Orange Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze
This orange bundt cake has a tender moist crumb and is topped with a dark chocolate glaze. Unfussy and not too sweet, it’s ideal for sharing with a large gathering of friends and family!
Bundt cakes are always my answer for transforming a simple cake into a showstopper. They make a statement, without any precise pastry techniques or fuss.
Similar to my Gingerbread Bundt Cake, as long as you butter and flour the bundt pan well, you’ll be rewarded with a beautiful centerpiece for your holiday table.
This Orange Bundt Cake is easy enough to bake all winter long, but celebratory enough to serve during the holidays. It isn’t too rich, but incredibly moist and decadent. The batter is infused with orange zest, as well as with lemon zest, which adds such a nice brightness. The zest is rubbed into sugar and dispersed throughout the cake, making it extra fragrant.
Why you’ll love this orange cake:
This orange bundt cake was inspired by classic holiday flavors. Do you remember those Terry’s Chocolate Oranges? I loved them growing up! It is a flavor pairing that I can’t get enough of.
As a result, it has inspired many of my dessert recipes over the years, including these Orange Pistachio Chocolate Chunk Cookies and Candied Orange Slices with Chocolate.
What can I say? I unapologetically love chocolate and orange together. And baking this bundt cake, I think you will too. Of course, you can forgo the chocolate ganache glaze and opt for a simpler cake dusted with powdered sugar or a basic orange glaze. But chocolate makes it more celebratory during the holiday season!
Storage Note: For me, this time of year is all about preparation. Although this cake is best the day it’s baked, it holds up well and remains moist two or three days after baking.
Baking with Quality Flour:
There’s no doubt that it’s the season for baking and using high-quality ingredients is important. I always keep my pantry stocked with Bob’s Red Mill Organic Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, but I like to have an extra bag or two on hand this time of year.
It’s my go-to flour for holiday cookies, breads, and cakes alike. Why do I love Bob’s Red Mill so much? Their flour is unbleached, unbromated, and milled from the highest quality organic certified North American wheat.
It’s important to understand the different types of flour. In my day-to-day baking, I prefer Bob’s Red Mill Organic All-Purpose Flour, which is refined, meaning the bran and germ are removed during the milling process. Their all purpose flour has a mid-level protein content which yields a versatile baking flour, perfect for this orange bundt cake.
Orange Bundt Cake Ingredients:
- UNBLEACHED ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR –Bob’s Red Mill Organic Unbleached All-Purpose Flour is my go-to for cakes.
- ORANGE AND LEMON ZEST – adds both a brightness and complexity. We’ll also add freshly squeezed orange juice and lemon zest for another boost of flavor.
- EGGS – we use six eggs here, which may seem like a lot, but they create stability while adding moisture.
- WHOLE FAT GREEK YOGURT – the batter will be thicker, but the extra fat helps create a tenderness, while the extra protein will provide more structure.
- GLAZE – the chocolate ganache glaze is made by melting bittersweet chocolate and gently stirring in heavy cream for a decadent topping. I recommend a high-quality chocolate bar that is roughly 72% cocoa solids.
TIPS FOR SUCCESS:
It’s worth repeating here: please ensure your bundt cake pan is well-greased with butter and lightly floured. Simply using baking spray won’t work…trust me on this one.
While this Orange Bundt Cake is lovely for an afternoon treat, it would also be lovely for gifting.
If you’re feeling inspired, you can garnish with store-bought candied orange peel, or for an added treat, top it with homemade candied blood orange slices. Simple orange zest is wonderful too.
Other Recipes You’ll Love:
If you enjoy this orange and chocolate desserts, try some of these festive treats next!
- Citrus Tart with Chocolate Crust
- Blood Orange Chocolate Bark
- Orange Chocolate Scones
- Orange Salted Pistachio Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Orange Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze
Equipment
Ingredients
Orange Bundt Cake:
- 2½ cups (300 g) Bob’s Red Mill Organic Unbleached All Purpose Flour plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1¾ cups (350 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (8 oz; 226 g) unsalted butter softened, plus more for greasing
- 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
- 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
- ¼ cup (60 mL) freshly squeezed orange juice roughly 1-2 oranges
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup (226 g) whole fat plain Greek yogurt room temperature
Chocolate Glaze:
- 4 ounces (115 g) bittersweet chocolate (roughly 72% cocoa) finely chopped
- 4 ounces (120 mL) heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon pure orange extract optional
Optional Decoration:
- finely diced candied orange peel or finely grated orange zest
Instructions
- Prepare the Bundt Cake: Preheat the oven to 325°F (163°C) with a rack in the center position. Generously butter (the layer should be visible) and flour a 12-cup bundt pan. Be sure to reach every crevice of the pan. Tap the pan over the sink to remove any excess flour. Do not skip this step or substitute with baking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the unbleached all purpose flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the granulated sugar, orange zest, and lemon zest. Using your fingertips, rub the sugar and zests together until the mixture resembles wet sand and is very fragrant. Add the softened butter and beat over medium-high speed for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the orange juice, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and mix until incorporated. Reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, beating until each egg has incorporated, scraping down the bowl once or twice.
- Over low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions of yogurt. Scrape down the bowl as necessary, but be careful not to over mix.
- Transfer the batter to the greased bundt pan, using a small offset spatula or knife to smooth the batter into an even layer.
- Bake for 55 minutes to 65 minutes or until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then invert onto a rack and allow the cake to cool completely before glazing.
- Make the Chocolate Glaze: Place the cake with rack inside a sheet pan (this will catch any excess glaze) or set over a piece of parchment paper. Set aside.
- Place the finely chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Microwave the heavy cream in 20-second intervals in the microwave until it is very hot and lightly steaming. Pour the cream over the chocolate and allow the mixture to sit for a minute. Add the orange extract (if using) and gently whisk together until smooth and shiny.
- Pour the chocolate glaze evenly over the cooled bundt cake, allowing it to drip generously over the sides. Once glazed, gently tap the cake to remove any air bubbles or wrinkles in the glaze.
- If decorating with candied orange peel or zest, allow the glaze to mostly set before adding. Once the glaze has set, the chocolate will be matte in appearance - this will make for cleaner slicing.
- Serving Tip: Run a large sharp knife under very hot water. Dry with a clean towel and slice. Repeat before each cut - this will ensure clean slices with very little chocolate glaze transfer.
Video
Tips for Success:
- This cake tastes best the day it is baked, but stays very moist for up to 2 to 3 days. Cover (avoid directly covering the glaze surface) and keep out at room temperature.
28 Comments on “Orange Bundt Cake with Chocolate Glaze”
As much as I wanted to love it, the flavor was lacking. I used 3 times the orange zest too. It was fun to try.
Hi Kim, sorry to hear that! Did you rub the orange zest into the sugar very well? It really should have an orange flavor, so I’m a bit surprised to hear this.
How can a convert this recipe to a much smallee bundt pan? Unfortunaly, I only have 6 cup bundt pans available 🙁
Hi Ana, the easiest way to do this would be to halve the recipe – use the gram measurements to do so. Thankfully there is an even number of eggs, which makes it fairly straight-forward. Hope this helps!
Even though the glaze has heavy cream, it can stay out on room temperature?
Hi! I will edit that note – I personally am not worried about leaving this cake out the day it is baked or through the following morning/day, especially if your kitchen is cool. If you’re planning on storing it for an extended period (which I don’t personally recommend) or at any warm temperature – store in the fridge.
Fabulous–didn’t change anything–used a USA brand bundt pan and I have never had a better release from the bundt pan!
Buy the pan and bake this cake!
hi Laura, I just baked the this beautiful cake, I hope it will be tasty. I had a problem with the elc. at home and the oven got to high temp. for a few min…..:( I have 1 questions- you say in the recipe 60ml orange juice that is about 2 oranges…i scale 60 ml from about half an orange ..do I miss something maybe? thanks!
Hi! It really just depends on the juiciness of your oranges, which is why I put a specific measurement but provide a guide to quantity so that people don’t end up not having enough orange! I’m guessing you had very juicy, thin skinned fruit, which is great, but sadly not the norm in most of the country. Hope you enjoy the cake!
I made this a couple of weeks ago and it was HEAVEN. With or without the glaze, it has a superb balance between sweet and citrus. Make this.
The recipe turned out beautifully. It was my first bundt pan bake, and i had no issues with tearing or broken bits. I used a 10 cup Nordic Ware pan, and had everything, (except the yogurt because I forgot) room temperature and I am overall pleased with how it turned out. My only complaint is that I actually added more orange and lemon zest/juice than the recipe calls for, and I still feel like it’s not got a strong enough orange flavor. Not sure if it’s the oranges I used or what. Otherwise, a fantastic recipe, and great texture.
Oh how many times I’ve made this cake since you pubished it – both when I wanted for myself and when I need something to impress. And how many times I was asked to cook it)))
Easy and quickly made but always amazing at texture, taste and of course its image – I’m totally agree that bundt cakes are always as howstopper, especially with different decoratives at top.
The recipe looks fantastic, please help can I replace eggs with curd
This looks delicious, but I only have a 10 cup Bundt Cake pan, any recommendations for reducing the quantities?
Honestly, you might be ok with a 10-cup pan. Since it gets very complicated to scale down a recipe like this with whole eggs, I would personally just make it as is and if there appears to be too much batter (it should be just below an inch of the top of the pan – there is an image in the post that I recommend referencing), just leave it out and discard. Not ideal, but a better option than trying to deal with weird conversions!
Awesome. Thank you for the recco! Excited to try it tonight.
Glad it was helpful! Hope you enjoy it. Keep me posted.
It turned out great. It was a little burnt at the bottom, but my oven temp is always finicky. Everything fit in the pan though perfectly!
Unfortunately this didn’t *quite* work for me. Despite following the instructions, I found the eggs didn’t quite incorporate properly, which affected the later additions. As a result the cake still tastes good, but is a little, er, stodgy in texture.
I suspect that waiting to add the citrus juices and vanilla with the yogurt will help the eggs to better emulsify with the butter (and help the yogurt more easily blend into the batter). Before adding the flour the batter was quite liquidy. Given the baking soda and powder, you want not to over-mix, so it’s not the kind of cake where you can beat it a little bit longer to blend better.
Then again, perhaps it was just a bad luck baking day. As I said, it still tastes great. I’ll be attempting this again soon.
Hi Kacie! Thanks for your feedback – I’m sorry that it didn’t appear to come out as well for you. As the recipe states, the batter will look slightly broken after all of the egg additions, but does come together smoothly once the flour is added. Especially if you are scraping down the bowl several times, as suggested in the directions. and The yogurt should also incorporate very nicely – the batter that goes into the pan is incredibly smooth and consistent. Were all of your ingredients at room temperature? This is super important and would definitely impact how well the batter comes together. Please watch the recipe video included in the post for further guidance! The recipe was tested many times by myself – as well as others – and this is the first time I’ve heard that feedback.
Omg Laura! This look so awesome ?. I will try it with a twist, grapefruit instead of orange. Do you tink it will work?
I don’t see why it wouldn’t work, but I can’t quite say how the flavor will be without having tested it prior. Hope this helps!
Yes! They kind of look like that, but are actually chopped candied orange peel 🙂
I don’t see the video anywhere. Do you pour the icing while it’s still hot or cool it?
Never mind, I found it. It’s on Instagram.
Hi Gina! The video is located in the blog post above (it is placed towards the top in the middle of the post) – but is also available on Instagram too.
The glaze should be poured on the cake right after the glaze is made, so yes, while it is still warm. If it cools, it will be significantly thicker and won’t create a thinner glaze as shown in the images.
Would love to see a video of the technique for pouring the icing. Mine just never has that professional look. It’s gorgeous!
Hi Gina! There actually is a video in this post that shows the pouring. The key is to pour the glaze when it is on the thinner side. I always like to tap the cake several times on the countertop to allow it to settle, drip over the sides, and pop any air bubbles that might form. Hope this helps! 🙂