Orange Pound Cake

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This simple glazed Orange Pound Cake has orange flavor in every bite: zest and juice in the cake, an orange glaze, and orange icing! It’s the perfect homemade pound cake recipe.

orange bundt cake with sliced oranges and icing on top on a white plate.

Easy Orange Pound Cake Recipe

Our neighbors often bring us oranges from their tree and I get super excited to make orange desserts with them. I’m an orange dessert superfan and love all citrus recipes, especially once I discovered lemon desserts like lemon bars and lemon pie and orange frosting.

Why you’ll love this recipe

Orange Pound Cake is a homemade cake using triple the orange flavor. There’s orange in every bite of this from scratch bundt cake!
This is a pound cake, which means it’s dense and thick (not fluffy and light). It’s super moist from a glaze soak and icing.
The cake is filled with orange zest and juice.
The cake is drenched with an orange syrup before the frosting goes on.
The frosting is an orange powdered sugar glaze.

Ingredients Needed

Fresh Orange Juice – don’t use bottled. Fresh orange juice has tons of flavor!
Orange zest – this is where a ton of that orange flavor comes from. Don’t skip it! (Learn how to zest citrus)
Unsalted Butter – pound cakes need lots of butter – make sure it’s softened.
Buttermilk – I love the flavor that buttermilk gives the cake.
Eggs – You need 5 large eggs – these helps the pound cake rise as well as lend structure and moisture to the cake.

Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!

How to make Orange Pound Cake

Whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl.
With an electric mixer, cream butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Combine buttermilk with orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla extract in a measuring cup.
Add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Beat just until it comes together. Do not overmix!
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 45-55 minutes.
Make the orange glaze by simmering orange juice and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Set aside.
Once done, cool cake 10 minutes in pan, then turn out cake onto a rack. Use a pastry brush to spread the glaze evenly over the tops and sides of the cake. Let dry and cool completely before drizzling with frosting.
Make the frosting by whisking powdered sugar with orange juice and drizzle the icing over the cooled cake.

Tip From Dorothy

Expert Tips

Be sure to cream the butter and sugar long enough. It should be light and fluffy.
If you want even more orange flavor, add some orange extract.
Use just the orange part of the zest, not the white. The white is bitter.
I used mandarin oranges but you can use naval oranges or any kind you like.
You can also bake this as two loaves in two 8.5×4-inch loaf pans.
Be sure to remove the cake while it’s still warm – it will come out of the pan easier.
Store the cake loosely covered at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to 3 months.

FAQs

Is a bundt cake the same as a pound cake?

No – they’re baked in the same pan (a round fluted pan) but a bundt cake is often light and fluffy whereas a poundcake is dense and heavy.

What causes a pound cake to be dry?

When there is not enough moisture in the cake it will turn out dry. That’s why we use 5 eggs, buttermilk, and make sure not to pack our flour or over bake the cake.

What’s the best flour to use for pound cake?

All-purpose flour is the best to use for a pound cake – be sure to measure it correctly by weighing it or spooning it into the measuring cup then leveling it off, never packing it.