Although I’ve been trying to be “good”, aka healthy, throughout this never-ending quarantine, cake has been calling to me. As much as I genuinely love drinking green smoothies and eating big salads filled with whatever I have leftover in the fridge, there will always be that little voice in my head saying “You know what will cheer you up today? A piece of cake”. And after a long day of figuring out plans to execute a move across the country in the middle of a pandemic, a voice inside my head telling me to eat cake doesn’t sound crazy. Or does it?

Like I mentioned in my last post, I’ve been meaning to do a new bundt cake recipe, and I knew I wanted it to be raspberry-lemon. This flavor profile isn’t anything new or exciting in the recipe world, but one that is revisited time and time again because it just works. I’ve done a blueberry lemon recipe in the form of the best muffins, so I figured I’d give raspberries a bit of love. When you pair equally tart and sweet raspberries with fresh lemon zest, not only will your kitchen smell amazing. but whichever baked good you choose to embed those flavors into, will yield an amazing product. What I mean to say is that this cake is amazing.

The cake’s texture is anything but dense, but more akin to a pound cake with its moist consistency and perfect crumb. This is one of those cakes that can easily pass as a breakfast cake because it’s not too filling or heavy, and if you leave the glaze off, there isn’t that much sugar. Personally, I prefer to eat my sweets earlier in the day since I try to avoid sugar at night due to sleeping issues, and this cake has been the perfect afternoon snack.

Bundt cakes are seriously simple to bake and depending on what kind of bundt cake pan you own, whether plain or intricately shaped like the one I own, it’ll still come out of the oven looking impressive. The best part is that you don’t have to worry about assembling it as if it were a layer cake: you simply unmold the cake and can be done there. But if you want to add a little bit more sweetness, you have the option to either top the cake with a healthy dose of confectioners’ sugar or follow my lead and drizzle with a simple lemon glaze. The glaze gives the cake a more finished look and adds more lemon flavor to really brighten it up.

P.S. I made this cake for my mom for Mother’s Day and she claimed that it was the best cake she’s had in a long time. If you don’t know my mom, that’s a huge deal because the lady loves her sweets and eats them all the time.

Glazed Raspberry Lemon Bundt Cake

Yields 1 Bundt cake

Recipe Adapted by Well Plated

Ingredients

For the cake:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 cup (4 oz. / 1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream or plain Greek nonfat yogurt, room temperature
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup lemon zest
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
8 oz. fresh raspberries plus 2 tbsp. all- purpose flour

For the glaze:

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted if lumpy
2-3 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. milk

Directions

For the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F and thoroughly grease a 10-12 cup bundt cake pan with cooking spray.
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer) cream the butter and sour cream together until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and lemon zest and mix again for another 30 seconds.
Add the eggs one at a time, mixing completely before adding each one. Pour the vanilla extract in and mix until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add a 1/3 of the flour mixture to the bowl and then slowly pour a 1/3 of the buttermilk in as well. Continue this pattern until everything is added (two more rounds). When the last of the buttermilk is poured in and the batter is just about finished mixing, turn off the mixer.
Combine the raspberries and 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour together in a small bowl (this prevents the berries from sinking to the bottom of the cake). Carefully, fold the berries into the batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared bundt cake pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
Bake for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool for about 5 minutes before carefully inverting the cake onto a cooling rack. Let the cake cool completely before adding the glaze.

Make the glaze:

Whisk the confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice and milk together in a medium bowl. Depending on how thick or thin you want the glaze, add either 2 or 3 tbsp. of lemon juice.
Drizzle the glaze all over the cake (it doesn’t have to look perfect!) and enjoy! Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature.