This Easy Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe is light, moist and full of fresh lemon flavor. It’s topped with a homemade lemon glaze to make this a perfect dessert for spring!
If you’re a lemon lover, this lemon bundt cake recipe is for you! Hands down, it’s one of my favorite lemon cake recipes to date.
Back in the day when sparkly butterfly hair clips and jelly sandals ruled all, lemon cake was low on my list of favorite desserts.
(I know.)
Chocolate ruled all and that was pretty much all I needed and wanted in life.
(On a side note, I share the same last name with a Dutch chocolate company, so you could say chocolate is kind of in my blood. 😉)
While I’ll never give up my love for the dark stuff, somewhere along the way, I realized lemon was the unsung hero of my life.
Maybe my love for it came from the fact my sister picked lemon cake with lemon frosting for her birthday. Every.Single.Year.
Or maybe it’s because I’m slightly competitive and in the 6th grade when we would spend our recesses seeing who could eat the most Lemonhead candies in a minute (yeah, we had high aspirations), I really didn’t like losing.
Perhaps the love has always been there, but it just took me a while to know a good thing when I see taste it.
Whatever the reason, I’m a lemon junkie these days and this ridiculously easy Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe has been on repeat as of late.
I don’t hate it. 😉
Let’s talk about this little lemon bundt recipe.
A lot of lemon bundt cake recipes begin with a yellow cake mix. I’m no stranger when it comes to cake mixes. In fact, there are times when I would definitely suggest using a cake mix as a great recipe shortcut.
For instance, this Fudge Stripe Coffee Cake? Cake mix.
These Strawberries and Cream Sandwich Cookies? Cake mix.
And this Maple Cream Cake? Yep. Doctored up cake mix.
While I certainly am not opposed to cake mixes by any means, I really wanted a pronounced lemon flavor in this cake but also didn’t want the cake to be too sweet (sometimes cake mixes can make things extra sweet).
So, we went for an easy lemon bundt cake without cake mix. And it is and was everything the title suggests: easy.
Lemon Bundt Cake Ingredients:
- Butter & sour cream (many bundt cakes call for oil, but the butter yields a richer texture in this recipe; likewise, the sour cream makes the cake incredibly moist and rich)
- Sugar (all granulated sugar, as brown sugar would detract from the lemon flavor)
- Eggs
- Salt, baking powder, all purpose flour and cornstarch (the combination of cornstarch and flour acts like cake flour, giving this lemon cake a really tender crumb)
- Milk and vanilla extract
- Lemon juice and lemon zest (the fresh lemon juice and zest truly brightens and enhances the flavor in this cake)
Easy Lemon Bundt Cake Tips & Tricks
- Grease your bundt pan well. Really, really well. Bundt cakes are notorious for sticking inside of their pans so greasing it well will help the cake slide out easily.
- If you do not have a bundt cake, you could make this a lemon loaf cake. Given the amount of batter this recipe makes, you will need to divide the batter between two loaf pans.
- Depending upon your oven, this lemon bundt can take anywhere from 45-55 minutes. Mine took exactly 49 minutes, but at the 45 minute mark, I kept a careful eye on the oven. As soon as a cake tester comes out clean (if there are a few moist crumbs—not wet but moist—it’s fine to take it out of the oven).
- Let the cake cool for about 10-15 minutes, but then remove it from the pan and allow it to finish cooling on a wire rack or a plate. If you allow it to cool entirely in the bundt pan, the heat of the pan might continue to cook the cake, which could lead to the cake being overdone and dry.
All of my lemon dreams right here. ❤️
- 1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp lemon zest
- 4 eggs, large
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 cup milk (whole or 2%)
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 cup sour cream (greek yogurt may be substituted)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- With a standing mixer or a handheld mixer, cream the butter until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add granulated sugar and lemon zest to the butter and mix until it is well combined.
- Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- In a separate bowl, whisk salt, baking powder, all purpose flour and cornstarch together. Set aside.
- Mix lemon juice, milk and vanilla extract together.
- Alternately, add the flour mixture and milk mixture to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until everything is just combined.
- Add in sour cream and mix until just combined.
- Grease your bundt cake pan well and pour the batter evenly into the pan.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean (if there are a few moist crumbs stuck to it, that’s fine). (My oven took exactly 49 minutes.)
- Allow to cool for about 10-15 minutes, then remove the cake from the bundt pan and allow it to finish cooling on a wire rack or plate.
- Whisk powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest together. Once combined, drizzle over the cooled cake.
- Allow the icing to set, about 5 minutes, before serving.
- Enjoy!
Here are some other lemon recipes you might love:
Beth says
Can I substitute cake flour for the Ap flour and cornstarch?
Michelle says
Yes you can! 😀
Victoria says
What size bundt tin did you use for this?
Michelle says
Hi Victoria! I used a 10 x 2 1/2 bundt pan.
Lourdes says
Could I use organic raw cane sugar in place of granulated sugar?
Michelle says
Hi Lourdes, yes! That should work just fine. The texture might be slightly heavier since it’s not quite as fine as granulated sugar, but it should still bake up just fine! 🙂
Jonny montgomory says
So good im gonna enjoy it with my family on saturday night!
Amanda says
Do you think I can leave out the lemon and just make it a vanilla bundt cake? Or will it affect the texture? Thanks!
Michelle says
Hi Amanda! If you do leave out the lemon juice, I would substitute milk in for its place, otherwise the cake might be too dry. I’d probably add another tsp of vanilla extract as well 😊 I think that should work!
Kathy says
Great cake add more lemon!
Julie says
I made this lemon cake with a slight alteration of using heavy whipping cream Instead of milk (as I had no milk on hand). This turned out Devine. The cake was more of a pound cake but the flavors were all there. I also discovered I still had my bundt pan packed in a box so I made mini loaves and one regular bread loaf pan. The mini loaves turned out fabulous, I just adjusted the time and the bread pan I had to turn down the temp to 325 and cook it longer as the sides were browning and the middle was still gooey. It turned out great. Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Katie says
I just made this and it was absolutely AMAZING!!! My favorite lemon cake recipe! It tastes a lot like the one you get at Starbucks. It turns out so moist and dense and delicious. Thank you for sharing!!!
Danielle says
I made this tonight and it turned out so good!! I love how lemony it is!
Dhani says
Fabulous cake with a perfect, light texture and that lemony taste I was looking for! We loved it.
Rennae Howard says
My family loves this cake! My husband even asked me to make one for him to take to work. The mistake I seem to make is possibly putting the glaze on too soon. We usually want some cake soon after it’s baked and the glaze seems to run down and pool in the middle or around the edge.
Tracie says
Great recipe! My family decided there needs to be triple the amount of glaze.
Dan says
Followed the recipe to a tee, came out a little dry. Wife said I should have sifted the flour.
Pam says
Love this cake . It’s light and just the right amount of lemon. We didn’t need the icing. It was perfect and beautiful with just the glaze!
Cathy Ohlwine says
This recipe is amazing. The flavor and texture is perfect. I made mini bundt cakes and the recipe made 20 delicious cakes. So good!!!
Toni Brockington says
It would be really useful if you would specify the size bundt pan…(6 cup or 12?) that you are using.
Michelle says
Hi Toni, I’m using a 12 cup bundt cake pan. 🙂
Brenda says
This is by far one of the best lemon cake recipes that I have tried (which is saying something)
Stacy, creator “Otterly Delicious Treats” says
I added a big container of fresh plump blueberries, which I precoated in flour to prevent from sinking to the bottom. Lemon and blueberry are my favorite combo. Just like my famous breakfast muffins, minus the delicious crumb topping (if only I could figure out how to make this toooing and it not cook in the cotton of the Bundt pan. So yummo I convinced myself it was specifically a breakfast treat!
Hilda says
Great recipe! You will love it, the fresh lemon flavor in cake makes it amazing. I made it exactly as the recipe stated and wouldn’t change a thing.
scott says
I followed this recipe exactly and it turned out delicious. I feel like the cake itself could use more lemon flavor, so next time I will add more lemon (juice, rind or something lemony).
Amirah C says
Absolutely loved this cake. It tasted professionally done and I am no professional! I subbed 4% plain yogurt for the sour cream, and reduced the sugar very slightly. Still perfect and didn’t need the icing!
Dani says
This looks like a delicious recipe. Do you think I could add blueberries to the mix?
Michelle says
Hi Dani, yes, I do think adding blueberries would work. I would toss the blueberries with 1 Tbsp of flour before adding them to the batter. This will keep them from sinking to the bottom of the cake while it cooks. ☺️ Hope you enjoy it!
Demelza says
Outstanding! Absolutely delicious cake, loaded with lemon flavor. Thank you for a beautiful recipe.
Mary Story says
I made this recipe today with freshly picked lemons our friend gave us. I made 2 loaf pans. I’m bringing a loaf to her. This recipe is so delicious! I followed the exact recipe. It’s so moist and lemony. It’s definitely a keeper. Thanks so much!!
Anya says
I made this to bring to work for my boss’ birthday. She took the first bite and said “THIS is delicious!” Of course I beamed. It was loved by all and I would make it again. Great recipe.
Wendy says
Hi, can you substitute gluten free flour with xanthan gum? If so, would you still include the cornstarch? I would like to make this recipe for my daughter who has a wheat allergy. Thank you!
Michelle says
Hi Wendy! The cornstarch is used to make the cake extra light and fluffy (cornstarch + flour is a DIY cake flour), so I would still include it in the recipe. As far as gluten free flour, I like Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 flour because you can substitute it for any recipe with regular flour (without needing an xanthan gum). I hope that helps!
Christine Cooper says
Loved this recipe. I used a mini bundt pan tray that I had and it made individual cakes and they were so pretty! I’m going to use this recipe for my Easter baking that I share with others. I’m making the bundts ahead and freezing them this weekend. I’ll take them out for Easter, glaze them and deliver them to friends.
Kayla says
I whipped this up real quick last night for Easter today and it was so delicious! Perfect texture and lemon flavor!
Jessie says
Love the recipe! Can i put wiped cream on it?
Michelle says
I bet whipped cream would be fantastic! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!