Lemon Bundt Cake with Lemon Syrup Glaze

5 from 5 votes

Lemon Bundt Cake with Lemon Syrup Glaze

This Lemon Bundt Cake is bursting with lemon flavor, with a crackly sugary crust and super soft texture. Inspired by French lemon cakes, it's glazed with a zesty lemon syrup for extra moisture and flavor. Made with just 7 ingredients, it's perfect for tea, snacks, or breakfast.

Prep Time30

Cook Time30

Total Time1

Course: Desserts

Cuisine: American, French

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings: -10

Calories: 283kcal

Author: Ninon Michels

Ingredients

For the Lemon Bundt Cake

the zest of four lemons about 4 tablespoons of zest
180 g granulated sugar (scant meaning just a little less than a whole cup)
4 free-range eggs at room temperature
180 g unsalted butter plus more at room temperature to grease the bundt pan
200 g all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

For the lemon soaking syrup

120 ml water
50 g granulated sugar
60 ml freshly squeezed lemon juice

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Start the soaking syrup. Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, then cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened. Set aside and let it cool to room temperature.
Preheat your oven to 355°F (180°C). Generously coat the bundt pan with room-temperature butter, making sure to cover every nook and cranny thoroughly.
Infuse sugar with lemon. In a mixing bowl, combine granulated sugar and lemon zest. Rub them together with your fingertips until they’re well mixed.
Melt the butter. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Once it’s fully melted, promptly remove from heat—no browning needed.
As the butter melts, whisk the eggs gently into the lemon zest and sugar mixture.
Add the melted butter and whisk until the mixture is evenly combined.
Mix the dry ingredients and sift them over the batter. Gently fold until combined, then transfer to the bundt pan.
Bake the cake for 30-35 minutes, or until risen, golden, and cooked through. Check doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center—if it comes out with a few moist crumbs, it’s done. Cool in the bundt pan for 10 minutes before removing.
Meanwhile, mix lemon juice into the syrup and stir until well combined.
Gently remove the bundt cake from the pan and place it on a cooling rack over a baking sheet. Immediately drizzle the soaking syrup evenly over the cake, letting it soak in. Pour any extra syrup from the baking sheet back into the container and repeat until the syrup is mostly absorbed. Let the cake cool completely before serving and decorate with optional homemade candied lemon slices (see how-to in this post).

Notes

To make the Bundt cake:

Weigh your ingredients – While I’ve included volume measurements (cups and spoons), use metric gram measurements if possible. A digital kitchen scale is more accurate than cups, ensuring precise, consistent results. Since weight is exact and volume can vary, a scale eliminates inconsistencies and will invariably give better results.
Using room-temperature eggs helps the ingredients bind together and allows the batter to develop better during baking. For the best results, remove the eggs from the fridge at least one hour before you start baking.
Sifting the dry ingredients will create an extra light and airy texture in the bundt cake, so be sure not to skip this step.
Not overworking the batter. Just gently fold the ingredients together until they’re combined—no heavy whisking!
Allowing the bundt cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing it helps prevent it from breaking and crumbling.

To make the lemon soaking syrup:

Adding the lemon juice to the soaking syrup after it has cooled helps maintain its acidity and preserves the full depth of the lemon flavor.
Pouring the soaking syrup over the cake while it is still warm allows the syrup to be absorbed more effectively, resulting in a moister cake.

Nutrition