This moist lemon bundt cake is made from scratch with fresh lemon zest and juice, soaked in a bright lemon syrup, and finished with a sweet, tangy glaze. It’s soft, buttery, and packed with bold citrus flavor in every bite. An easy, bakery-style dessert perfect for any occasion.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick baking spray. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking soda, and kosher salt. Set aside.
Combine lemon zest and sugar in a small bowl and pinch together for about 3-5 minutes, until the sugar takes on a pale yellow color.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together room temperature butter and oil for 2 minutes, until smooth and lightened in color.
Add the lemon sugar into the butter mixture and continue to mix for 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and begin adding the eggs one at a time, ensuring each egg is fully incorporated prior to adding the next. After adding 2 eggs, scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue adding the eggs.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl again and add in the lemon extract, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Mix until just combined, about 1 minute. (the batter may split, this is completely normal, it will come back together once all of the ingredients are added)
Add in half of the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, about 20 seconds. Then add the sour cream and mix until just combined, about another 20 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the remainder of the flour mixture and mix until fully incorporated, about 20 seconds.
Pour cake batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
While the cake is baking, prepare the lemon simple syrup. Add water and sugar to a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and boil for 5 minutes, until the sugar is dissolved. Then reduce to low heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and add in the lemon juice and lemon extract. Stir together and set aside to cool.
Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn over onto a wire rack to cool completely. As soon as you turn the cake over onto the wire rack to cool, use a pastry brush to douse the cake in the lemon syrup and allow the cake to cool completely, about 1-2 hours.
Once the cake has cooled, prepare the glaze. Whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice, and heavy cream until smooth. Pour on top of the cake and serve.
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Notes
Tips
Use room temperature ingredients! Ensure that ingredients like butter and eggs are at room temperature. This helps in achieving a uniform texture in the cake batter.
Grate the lemons and before you juice them! This prevents the needs to use a bundt of lemons, simply grate the lemons prior to juicing them.
Use a kitchen scale to measure your ingredients, both dry and wet ingredients! The best way to measure your ingredients is to use a kitchen scale (in grams). It's far more accurate then using a measuring cup! Metric measurements are provided in the recipe card.