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Your regular Bundt Cake just got a bite better: This Buttery Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe is such an elegant dessert. It’s deliciously soaked in homemade lemon butter sauce for a fresh and bright flavor that’s so good!
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Buttery Lemon Bundt Cake
To make this Lemon Butter Cake recipe easy for you, we’ll use a lemon cake mix for the batter. But don’t you worry: Your bundt cake will still taste homemade. All thanks to the star of the recipe: the sweet and buttery lemon sauce made from freshly squeezed lemons.
Out of all of my lemon cake recipes, I’d have to admit that this may be my favorite one. But don’t get me wrong, this Lemon Pound Cake Recipe is exceptional, especially the addictive lemon glaze.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- This buttery sweet bundt cake easily comes out delicious every time!
- A homemade cake in disguise! You’ll love how easy this butter cake is since we’re using lemon cake mix, but you’ll enjoy the homemade flavor from the lemon sauce.
- We’ll cover everything you need to achieve the best bundt cake possible with my helpful lemon cake mix hacks and bundt cake tips!
Ingredients Needed
- Lemon cake mix: makes this recipe so easy, but don’t worry, it’ll still taste 100% homemade. I’m using duncan hines cake mix for this recipe.
- Butter: We’ll use unsalted butter to make the cake and in the butter sauce.
- Milk: any kind you like – I love using whole milk in cakes.
- Extracts: I love adding butter extract to the cake because it pumps up the butter flavor. You can swap vanilla extract if you prefer.
- Instant vanilla pudding mix: or use lemon pudding mix to triple the lemony flavor. Pudding mix in cake mix recipes keeps the cake extra moist.
- Lemon juice: freshly squeezed lemon juice from about 1-2 lemons – always use fresh juice!
- Lemon Zest: Lemon zest holds all the lemon flavor, so don’t skip it.
How to make Lemon Bundt Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray (the kind with flour) or butter and flour it.
- Use a hand or a stand mixer to beat the cake mix, butter, room temperature eggs, milk, extract, and pudding mix until a thick batter forms. Pour into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs. Remove the bundt cake from the oven and let it cool for about 10 minutes but keep it in the pan.
- While the cake is baking, make the sauce. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Stir in the sugar, lemon juice, zest and salt and cook until it just simmers (bubbles around the edges). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Poke several holes in the cake using a long skewer and pour the butter sauce over the cake. Cool in pan completely, then remove to serving plate. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Expert Tips
- Be sure to grease and flour a bundt pan really well. That’s the secret to easy release and a pretty cake.
- If you can’t find lemon pudding mix, you can use vanilla or even cheesecake flavor.
- Be sure to let it cool completely before removing from the pan so the flavor soaks into every single bite.
- The cake is sweet enough because of the sauce so it doesn’t need frosting; just a dusting of powdered sugar will do!
- To achieve a thicker textured cake, replace the milk with a cup sour cream.
FAQs
What is the difference between a bundt cake and a regular cake?
Bundt cakes have a distinct shape due to the type of baking pan used.
How far in advance can you make a bundt cake?
Since this lemon bundt cake is so buttery, you can make it for up to 3 months in advance and freeze it! Or make it up to 2 days ahead and store it in the refrigerator.
How to decorate lemon bundt cake?
You can add cake icing or buttercream to decorate your bundt cake.
Can you freeze this cake?
Yes! This lemon bundt cake is one of the best freezer friendly cakes since it holds its moisture perfectly. You can freeze this lemon cake in an airtight container for up to 3 months!
Easy Lemon Bundt Cake Recipe
Easy Lemon Pound Cake starts with a cake mix and has the perfect lemon flavor. The warm cake is soaked with a lemon butter sauce!!
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 (approx 15 ounce) box lemon cake mix
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter , melted
- 1 cup milk
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon butter extract optional; it pumps up the butter flavor of the cake
- 1 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding mix (or lemon)
Sauce:
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice from 1-2 lemons
- Zest of one lemon
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray (the kind with flour) or butter and flour it.
- Use a hand or a stand mixer to beat the cake mix, butter, eggs, milk, extract, and pudding mix until a thick batter forms. Pour into prepared pan.
- Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs. Remove the cake from the oven and cool for 10 minutes but keep it in the pan.
- While the cake is baking, make the sauce. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Stir in the sugar, lemon juice, zest and salt and cook until it just simmers (bubbles around the edges). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Poke several holes in the cake using a long skewer and pour the butter sauce over the cake. Cool in pan completely, then remove to serving plate. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.
Recipe Notes
- Be sure to grease and flour a bundt pan really well. That’s the secret to easy release and a pretty cake.
- If you can’t find lemon pudding mix, you can use vanilla or even cheesecake flavor.
- Be sure to let it cool completely before removing from the pan so the flavor soaks into every single bite.
- The cake is sweet enough because of the sauce so it doesn’t need frosting; just a dusting of powdered sugar will do!
- To achieve a thicker textured cake, replace the milk with a cup sour cream.
Recipe Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 114mg | Sodium: 41mg | Potassium: 74mg | Fiber: 0.02g | Sugar: 17g | Vitamin A: 573IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 46mg | Iron: 0.4mg
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
Other Bundt Cake Recipes
Last Updated on March 30, 2023
This is ‘the best’ cake I have ever made! All my friends (including my 6 year old granddaughter) ask for me to make it again and again as well as asking for the recipe!
So glad you liked it!
Awesome cake! Every time I make it I have to give the recipe to whoever tastes it because it is that good.
I have a box of lemon pudding but the kind you cook, not instant. Can that be used like the instant?
Thanks in advance.
No you need to use instant for this recipe.
Yummy cake. I used vanilla pudding as I didn’t have lemon on hand. It was so flavorful and moist and reminded me somewhat of the caramelized cake in my Mom’s pineapple upsidedown cake. It’s a keeper!
Can this cake be made in a 9×13 pan? And if so, what would be the baking time?
I have not tried that. If you try it will you let me know how it works? (I don’t see why it can’t be made in the rectangular pan, should work just fine.)
Delicious! I only had vanilla pudding and it was the 1 ounce box. This came ou perfect! Thank You!
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