Moist Lemon Raspberry Buttermilk Bundt Cake
This lemon raspberry bundt cake with buttermilk is super moist, fluffy, and light, and is topped with an optional sweet lemon glaze. Made with either fresh or frozen raspberries and baked in a bundt pan, it’s an incredible flavor combination that’s perfect as dessert or as a snack!
This lemon raspberry pound cake recipe makes a super soft and moist cake finished with a delicate sweet lemon glaze. Its an easy bundt cake recipe that has a ton of fresh fruit flavor!
Lemon zest brings fresh citrusy flavors while pure lemon extract intensifies, making the lemon flavor even bolder and brighter. The raspberries take it up a notch and add another flavor profile and gorgeous color!
If you have leftover fruit, you can try this classic combo in these lemon raspberry muffins too!
As you can see, we’ve been on a huge lemon kick lately. This lemon pudding bundt cake has 90, 5 star reviews and definitely shouldnt be missed if your’e a lemon lover like me!! I also took this same recipe and swapped in blueberries to make this lemon blueberry bundt cake!
This 7 up cake is also delicious and will bring out more of that lemon and lime combinations. You can find all these recipes in my bundt cake recipe collection.
As a trained pastry chef who loves to maximize the pretty-ness of each dessert without extra effort, I love to bake bundt cakes because they have a built in design!
This cake not only has incredible fresh fruit flavor but is also incredibly moist because of the buttermilk used in the recipe. It’s a simple cake to make but packs a punch in flavor and presentation!
Why this is the best one out there
- You’ll make a glazed raspberry lemon cake entirely from scratch, and that’s something to be proud of!
- This is a great recipe for baking beginners.
- The cake itself is made with straightforward baking ingredients you might already have on hand.
- This quick and easy recipe yields the perfect buttery glazed lemon cake with raspberries.
- It’s the perfect cake for special summertime occasions.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
- Butter – You’ll need to use softened butter.
- Lemon & Sugar – You’ll mix lots of lemon zest with the sugar before creaming the mixture with butter. Granulated sugar will do the trick.
- Vegetable oil – Plays a par in creating cakes with maximum moisture.
- Eggs – I think of eggs as the glue that holds it together. Eggs help create a stable, sturdy cake batter while deepening the rich flavors.
- All-Purpose flour – This is the element that holds the structure together, creating a cohesive cake.
- Baking powder & baking soda – These are your leavening agents that cause the batter to expand and rise. We’re using baking powder and soda to balance the acids in the cake batter and improve browning on the surface of the cake.
- Salt – Salt also plays a role in helping the batter rise while making everything sweet taste even sweeter!
- Buttermilk – The acidity in buttermilk helps create extra tender and pleasantly tangy cakes. No substitutions!
- Lemon extract – A small amount of lemon extract intensifies the delightful lemon taste.
- Raspberries – When raspberries are in season, they’re super sweet, tart, and juicy.
- Sugar glaze – Confectioners sugar plus milk mixed into a thing gorgeous glaze. No heat is needed.
Frozen raspberries
You can totally use frozen raspberries. Just make sure to thaw and dry the raspberries very well before adding them so they don’t add additional moisture to the batter. If not dried well the extra moisture can mess up the way the cake bakes.
How to make this lemon raspberry bundt cake
Cream butter with sugar: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (you can also use a hand mixer), cream the butter for 1 minute. Mix the sugar and fresh lemon zest separately until the sugar is all nice and lemony. Then, add the mixture to the butter while mixing on medium speed.
Mix wet ingredients: Next, add the vegetable oil and mix to combine. Then, add one egg at a time, mixing on medium speed after you add each egg.
Mix dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.
Flavor buttermilk: Pour the buttermilk into a liquid measuring cup and mix with lemon extract.
Make cake batter: Add a third of the flour mixture into the wet batter while mixing on medium speed. Then, mix in half of the buttermilk. Mix in another third of the flour mixture, followed by the last of the buttermilk. Finish with the remaining flour mixture.
Add raspberries: Coat your raspberries lightly in flour, then mix them into the batter, doing your best not to squash the berries as you stir.
Bake, then cool: Pour the cake batter into your greased 10″ bundt pan and bake in your preheated oven until set and the sides pull away from the pan (45-50 minutes). Cool in the bundt pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
Glaze: Once the cake cools completely, stir milk and powdered sugar together to make the glaze. Then, slowly drizzle the mixture over the cake.
Tips for recipe success
- By stirring fresh lemon zest into the sugar you make sure to get all the oils from the rind. This intensifies the lemon flavor! Be careful not to zest past the yellow layer.
- Coating the berries in a light dusting of flour helps keep them suspended in the batter so they don’t sink to the bottom of the cake.
- Mix the berries into the batter with a spatula so you don’t break them up too much.
- This cake was tested for perfection in a 10-inch, 10-cup bundt pan. Of course, you can bake the batter in a different pan, but you’ll need to adjust the baking time accordingly.
- The glaze is optional but recommended. Instead of the glaze, you can also sift powdered sugar over the top to improve your presentation.
- The cake is done when a toothpick is inserted into the deepest part and comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
Mini lemon raspberry bundt cakes
How cute would these be in mini form?!
To make this into minis, pour the batter into mini bundt cake molds 2/3rds full, then bake in a 350F preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with mostly moist crumbs.
Storage and freezing instructions
Storing: You can keep your bundt cake in an airtight container for 3-4 days at room temperature.
Freezing: To maximize the shelf-life, freezing is the way to go. If freezing, don’t glaze the cake. Wrap it securely in a couple of layers of plastic wrap and store it in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, then add the glaze.
Variations
This lemon cake with bursts of juicy raspberries is perfect for breakfast and dessert. Here are a few ways to upgrade your cake.
- Raspberry jam – Swirling into the cake batter before baking.
- Lemon curd – Mixed in with the batter for an extra flavor boost.
- Streusel topping – Top your cake with an irresistible crunch!
Moist Lemon Raspberry Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, (227g)
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 cups sugar, (400g)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs, large
- 2 ¾ cup all purpose flour, 330g + 1 tsp separated
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon extract
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 6 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen washed or thawed and dried well. Plus more for garnish (optional)
For optional glaze:
- ½ cup confectioners sugar
- 1 tbsp milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Heavily spray a 10 cup bundt pan with baking spray.
- In the bowl of a hand or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream the 1 cup butter for 1 minute.
- Zest the lemon into a bowl filled with the 2 cups of sugar and mix well to make the sugar all lemony.
- Add the sugar to the butter and cream on medium speed for 1 more minute.
- Add the ¼ cup vegetable oil and mix again until combined.
- Add the eggs one at a time on medium speed, mixing in between.
- In a separate bowl combine the 2 ¾ cup flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, and ½ tsp kosher salt and mix lightly.
- In a measuring cup add the buttermilk and lemon extract.
- Alternate adding the dry and wet ingredients by thirds starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Sprinkle the raspberries with the remaining 1 tsp flour and coat well.
- Add them to the batter mixing by hand so as not to break them up so much. Pour the batter into the prepared bundt cake pan.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the cake is set and the sides are pulling away from the pan.
- Dust with powdered sugar or make the glaze
For the glaze:
- Combine the powdered sugar and milk and mix until smooth.
- Drizzle over cooled cake.
Instead of buttermilk, what can I use. I want to be pareve.
Hi! You can make pareve buttermilk by adding a tablespoon of lemon juice to a mixing cup and then filling the rest with milk until you get up to 3/4. Let it sit for 5 minutes and then use it as you would the buttermilk.
Thank you for this recipe. I have been trying different bundt cake recipes for years but they always come out dry and dense. This was so moist and flavorful. Definitely making this again!!
YAY Fitan!!! Thank you so much for letting me know!! I am so glad to hear that! I appreciate your comment and rating so much. Enjoy every last bite!!
Was all of the raspberries from the six oz container supposed to go in the batter or was their a certain amount that goes in the batter and the rest be used to decorate the top of the cake with the frosting,because I did not see anything saying how many goes in the batter batter because I put all of them in the batter,JC Jennings
Hi! Yes all 6 oz were to go into the cake, I just had extra from another container to decorate it with. Hope you enjoyed!
Delicious and easy, especially if you read the bundt pan prep link! I’ve tried this recipe s few times now with some modifications for my own preferences. I don’t like sweet (no sugar in my coffee, dark chocolate only etc) so I’ve found that my perfect cake uses 1.25C of sugar instead of 2C. My family doesn’t seem to miss the sugar as each version of the cake I’ve made disappears pretty quickly. In place of the glaze, I make a quick raspberry coulis to drizzle when serving. This recipe is a keeper!
So glad to hear this Christine! Its good to know about the sugar too, Im glad it didnt alter the recipe much. Thanks so much for leaving your comment and 5 star rating! A raspberry coulis on top sounds divine!
I stored this cake in an airtight container and it was moldy by the 2nd day 😕
Oh man Kathy! I am so sorry! I havent had this happen to me but if you stored it with fresh fruit on top then it would need to be stored in the fridge and not on the counter.