Lime Bundt Cake
This lime bundt cake is light and zesty with a rich cream cheese frosting. It’s a must for citrus lovers!
Just when I think that January is seeming a little too bleak, my husband’s birthday, which is right in the middle of the month, always brightens things up. And as a bonus he is a huge fan of all things lime, and often requests a refreshingly bright dessert from me for his special day.
Such was the case earlier this week when I baked him this lime bundt cake. The recipe was hidden way back in the archives from 2010 and I’m so happy to re-share it with you all today, because this cake is a winner! This lime bundt cake is essentially a cream cheese pound cake loaded up with three levels of lime— there’s lime zest baked right into the cake, a lime syrup poured over the cake after it comes out of the oven infuses it with even more flavor, and a lime cream cheese frosting is the perfect finishing touch.
How to make this lime bundt cake
- The cake gets all of it’s lime flavor from fresh limes and lime zest. There’s no artificial flavorings or Jell-O packets. You might be tempted to use bottled lime juice, but freshly squeezed will make for the best flavor. For this recipe you’ll need about 4-5 limes.
- For the best rise and texture, all of your dairy and eggs should be at room temperature before baking. Pull everything from the fridge 1 hour before you prepare the batter, or if you’re short on time check out these shortcuts— 4 ways to bring butter to room temperature, how to quickly soften cream cheese, and how to bring eggs to room temperature quickly.
- Don’t miss my tips below for keeping bundt cakes from sticking to the pan.
- The lime syrup step could be skipped if you really wanted to, but it’s super simple and I like the extra boost of lime flavor!
How to Prevent Bundt Cakes from Sticking to the Pan
There are few kitchen disasters as frustrating as a bundt cake that sticks to the pan. Take these steps and you won’t have that problem again!
- Use a non-stick bundt pan! This is best way to prevent sticking.
- Generously grease the pan with a baking spray made with flour. “Baker’s Joy” and “PAM Baking” are both good options. Make sure you grease every bit of the pan.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
- Gently “bounce” the pan up and down to loosen the cake. If all edges of the cake bounce out of the pan slightly, I know I don’t have any sticking parts.
- Place a cooling rack on top of the bundt pan, then turn it all upside down.
- Remove the pan. If the cake seems to be sticking, give it a few side-to-side wiggles.
Other lime desserts:
If you like this lime bundt cake, check out these other zesty desserts:
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Note: This recipe was originally published June 2010.
Lime Bundt Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks, 226 grams), at room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese (1 package, 226 grams), at room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar (400 grams)
- Zest of 3 limes
- 6 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (360 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the lime syrup:
- 1/3 cup fresh lime juice (80 ml, about 3 limes)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar (66 grams)
For the frosting:
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (113 grams)
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (56 grams)
- 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted (227 grams)
- Zest of 1 lime
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9 inch bundt pan or grease with nonstick baking spray.
- With an electric mixer, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and lime zest and beat until light and creamy, 3-4 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Mix in the vanilla extract.
- Add the flour and salt and mix until just until combined, scraping down the bowl a few times as needed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and bake for 60-75 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Meanwhile, make the syrup by heating the lime juice and sugar until sugar is completely dissolved. While cake is still quite warm, poke all over with holes and pour the syrup over the top. Let cake sit for 15 minutes, then invert onto cake stand or serving platter and let cool completely.
- To make the frosting, beat together the butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, lime zest, and lime juice with an electric mixer. Mix until smooth.
- Cover bundt cake with frosting and serve.
This looks fantastic for a summer cake! Love your changes.
LOL on your bundt pan purchase, I do the same thing! I buy a new piece of equipment and it takes me so long to find the perfect recipe for it's first use.
Lovely cake. We love lime goodies!
You just keep doing recipes that call "Scott! Scott!" the whole time I'm reading about it. =) Guess I'll have a lot of options for his birthday in July.
I love bundt cakes and this looks spectacular! Yum! Perfect for summer!
xxMK
Delightful Bitefuls
That is such a cute cake, and what a unique flavor combination! This would be great for a nice Sunday brunch.
Bundt pans are fabulous, a great purchase. This recipe ( your version) is very similar to a cake that I made up last year and just loved but I never wrote down the recipe. You have reminded me of how much I loved it and I think I will give your version a go. Thanks! Pics are beautiful as well!
Just made this cake. The batter was a bit dense so I thinned it out with more lime juice.
Great taste!
I don't usually bake but I enjoy it a lot when I do. I tried your bundt cake recipe yesterday but unfortunately it didn't turn out exactly right. The result was very dense but not cake-y, it actually looked undercooked although it wasn't. I noticed other bundt cake recipes include baking powder – perhaps something to do with that? Also, the recipe says to "add sugar and cream" but I believe this is a typo because there is no cream in your recipe. Anyway, any suggestions that you may have to improve my results would be much appreciated!
This is actually a pound cake recipe and should be fairly dense. Baking powder isn't needed (or desired) for a recipe like this. However, it should appear to be fully cooked and be "cake-y". It is a cake after all. Perhaps more baking time is needed? I might also suggest beating or "creaming" the butter, cream cheese, and sugar more. Beat them together on medium high for several minutes. This important because it incorporates air into the batter, creating a lighter texture in the finished product.
I realize the recipe directions were misleading with my use of the verb "cream". There is no cream included in this recipe. Sorry for the confusion!
Thanks for your quick reply! I'll try your suggestion of beating the butter, etc. for longer next time. The taste of the cake was still delicious, the problem was just the texture. You have a great blog, by the way, everything looks fantastic and I'll be trying more recipes!
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Made your cake today. I was worried it wouldn’t be moist, but it was fine. I cooked it exactly for and hour and 15 minutes. I used key limes. I only added a little over 2 tablespoons of zest to the cake. I added 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1/2 tsp of baking powder (sifted in with the flour). Not sure I love the icing, but I’m not sure I don’t like it either. It the consistency I’m not sure about, but it has a great flavor. Thank you for posting.
And I know what you said about the baking powder, but I really thought it needed a touch. It really worked. I make am amazing blueberry pound cake that has no baking powder in it.. yet I felt compelled here.. go figure.
Lemon cakes you share are delicious and attractive. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.
I’ve tried and the cake tasted fabulous 👍🏻
Turn ur recipe into cupcakes also tasted good..
I just made this and it was very dense. Was there supposed to be a leavening agent in it…baking soda or powder?
Hi Dee! This is a basically a lime pound cake and like most pounds cakes there is no chemical leavener like baking soda or powder. It relies on the air that is mixed into the batter during the creaming process for its rise. (This process is known as physical leavening.) My guess is that you didn’t beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar long enough. So sorry! Let me know if you have any questions if you decide to try this recipe again.