There is something incredibly satisfying about a slice of bundt cake. It may be the nostalgia of its appearance; reminding you of sitting at your grandmas kitchen table, chatting over cake and tea. Yes,a slice of bundt cake is certainly a tempting sight.
This recipe is the perfect summer treat, fusing together the sweetness of blackberries and the tartness of lemon. Don’t be shy with the lemon zest and glaze on this cake, it makes all the difference in the final flavor.
You’ll notice the unique mixing method here, it’s not the traditional creaming method that you see in most cakes. This bundt starts with all of the dry ingredients and butter in the mixer bowl and then just enough liquid is added to bring the batter together. After whipping the batter for two minutes to aerate and build structure, the remaining liquid by way of eggs is added. In pastry speak we would call this the two-stage or reverse creaming method. You’ll see from the photos that this cake has a tight crumb and a very tender bite. That is reverse creaming at it’s finest!
I choose to cut my blackberries in half since they were gigantic, but your certainly could skip this step. You can also toss them with a dash of flour if you feel that it will prevent them from sinking in the pan while baking. Finally, don’t forget to take note of my point on greasing your pan. A cake with this amount of fruit and sweetness would just love to stick to the bundt pan, so don’t forget to grease and flour your pan well!
Note that I’ve given this recipe in both weight and cup measurements. I always recommend baking by weight, especially when it comes to cakes, but this recipe is a bit forgiving. When measuring your cake flour be sure to use the scoop and level method of measuring. Use a spoon to scoop the cake flour into your measuring cup and then use a knife or spatula to level the cup.
- Cake
- 3 cups cake flour (360 grams)
- 2¼ cups white sugar (425 grams)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 20 tablespoons of unsalted butter, softened (10 ounces)
- ¼ cup vegetable or canola oil (2 ounces)
- ⅓ cup of buttermilk or sour cream, room temperature
- 6 eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Zest of two lemons
- 1 pint of blackberries, washed and dry
- *******************************************
- Glaze
- 1 cup of confectioners sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon lemon extract
- Generously grease and flour a standard bundt pan, or grease using a pan release mixture
- Preheat your oven to 350*F
- Toss washed and dried blackberries with a bit of flour, if desired. Set aside
- Prepare the cake:
- Sift the cake flour, sugar, salt and baking powder into the bowl of your stand mixer
- Add the butter, oil, buttermilk and 3 of the eggs
- Using the paddle attachment, blend the mixture on low for 30 seconds to combine the ingredients
- Increase the speed to medium high and beat the batter for 2 minutes, stopping to scrape the bowl half way through
- Add the vanilla, lemon zest and one of the remaining eggs
- Blend on low to combine then raise speed to medium and beat 30 seconds
- Repeat with the remaining two eggs
- Gently fold the blackberries into the batter then spoon into your prepared pan
- Bake the cake for about 65-75 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean
- Cool the cake on a wire rack for 20 minutes
- Once the cake has cooled, give it a gently shake side to side to release it from the pan and turn it out onto a cake platter. Allow to cool completely while you prepare the glaze
- Prepare the glaze:
- Measure one cup of confectioners sugar into a small mixing bowl
- Add two tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice and whisk until the sugar is dissolved
- Whisk in the lemon extract
- If the glaze is too thick to pour it can be thinned with more lemon juice, one teaspoon at a time
- Drizzle the finished glaze over your cooled cake
Note that I’ve given this recipe in both weight and cup measurements. I always recommend baking by weight, especially when it comes to cakes, but this recipe is a bit forgiving. When measuring your cake flour be sure to use the scoop and level method of measuring. Use a spoon to scoop the cake flour into your measuring cup and then use a knife or spatula to level the cup.
I’ve tried making a bundt cake. My flavors were great and cake nice and moist, however my cake came out so dark and not the beautiful color like in your pictures. I baked it for 60 minutes. I don’t understand why it was so dark. Any tips or suggestions???
Hi Gabbi- You could try using a lighter colored bundt pan. Also try lowering your oven temp by 25*
If it got very dark, you may have accidentally used bakings soda instead of powder. This would cause a very dark crust. Give it another try and see. Happy Baking!
My 10 year old loves being in the kitchen and had a wonderful time making this cake this afternoon. Some friends blessed with some pristine, ripe blackberries and when we found your recipe, she was excited to get started. What a delicious creation!! It was fun learning about the reverse creaming method and all of us oooohed and ahhhhed after dinner because this is a fantastic cake and made this almost-summer evening just about perfect. Only thing we left out was the extract in the glaze, would have been a little strong for our taste. And being 10, she colored the glaze lavender and garnished with fresh berries, it looked fantastic, too.
Hi Meaghen! I’m so happy that you and your daughter enjoyed your time in the kitchen with my recipe. Makes me smile! I’m glad that you all enjoyed the cake and that you gave it your own creative finish.
My best,
Dan
I made this cake with just a few differences. (I used AP flour, and vanilla instead of lemon extract because it’s what I had on hand. I was even short about 50g of sugar, but I didn’t even miss it in the final product) I made sure to grease my bundt pan really really well, and then dusted it with flour. It popped right out with a gentle tap. This cake was SO. DARN. GOOD. It was so moist and buttery. And it even seemed to get better and moister on the second day. It didn’t last much longer after that! 🙂
Yes! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it Amanda! It is one of my favorite recipes. Pound cakes like this do tend to improve in flavor and texture a day or two later- that is true 🙂
Happy Baking- Dan
Hi Dan!
I didn’t understand the maisure of 1pint. Can you tell me this maisure in grams?
Hi Dayabe! It will be about 1.75-2 cups of berries.
Enjoy!
Dan
Can I use frozen blackberries? They are only in season for a short while where I live, and quite expsenvie. The frozen variety is cheaper and available year-round. Thanks. 🙂
HI Ana
You can use frozen blackberries. Add them while they are still frozen so that they don’t mush up when you fold them in.
Happy Baking!
Dan
I just made this cake in a “classic” bundt pan (more ridges with more definition than the pan you used in the photo). When greasing the pan, I use melted butter and a brush and coated the interior with flour. If the butter pools in the sections, then the flour glops and it’s not a pretty cake when it comes out so I’m careful to dab out the excess butter before flouring.. The berries did mostly sink to the bottom. I didn’t flour them as you made it sound like that wasn’t necessarily going to work. One section did stick and I gently pried it out and put it in place. It tasted fine…but was not so pretty to look at. Do you think it’s better, more likely to be successful, if the pan has less detail/defined design? Thanks for any thoughts! Love your video too. Very helpful. I love the fancy bundt pans but, I think I may need to buy a simpler design.
Hi Hedy. I’m sorry that your cake stuck! There are many beautiful bundt pans, but the more detailed ones can cause cakes to stick. Did you consider reattaching the stuck part and covering it with glaze? That usually works! You might also want to try using non stick baking spray with flour. Happy Baking!
Thanks, Dan! Yes, I did reattach and next time I’ll do a better job glazing…didn’t realize mine was too runny so it disappeared when I put it on. Lots to learn! I’ll try the spray to see if that helps any.
Such a delicious cake. The texture was perfect. I was a little skeptical about the mixing method, but it creates the perfect light, airy texture. It came out like a pound cake but much lighter. The husband who is 72 years old and has eaten an abundance of cake, said he thought this was hands down one of the best cakes he has ever had. It’s a keeper in the recipe box!!!!!
HI Karen! Im so glad to hear it! Im glad that you and your husband enjoyed the cake! -Dan
I just made this,it is cooling off as I write this.It smell wonderful!! I am so excited to try this! I will let you know😅
It is such a great recipe Lynne! Glad you liked it!
Hello! This looks wonderful! I know you told someone else that using frozen blackberries is ok, but to leave them frozen so that they don’t get mashed in the mix. My question is:Would I adjust the cooking time or temperature if I’m adding the frozen berries ? I am also cheating and using a lemon bunt cake box mix, so I planned on following the box directions and then stirring in the frozen berries and making the glaze per your directions. Thank you I’m advance for your help.
HI There! You are right, frozen berries work great. The baking time shouldn’t change much.
I made this cake yesterday, and while it turned out fine, it didn’t have quite as much lemon flavor in the cake itself as I would have hoped. The next time I bake it, I might try adding another lemon’s worth of zest and perhaps a 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of lemon extract. I loved the texture of it though. It was extremely light and airy.
Hi Fred! Im glad you enjoyed the cake. Extra lemon zest is always good. Another trick is to start with the white sugar and lemon zest in the bowl. Rub the sugar between your hands to release the lemon oils-you’ll be able to smell the fresh aroma. Then proceed with the recipe. This should give you the flavor you’re looking for.