Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake with Vanilla Bean Icing
This Lemon Bundt Cake recipe is made from scratch (no cake mix or pudding mix). Instead, the bright citrus flavor comes from the juice and zest of fresh lemons.
The Best Lemon Bundt Cake with Glaze
If you have a bundt pan laying around, it’s time to dust it off. Let’s shake off the winter blahs with a bright lemon bundt cake.
I’ll walk you through every step of bundt bake baking, including greasing the pan and (the most important part!), getting it to come OUT of the pan.
Your home kitchen is going to feel like a fancy bakery by the time you’ve baked the cake, doused it in sweet syrupy glaze, and elegantly drizzled it with icing. Prepare to be wowwed at your own skills!
Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake Ingredients
- flour – the main structure of the cake.
- granulated sugar – sweetens the cake and the glaze
- butter – makes the cake rich and delicious!
- sea salt – enhances the overall flavor of the cake by balancing the sweetness.
- eggs – helps the cake rise and contributes richness.
- baking powder – provides more leavening, so the cake is light and fluffy.
- vanilla extract and/or vanilla bean paste – brings big flavor to the cake and icing.
- milk and heavy cream – adds moisture the cake and used for the icing as well.
- lemon juice and zest – infuses the cake with bright, citrusy flavor and aroma.
- powdered sugar – the main structure of the icing.
How to make Lemon Bundt Cake
- BEAT. In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the sugar, butter and salt until fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the baking powder and vanilla and beat to combine.
- ADD. Gradually add the milk and cream, alternating with the flour. Then, stir in the lemon juice and zest.
- SPRAY. Throughly spray a bundt pan with baking spray. Like, really spray it a lot.
- BAKE. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake about an hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- GLAZE. Make the glaze by stirring together lemon juice and sugar.
- BRUSH. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for just 5 minutes. Then, turn the cake onto the rack, poke it all over with a toothpick, and brush the glaze all over it while it’s still warm.
- ICING. Once the cake is completely cool, whisk the icing ingredients together and pour the icing over the cake.
How to grease a bundt pan
Greasing the bundt pan is possibly the most crucial part of the entire recipe.
My preference is to use a baking-specific nonstick spray that contains flour, like Pam Baking Spray or Baker’s Joy Spray.
Be generous with your application to make sure you reach every crevice of the pan.
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Always grease your pan JUST before pouring the batter to avoid the grease sliding down the sides of the pan while you prepare your batter.
How to get cake out of a bundt cake
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes after coming out of the oven. This helps it set and reduces the risk of the cake breaking.
Gently tap the bottom and sides of the pan on a soft surface. Rotate the pan as you do this to ensure the cake is loosened from all angles.
Place a cooling rack on top of the pan, then invert the cake carefully but confidently onto the rack. Give the pan a gentle shake if needed. The cake should release right out onto the rack.
If your cake is stubborn, leave the pan inverted over the rack for a few minutes and see if gravity does the job for you.
How to decorate a Lemon Bundt Cake
The beauty of a bundt cake (especially if you have a special, intricate pan) is that you need very little decoration to make it beautiful.
Simple pipe or spoon the icing around the crown of the cake and allow it to drip down into the creases and crevices.
Storing Frosted Bundt Cake
Store your cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Refrigeration can extend the freshness by another day or two, if needed.
Moist Lemon Bundt Cake FAQs
The distinctiveness of a Bundt cake is that it is baked in a ring-shaped pan, which makes it visually striking. The pan’s design also promotes even baking, for a beautifully browned exterior and moist interior.
Boost the lemony goodness by using both the zest and juice of very fresh lemons. If Meyer lemons are in season, you can use them in place of regular lemons in this cake, for a sweet, slightly floral aromatic flavor.
For the moistest bundt cake, use a combination of fats like milk, cream and butter. Also, avoid overbaking, as it will lead to a dry cake.
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Frosted Bundt Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup milk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- Grated zest of 2 lemons
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Nonstick baking spray
For the Glaze:
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
For the Icing:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream plus additional if needed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
Instructions
Make Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In bowl of standing mixer, beat sugar, butter and salt until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add baking powder and vanilla; beat to combine.
- In liquid measuring cup, stir together milk and cream. Gradually add flour, and milk mixture, alternately, to mixer, starting and ending with flour. Mix until smooth. Stir in lemon zest and juice.
- Spray 10-cup bundt pan throughly with baking spray. Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing top with spatula. Transfer to oven and bake 60 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Make Glaze:
- Stir together lemon juice and sugar.
- Remove cake from oven; transfer pan to wire rack for 5 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack. Poke hot cake all over with toothpick. Immediately brush Glaze over cake; let cake cool completely.
- Just before serving, make Icing: In small bowl, whisk together all ingredients. If icing is too thick to pour, whisk in additional cream 1 tablespoon at a time until pourable, but not too thin. Pour over cake and serve.
Notes
- Store your cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Refrigeration can extend the freshness by another day or two, if needed.
Any chance we could sub out the heavy cream in the cake for sour cream or buttermilk?
Hi Elizabeth – I’m sorry, I haven’t tried making this cake with either of those substitutes.
I referenced the recipes from which this recipe was adapted. Very much appreciate being able to review those, and can understand why Lori took the direction she did with her recipe. Mostly I followed Lori’s recipe. Love the flavor and crumb that all butter brings to a cake, but decided to substitute 1/2 with coconut oil, just to ensure the resulting cake is very moist. I also went heavy on the lemon rind, following the whiteonricecouple.com’s instruction for the zest of 4 large Meyer Lemons. I hope I didn’t go overboard on that — It’s in the oven! Will report back…
Hope it turned out great, Stasia!