made with simple ingredients like flour, butter, sugar, eggs and lots of lemon (of course!). It comes together quickly and easily making it the perfect cake for every occasion.
Ingredients
This Lemonade Bundt requires only a handful of ingredients to make and you probably already have them in your house!
For the Lemonade Cake:
- Dry Ingredients: Gather all purpose flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Wet Ingredients: Gather unsalted butter, oil, lemon zest, sugar, eggs, sour cream, fresh lemon juice and milk.
For the Lemon Glaze:
Gather powdered sugar and fresh lemon juice.
Substitutions
This lemon bundt cake recipe is meant to be so easy, you can make it as a casual cake to enjoy anytime. Here are my recommended substitutions to make this homemade cake as easy as possible.
- Unsalted Butter: Use salted butter if needed. Just make sure to omit the added teaspoon of salt listed in the recipe. Vegan or dairy free butter can also be used if needed.
- Sour Cream: This ingredient is used in place of 1 large egg. If needed, omit the sour cream and add an additional egg for a total of 5 large (US) eggs.
- Milk: Any type of milk will work well in this moist lemon bundt cake. To make this cake dairy free, use a plant based milk.
- Oil: I like to bake with canola oil. However, any neutral baking oil will work well in this lemon cake recipe. Olive oil will impart a slightly different taste, but lemon and olive oil work so well together!
- Fresh Lemon Juice and Lemon Zest: This wouldn’t be a lemon bundt cake without the lemons! Use lemons if at all possible, but know it’s possible to use an equal amount of any tart citrus fruit in this recipe. This lemonade pound cake recipe uses 4 lemons. This equals about ¼ cup lemon zest (1 tablespoon per lemon) and about 1 cup (237 ml) of fresh lemon juice (about ¼ cup, 59 ml juice per lemon).
How To Make
This moist lemon bundt cake recipe is super easy to make. So grab your ingredients and let’s get baking!
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease a 10- inch (12 cup capacity bundt pan). Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together until well combined.
- Pour the sugar into a medium sized bowl. Zest all the lemons right into the sugar. This is the best way to extract all oils from the lemon and get the best lemon flavor.
- In a mixing bowl, beat the butter and oil on medium until smooth and well combined.
- With the mixer on low, slowly pour the lemon zest sugar into the butter and oil mixture. Increase the speed to medium for about 3 minutes or until the butter and sugar are fluffy and light in color.
- On the lowest speed, mix in each egg one at a time.
- Mix in the sour cream and fresh lemon juice. The mixture may look grainy or even a little curdled. Don’t worry, this is exactly how it should look at this stage.
- By hand or on the lowest setting of your mixer, mix in the dry ingredients to the wet, alternating with the milk in three rounds- dry, milk, dry, milk, dry, milk. If you are familiar with lemon pound cake, this cake batter will look very similar.
- The texture of the easy lemon cake will look like a pound cake.
- Evenly pour the lemonade cake batter into the prepared bundt cake pan.
- Bake the lemonade cake for about 40 - 50 minutes. Remove the bundt cake from the oven to cool on a cooling rack for about 10 -15 minutes.
- To remove: Place a serving plate or even another cooling rack on top of the bundt pan. Invert the pan so the top of the bundt cake is now on the bottom (on the serving plate or second cooling rack). Gently lift up the pan. Allow the cake to cool to room temperature before applying the fresh lemon glaze.
- Make the fresh lemon glaze by whisking the lemon juice into the powdered sugar. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake. Allow another 30 minutes for the glaze to set. Slice and enjoy!
How To Store, Freeze and Thaw
Store:
- To store leftover lemon cake pieces at room temperature: Wrap the moist lemon bundt cake in plastic wrap, keep it under a cake dome or in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
- To store leftover lemon bundt cake in the fridge: Transfer the cake slices in an airtight container to the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freeze and Thaw:
- To freeze the lemonade cake: Slice your lemonade bundt cake into your preferred size and number of pieces. Wrap each slice in plastic wrap and place the pieces in a freezer safe, airtight container. Cake slices keep well in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- To thaw the lemonade cake: Transfer your desired amount of cake slices out of the freezer. Allow them to thaw overnight in the fridge. Bring the lemon cake slices to room temperature before enjoying.
M's Expert Tips
- Bring cold ingredients to room temperature: This allows the ingredients to mix together more evenly.
- Measure the flour properly: Use a food scale to properly measure all dry ingredients. The scoop and level method also works if you don't have one.
- Don’t overmix the lemon cake batter: Always use the lowest speed on your electric mixer or mix in the dry ingredients by hand. Make sure to mix the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
- Never fill the bundt pan more than 3/4 to the top. This easy lemon bundt cake recipe is made for a 12 cup capacity (10- inch) bundt pan. If you only have a smaller bundt pan to bake with, fill the pan 3/4 to the top and reserve the rest of the cake batter to bake in another pan. I'm thinking a few cupcake sized lemon cakes would be an excellent way to use any leftover batter!
- Cool the cake in the pan for no longer than 10 -15 minutes. If you try to remove the cake before 10 minutes, the cake may still be too hot to remove without falling apart. Removing the cake after 15 minutes may cause the cake to stick to the pan more easily.
- Fully cool the cake before applying the glaze. The glaze takes about 30 - 45 minutes to set.
- To make this cake with lemonade: Make this cake with real lemonade, omit all the milk and lemon juice ( 1 cup, 237 ml, total liquid) and use 1 cup (237 ml) lemonade in its place. Because lemonade is already very sweet, you may want to reduce the amount of sugar in the cake recipe by ½ cup (100 g) for a total of 1 1/2 cups (300 g).
FAQ's
Can I make this lemon bundt cake recipe in a different pan?
Yes! You can bake this lemonade bundt cake batter in a 9 x 13 pan for about 35 - 40 minutes. This recipe can also be baked in (2) 8-inch cake pans for about 25 - 30 minutes. If you have (2) 9 x 5 loaf pans, evenly divide the lemon cake batter and bake for about 40 -50 minutes.
How do I know when my bundt cake is finished baking?
Stick a toothpick in the center of the bundt cake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done. You can also gently press down on the center of the cake. If it quickly bounces back up, the cake is done. The edges of the cake should also gently pull away from the sides of the bundt pan.
When should I flip my bundt cake out of the pan?
Wait for about 10 - 15 minutes before removing the lemon bundt cake from the pan. Removing it too soon or too long after baking can cause the cake to fall apart or stick to the pan.
Why did my lemon bundt cake fall?
This can be caused by a few things. One is the incorrect oven temperature. Make sure to fully preheat the oven before baking this cake. Every oven needs about 20 minutes to fully preheat. Another reason can be that the baking powder is too old. Always make sure your baking powder is fresh.
Why is the outside of my lemon bundt cake hard?
This can be caused by overmixing. The easiest way to avoid this is to mix in the dry ingredients into the wet by hand and only until the ingredients are just combined.
Other Bundt Cake Recipes to Try
- Chocolate Chip Pound Cake
- Brownie Cake
- Red Velvet Bundt Cake
- Cranberry Orange Blossom Bundt Cake
- Pecan Upside Down Cake
If you try this Lemonade Bundt Cake Recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking! Happy Baking! -M
Lemonade Bundt Cake Recipe
This Lemonade Bundt Cake Recipe is a sweet, tart, dense and moist lemon cake. It’s bursting with fresh lemon flavor thanks to the lemon zest, freshly squeezed lemon juice and sweet lemon glaze. Make this lemonade cake the next time you need a refreshing and easy dessert.
Equipment
- 1 10 inch (12 cup) capacity bundt pan
- 1 stand mixer with whisk attachment or electric hand mixer with beaters
Ingredients
Lemonade Bundt Cake
- 3 cups (360 g) all purpose flour
- 2 tsp (6 g) baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup lemon zest zest from 4 lemons
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ¼ cup (59 ml) canola oil or other neutral tasting baking oil
- 4 eggs room temperature (large US)
- ¼ cup (60 g) sour cream, room temperature
- ¼ cup (59 ml) fresh lemon juice
- ¾ cup (177 ml) milk, room temperature
Fresh Lemon Juice Glaze
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C). Grease a 10-inch (12 cup capacity bundt pan).
- In a medium sized bowl whisk the all purpose flour, baking powder and salt together until well combined.
- Pour the sugar into a different medium sized bowl. Zest all the lemons right into the sugar. This is the best way to extract all oils from the lemon and get the best lemon flavor.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat the butter and oil on medium speed until smooth and well combined.
- With the mixer on low, slowly pour the lemon zest sugar into the butter and oil mixture. Once all the sugar has been added, increase the speed to medium for about 3 minutes or until the butter and sugar are fluffy and light in color.
- On the lowest speed, mix in each egg one at a time. Wait for each egg to be fully incorporated before adding the next. This takes about 20 seconds per egg. Once all the eggs are mixed in, mix in the sour cream and fresh lemon juice. The mixture may look grainy or even a little curdled. Don’t worry, this is exactly how it should look at this stage.
- By hand or on the lowest setting of your mixer, mix in the dry ingredients to the wet, alternating with the milk. This will be done in three rounds- dry, milk, dry, milk, dry, milk. If you are familiar with lemon pound cake, this cake batter will look very similar.
- Pour the easy lemonade cake batter into the prepared bundt cake pan. Bake the lemonade cake for about 40 - 50 minutes. The cake is finished when the edges of the cake are pulling slightly away from the pan, the top is golden brown and bounces back when gently pressed.
- Remove the bundt cake from the oven to cool on a cooling rack for about 10 -15 minutes. After this time, place a serving plate or even another cooling rack on top of the bundt pan. Invert the pan so the top of the bundt cake is now on the bottom (on the serving plate or second cooling rack). Gently tap all around the pan to help loosen any pieces of cake that may be stuck. Gently lift up the pan. Allow the cake to cool to room temperature before applying the fresh lemon glaze.
- Make the fresh lemon glaze by whisking the lemon juice into the powdered sugar. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake. Allow another 30 minutes for the glaze to set. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
- Use a non-stick spray to prevent the cake from sticking to the bundt pan. If needed, take a pastry brush or even a clean paper towel and work the spray into all the grooves of the pan.
- Bring the cold ingredients to room temperature before using in the recipe. I like to bring my cold ingredients to room temperature about 30 - 60 minutes before using in a recipe.
- To properly measure flour, use a digital food scale or the scoop and level method. A properly measured cup of flour weighs around 125 grams.
- Don’t overmix the lemon cake batter: Always use the lowest speed on your electric mixer or mix in the dry ingredients by hand. Make sure to mix the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
- Cool the cake in the pan for no longer than 10 -15 minutes.
- To store leftover lemon cake pieces at room temperature: Wrap the moist lemon bundt cake in plastic wrap, keep it under a cake dome or in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
did you make this recipe?tag @olivesnthyme on Instagram
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