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This Lemon Glazed Lemon Bundt Cake is light and fluffy and loaded with lemon flavor! One of my all time favorite lemon desserts and perfect for any lemon lover! Baked in a 12-cup bundt pan, this cake requires very little assembly but still looks stunning!
Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe
Say hello to the cake that almost drove me INSANE! Seriously… I tested this cake 13 times in 2 weeks! I was so determined to get it right, and it took over a dozen experiments to get there. Some cakes were too dense, others too moist, while some cakes completely lacked the flavor I was looking for. I felt like Goldilocks!
But after tons of trial and error, I finally found my perfect lemon bundt cake! And I think you’re going to love it, too! Texture wise, it’s very similar to lemon pound cake. It has a nice tight crumb that’s super buttery and moist. And the flavor is a lemon explosion thanks to lemon cake batter, a lemon soaking syrup, and a lemon icing!
Make the Cake Mix
First things first, Preheat the oven! Don’t worry about greasing your pan yet. Unlike most recipes, you’ll actually want to do this right before baking to ensure the pan is completely coated (nonstick baking sprays can slowly drain down the edges of a pan and pool at the bottom).
Now, grab a medium bowl and whisk together your dry ingredients and set them aside. Next you’ll whip together your butter and cream cheese (used this instead of sour cream and omg it’s so good!) and beat them until smooth. Then add in your sugar and extracts (lemon and vanilla!). Then you’ll add in your eggs. This recipe calls for 5 eggs, which is NOT a typo! Then in goes your lemon zest, lemon juice and oil. Be sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature so they bond evenly!
Finally you’ll toss in those dry ingredients and VERY GENTLY fold everything together. You don’t want to over mix here or your cake WILL be dry.
Once your batter is ready, you’ll want to generously spray your 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick baking spray. Be sure to grease every nook and cranny! Then scrape the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake the Cake
This cake will bake at a lower temperature (325 degrees F) for a longer amount of time (about 1 hour). Remember, every oven runs a little differently, and baking pans will also cause bake times to vary, so the best way to know if your cake is done is if a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Removing the Cake from the Pan
No need to manually loosen the cake from the pan! Instead, plan the cake – in the pan – on a cooling rack and cool for exactly 10 minutes. Then very carefully unmold the cake onto a another cooling rack and set aside.
Cooling and Decoration
While the cake cools, make your soaking syrup! You’ll brush this on the cake while it’s still warm, then set it aside to cool completely. This take about 2 hours!!! So plan ahead time wise.
Once the cake has completely cooled, you can make your simple lemon glaze and pour it on! A word to the wise, the glaze should be super thick and almost look too thick to drizzle. It’s this thick consistency that allows it to coat the cake and create that classic white “shell” look. If you add too much liquid, it will disappear into the cake as you drizzle it on.
If you’re planning on serving the cake cake right away, feel free to add some freshly grated lemon zest on top of the drizzle!
More Lemon Cake Recipes:
- Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lemon Raspberry Bundt Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Bundt Cake
- Lemon Cake for a Crowd
- Lemon Raspberry Cake
Lemon Glazed Lemon Bundt Cake
Ingredients
For the Lemon Cake:
- 3 cups (360 grams) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 ounces (340g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 8 ounces (226 g) brick-style cream cheese room temperature
- 2 cups (397 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons lemon extract
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 5 large eggs room temperature
- 1/3 cup (76 ml) lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1/4 cup (40 g) lemon zest finely grated
- 2 Tablespoons (29 ml) canola oil
For the Lemon Soaking Syrup:
- 1/3 cup (76 ml) lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1/2 cup (99 g) granulated sugar
For the Lemon Glaze:
- 2 cups (228 g) confectioners' sugar sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 and 1/2 Tablespoons (35 ml) lemon juice freshly squeezed, more only if needed
Instructions
For the Lemon Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together until well combined. Set aside until needed.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
- Gradually add in the sugar, then increase the speed to medium-high and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the lemon and vanilla extracts.
- Reduce the speed to medium, then add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the lemon juice, lemon zest, and oil.
- Reduce the speed to low and add in the flour mixture, mixing just until combined.
- Generously grease a 10-inch (12-cup) bundt pan, being sure to coat all of the nooks and crannies. I suggest using a non-stick baking spray that has flour in it, or greasing the pan with shortening or butter, then dusting it with flour. Scrape the cake batter into the pan and, using a rubber spatula, evenly smooth the top.
- Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown AND a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan, set on a wire rack, for 10 minutes. Then invert the cake onto the rack.
- Slowly brush the warm lemon soaking syrup all over the cake, top and sides, allowing it to sink in before adding more. Once all of the syrup has been added, set the cake aside to cool completely, about 2 and 1/2 hours.
For the Lemon Soaking Syrup:
- In a medium saucepan, combine the lemon juice and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, whisking frequently, just until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and use as directed above.
For the Lemon Glaze:
- In a large liquid measuring cup or bowl, combine the sugar and salt. Whisk in the lemon juice, mixing until just combined. The mixture should be super thick and just barely pourable. If the glaze is too thick, add more lemon juice, a teaspoon at a time. If the glaze is too thin, add more confectioners’ sugar, a Tablespoon at a time.
- Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake and allow it to set for 20 minutes. Then slice and serve!
This recipe is amazing! Delicious, dense and moist. Awesome lemon flavor! Would definitely make again.
I’m so happy this was a hit for you and you’d make it again! Thank you for letting me know!
For starters I made this cake for Easter & my family could not keep themselves away from this cake!
I am wanting to make mini bundt cakes with this recipe. Do you have any tips to help out with mini bundt cakes? For example bake time and the temp. To cook it on?
Is the lemon extract necessary?
You can leave it out, it will just taste slightly less lemony.