This high altitude lemon bundt cake is so incredibly soft, tender and fluffy. The cake is brushed with melted butter and then covered in lemon sugar for a simply irresistible dessert.
You might also love this lemon lush dessert, lemon poppy seed cake, and Italian lemon ricotta cake.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Fresh Lemon Flavor. There’s no lemon extract in this lemon cream cheese pound cake, just lots of fresh lemon zest and lemon juice for the most wonderful flavor.
Use Any Bundt Pan. You can make a large bundt cake in a 12-cup bundt pan, or scale the recipe down for smaller 6 or 10 cup bundt pans. And you could even make mini individual cakelettes instead of a bundt cake.
Soft, Moist and Fluffy. You can serve this cake slightly warm or at room temperature, and it’s fantastic either way. You’ll love the soft, fluffy texture, and how moist the cake stays for days after baking. This lemon bundt cake is actually the lemon version of my popular snickerdoodle bundt cake, which is loved by everyone who makes it.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Lemons. You’ll be using both fresh lemon zest and lemon juice for today’s lemon bundt cake. Plan on approximately 2 large lemons or 4 small lemons. Be sure to use a microplane zester/cheese grater for zesting your lemons. The zest and juice will add plenty of lemon flavor to your cake, while the acidity in the lemon juice will contribute to the tender texture.
- Sugar. You’ll need granulated sugar to add sweetness and moisture to the cake.
- Butter + Cream Cheese. The high fat content of the butter and cream cheese makes a rich, velvety, flavorful cake that you’ll just love.
- Eggs. Gives the cake moisture, structure and strength.
- Vanilla Extract. Flavor.
- Flour. For a very soft, light texture, use cake flour, rather than all purpose flour.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness.
- Baking Powder. Leavening agent.
- Milk. Adds moisture and richness.
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Thoroughly grease a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick baking spray (or use your favorite go to combination of butter/shortening and flour to grease and dust the pan, getting it in all the nooks and crannies.)
- Use a microplane zester to zest your lemons. You’ll be using the lemon zest, as well as the juice from your lemons, and you’ll need approximately 2 large lemons or 4 small lemons to get enough zest and juice.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar with the lemon zest. Use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until very fragrant.
- Add the butter and cream cheese, and beat on medium speed (#4-6 on a Kitchen Aid mixer) for 7 minutes. Scrape the bowl down several times while mixing.
- Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating in each egg on medium speed for 1 full minute before adding the next egg. Add the vanilla.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Separately, stir together the milk and lemon juice; the mixture will curdle. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the lemon milk, starting and ending with the flour. Increase speed to medium and beat for 15 seconds.
- Spread the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for about 50-55 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the cake comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool for 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto the cooling rack, remove the pan, and cool the cake for an hour or two, until the cake is just warm or room temperature.
Lemon Sugar
- Melt the butter, then use a pastry brush to brush the butter all over the top and sides of the cake. This will give the lemon sugar something to stick to.
- In a small bowl, rub the lemon zest into the sugar. Set the cake, still on the cooling rack, over a baking sheet to catch the lemon sugar. Sprinkle the lemon sugar over the cake, or use your hands or a pastry brush to gently press it against the cake. You won’t be able to get all the sugar to stick; just save what’s left, keeping it refrigerated for several weeks to use for another baking project.
- Carefully slide a spatula (or a large cake lifter) under the cake to loosen it from the cooling rack, then gently transfer the cake to a serving plate.
- Serve the cake slightly warm, or completely cooled to room temperature.
Recipe Variations
Smaller Bundt Pans. For a 10-cup bundt pan (such as these Jubilee or Elegant Party bundt pans, scale the recipe down to 3/4. For a smaller 6 cup bundt pan (like these Heritage or Anniversary bundt pans , scale the recipe down to 1/2. You’ll have to experiment with shorter bake times, testing the cake for doneness.
Cakelettes or Mini Bundt Cakes. I love the idea of making mini lemon bundt cakes or cakelettes, covered in lemon sugar or drizzled with lemon icing, and arranged on a pretty serving tray for a special occasion. This Nordic Ware Autumn Cakelette Pan and Nordic Ware Tea Cakes Pan would make the most gorgeous mini lemon pound cakes for a special occasion.
Sheet Cake. For a lemon sheet cake, bake the full cake recipe in a 9×13 inch pan, or half the recipe in a 9-inch square pan. Brush the top of the cake with the melted butter and sprinkle with lemon sugar.
Lemon Icing. Instead of the coating of lemon sugar, you can make a simple lemon icing with 1 cup powdered sugar and 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice. Stir together until smooth, then drizzle over the cake.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common questions with cake making, so that you can be successful in your own baking! I also suggest reading these comprehensive posts on making Perfect American Buttercream, How to Stack, Fill, Crumb Coat and Frost Layer Cakes and How to Use Piping Bags.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store the leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
You can use all-purpose flour instead of cake flour. However, cake flour will make a lighter, fluffier, more tender cake, while all-purpose flour will make your cake a bit more dense, like a lemon pound cake.
You Might Also Like
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High Altitude Lemon Bundt Cake
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Bundt Pan (12 cup capacity) ("Original" bundt pan design)
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
Ingredients
Cake
- 2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon zest (from 2 large lemons or 4 small lemons)
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 oz full fat cream cheese (block style), softened to room temperature
- 4-5 large eggs (Use 4 or 5 large eggs to equal 1 full cup of eggs, filled to the 8 ounce line in a liquid measuring cup.)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups cake flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup fresh lemon juice
Lemon Sugar
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon zest
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Thoroughly grease a 12-cup bundt pan with nonstick baking spray (or use your favorite go to combination of butter/shortening and flour to grease and dust the pan, getting it in all the nooks and crannies.)
- Use a microplane zester to zest your lemons. You'll be using the lemon zest, as well as the juice from your lemons, and you'll need approximately 2 large lemons or 4 small lemons to get enough zest and juice.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the sugar with the lemon zest. Use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until very fragrant.
- Add the butter and cream cheese, and beat on medium speed (#4-6 on a Kitchen Aid mixer) for 7 minutes. Scrape the bowl down several times while mixing.
- Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating in each egg on medium speed for 1 full minute before adding the next egg. Add the vanilla.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder. Separately, stir together the milk and lemon juice; the mixture will curdle. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the lemon milk, starting and ending with the flour. Increase speed to medium and beat for 15 seconds.
- Spread the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for about 50-55 minutes, until a cake tester inserted in the cake comes out clean or with moist crumbs clinging to it.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack, and cool for 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto the cooling rack, remove the pan, and cool the cake for an hour or two, until the cake is just warm or room temperature.
Lemon Sugar
- Melt the butter, then use a pastry brush to brush the butter all over the top and sides of the cake. This will give the lemon sugar something to stick to.
- In a small bowl, rub the lemon zest into the sugar.Set the cake, still on the cooling rack, over a baking sheet to catch the lemon sugar. Sprinkle the lemon sugar over the cake, or use your hands or a pastry brush to gently press it against the cake. You won't be able to get all the sugar to stick; just save what's left, keeping it refrigerated for several weeks to use for another baking project.
- Carefully slide a spatula (or a large cake lifter) under the cake to loosen it from the cooling rack, then gently transfer the cake to a serving plate.
- Serve the cake slightly warm, or completely cooled to room temperature.
Just made this cake it turned out great!!
hi, looks sooo good and I have so many lemons 🍋 on my beautiful tree. I will try it! first I only need to translate it to the metric system… thank you
This is a wonderful cake and so fun to make! The lemon sugar is a very nice way to finish. I made it for a little gathering and everyone gobbled it up!
Made this. Delicious and moist . Fresh lemon flavor. My neighbors loved it !
Does this cake freeze well?
Yes, just wrap it in several layers of plastic wrap, or keep it in an airtight container in the freezer.
The cake was light and fluffy as I used cake flour. Everyone loved it! And it was easy to make. This was the first recipe I used and now u can’t wait to make other cakes!
What would be the best way (if any) to incorporate blueberries into the recipe? Lemon blueberry is my favorite!