This gluten free orange bundt cake is both easy to make and ridiculously satisfying to eat. It definitely has that old fashioned dessert vibe, that takes you back to your best childhood memories. Infused with plenty of orange flavour from the orange zest and juice, this gluten free bundt cake is moist, buttery and utterly scrumptious.
Bundt cakes. Such a strange thing, aren’t they?
Tell someone you’ve made a bundt cake and all you’ll be met with are blank stares. A what cake? And it’s surprisingly difficult to explain the concept of a bundt cake. The conversation usually goes something like this:
“I’ve made a bundt cake.”
“A what cake?”
“A bundt cake. It’s a cake with a hole in the middle.”
“So… a donut?”
“No. It’s a bundt cake. A cake. With a hole. In the middle.”
“Huh. Never heard of it. What’s the point of the hole?”
(At this point, you usually start feeling the urge to bang your head against the nearest wall.)
“It’s… it’s… Oh for goodness’ sake, just google it.”
But even if you might find it hard to believe that there are people out there who have’t heard of the delight that is a bundt cake, the (absolutely ridiculous and pointless) conversation above does pose an interesting question:
What is the point of the hole in a bundt cake?
Some people fill it with icing, some with chocolate ganache – and some genius (and I’m not being sarcastic here, it truly is genius) even with salted caramel. On the… weird… side of things, I’ve seen the hole being used to house a potted plant. Yeah, I don’t get that either.
One of the reasons for the bundt cake hole is definitely a shorter baking time – the shape of the bundt pan allows more of the batter to come into contact with the hot surface, thereby improving the heat distribution.
A more obvious reason might be that it simply looks different and pretty. There is no need for painstaking decorating, frosting and piping – the ridges and grooves of a bundt pan, no matter how simple, make even the most basic of bundt cakes look like a work of art. (Unless, of course, it sticks to the pan. But that’s a whole other story.)
If you’re not satisfied with these two reasons… well, you can always fall back on sticking a potted plant in there. Or salted caramel.
Definitely salted caramel.
This gluten free bundt cake doesn’t have salted caramel. I won’t say unfortunately – because what it does have is a whole lot of orange deliciousness, and that more than makes up for it.
It’s the kind of orange bundt cake that your grandmother used to make. You know when desserts just have that really satisfying, old-fashioned vibe that makes you feel all warm and cozy inside? This is it.
The orange factor is present both as the orange zest and orange juice in the batter, as well as in the orange icing (or is it orange glaze?). None of that orange extract stuff – just good ol’ Vitamin C rich goodness, that gives this gluten free bundt cake the most incredible flavour. And trust me, the flavour is there… after all, the batter contains the juice of three oranges!
The almond flour (or ground almond for an added texture) give the bundt cake a nutty undertone, making it even more rich and delicious.
There are bundt cake recipes that use vegetable oil as the fat, and there are recipes that use butter. This recipe uses a combination of them, so that you get the best of both worlds.
You get the lightness and airiness that comes from using the vegetable oil, as well as the buttery richness from the butter. And it’s precisely that combination that helps give the old-fashioned, cozy feel to this orange bundt cake.
There really are no downsides to this cake, no reason not to make it. It’s easy and quick to prepare, looks and tastes absolutely amazing… and the orange glaze is, both literally and figuratively, the icing on the cake. Infused with orange flavour, it hardens slightly (as powdered sugar-based drizzles are wont to do) and gives a satisfying little crackle when you take a bite.
So there you have it. A glazed gluten free orange bundt cake, that will take you straight back to your best childhood memories of delicious cakes, sticky fingers and thats special cozy warmth. And if you want to stick a potted plant into that confounding bundt cake hole… just make it a pretty one, worthy of such a prestigious position.
Gluten Free Almond & Orange Bundt Cake
Ingredients
For almond & orange bundt cake:
- 1 stick (113 g) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup (88 g) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (200 g) caster sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- orange zest of 2 oranges
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- 2 1/2 cups (300 g) plain gluten free flour blend (I've used a simple store-bought blend of rice, potato and maize flour with no added xanthan gum)
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 cup (120 g) almond flour (or ground almonds)
- pinch of salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 cup (220 g) fresh orange juice (juice of about 3 medium oranges)
For orange glaze:
- 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 3 - 4 tbsp orange juice
Instructions
For almond & orange bundt cake:
- Pre-heat the oven to 355 ºF (180 ºC) and generously grease a 10-inch bundt pan. (Note 1)
- In a large bowl, cream together butter, vegetable oil and caster sugar until pale and fluffy. (I recommend using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.)
- Add the vanilla extract and orange zest, and mix well.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix well after each addition.
- Sift together the dry ingredients (gluten free flour, xanthan gum, almond flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda).
- Alternatively add the dry ingredients and the orange juice to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Pour the cake batter into the greased bundt pan and bake in the pre-heated oven at 355 ºF (180 ºC) for about 1 hour or until golden on top and an inserted skewer comes out clean. If the top of the bund cake starts browning too quickly, cover it with a piece of aluminium foil during baking.
- Allow to cool, and in the mean time prepare the orange glaze.
For orange glaze:
- In a bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and orange juice until you get a thick, smooth mixture. You should be able to drizzle it with a spoon, but it shouldn't be too runny. (Better err on the almost-too-thick side.)
Assembly:
- Once cooled, drizzle the bundt cake generously with the orange glaze. As it dries, the glaze will harden slightly, which only makes it more delicious!
- Enjoy!
Storage:
- The gluten free almond & orange bundt cake keep well in a closed container or wrapped in cling film in a cool dry place for about 3 - 4 days.
Notes
Looking for more citrusy deliciousness? Look no further!
Daisy Lemon Curd Sandwich Cookies
Gluten & Dairy Free Orange Polenta Cake
No Bake Lemon Tart with Lemon Syrup Mirror Glaze
Hi!
Made this AWESOME cake!! For a Winter Fair in my son’s school in Malta (I am actually Welsh)
I have a few Gluten free friends and everyone LOVED it- even my non-gluten free friends!!
I made it the night before- I used olive oil instead of veg oil as that is all I had- I put the glaze on, once the cake was cooled well down (not as thick as the recipe as I only had a bit of confectionary sugar left- I was baking a lot!!) letting it run down the gaps then Adorned it with pieces of orange around the base-
It was divine!! So moist and the glaze had soaked in on the outside!! No one knew it was gluten free- THANK YOOOOU!!!!
Trying to paste a picture- but can’t sorry!
Kat,
Can I use all coconut oil to make it Dairy Free?
I’ve never tried it so I’m not 100% sure, but I think it should work, but you’ll probably need to reduce the weight of coconut oil (compared to the weight of butter) by about 20%, to account for the fact that butter is only 80% fat, whereas coconut oil is essentially 100% fat.
Don’t hesitate. MAKE THIS!
The scent alone! Driving in a car and placing it in the counter at the family cabin, in my years of baking I’ve never had them beg to cut into my “GF cake”, yelling that my slices were too small and going back for seconds. Made as is, except my 1:1 flour had xanthan so I omitted and I buttered /sugared the pan. The made a syrup with OJ, Grand Marnier, powered sugar, brushed the edges and kept the rest on the side. Perfection! Making again tomorrow.
We doubled the zest, and doubled the icing, let the first layer set then did a second. Rose beautifully, and didn’t collapse, wonderfully moist, soft cake. thank you for the marvellous recipe!
I have made several of these Bundt cakes, perfect every time. Mine only takes 1 hour to bake. I put tinfoil over the top for last 15 minutes to stop it going too dark. Perfect.
This is the most amazing cake. Delicious and easy. I didn’t make any changes except for omitting the xantham gum because bob’s mill cup for cup already includes xantham. I took it to dinner party and everyone was amazed that it was gluten-free. A friend of mine made it with a different gf flour and it turned out a bit more dense. Mine was so light and airy.
I’ve made this twice, and the result was sad both times. I think there might be too much baking powder/soda. I also had a rising/falling problem, and I have an oven thermometer to monitor the temperature.
It tastes good though. I might try again without the baking soda.
This recipe is NOT one to disappoint. My first attempt was a success! The flavor was a nice balance or almond and orange.
Can you use something other then Caster Sugar? I’m having trouble finding it locally.
Granulated sugar will also work. 🙂
AMAZING. I used coconut sugar instead. Thank you for the recipe
Great recipe . . . nobody could tell it was GF. I toasted the almonds and ground them for the freshest flavor. Really moist even though it was slightly overcooked . . . new oven.
Glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Excellent recipe. The crumb was very delicate. The cake not too sweet, but wonderfully balanced. I made mine dairy free as well, using Earth Balance and coconut oil in place of the butter and vegetable oil. Next time, though, I will likely sugar the pan, not just grease it, as my cake stuck in the bunds mold.
Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Jamie!
Hi! In other gluten-free baking recipes, i’ve read that you only need to add xantham gum if your gluten-free flour doesn’t contain it already–is that not the case here? Going to make it next week 🙂 Thanks!
Hi Leah, if your blend already contains xanthan gum, you don’t need to add it separately.
Hi Kat
Thanks for the recipe.
Just ‘tried’ baking this one novice here.
It seems like 180 degrees may be too hot it rose and cooked very quickly.
I turned the temp down a bit and then it deflates like a sad donut when it came out of the oven…
Appears I am not a natural baker 😢
Poor me
Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear that Jacqui! 180 ºC should work well for this cake, and it does rise very quickly – however it still needs to cook all the way through. Two things to keep in mind:
1) If a cake starts browning too quickly on top, just cover it with some aluminium foil – but don’t decrease the oven temperature.
2) Every oven is slightly different, and many are incorrectly calibrated, meaning that they can be out by as much as 20 – 25 degrees! So to check whether the cake is done: don’t rely on the temperature + time listed in the recipe, instead use the “toothpick test”. If you insert a toothpick or a skewer into the cake, leave it in for ~2 seconds and take it out, the cake is done if there are only a few/no crumbs on the toothpick/skewer. Also, if you press onto the cake with your finger, it should bounce back.
If you follow these tricks, you should have much better luck with your baking! 🙂
Hope this was helpful!