Bundt cake tips for perfect results

Some love it and others (unfairly!) prefer to stay away from it to avoid failure: baking bundt cakes. I have been baking bundt cakes for as long as I can remember. The beautiful shape of a bundt cake does it for me. Since people often ask me about it, today I am going to share with you all my tips and tricks for baking a bundt cake successfully!

What is a bundt cake?

Simply put, a bundt cake is a cake baked in an extra festive round baking tin with patterns on the outside and a hole in the middle. After baking, a bundt is often glazed or at least sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Because of the festive shape of a bundt and the decorations associated with it, a bundt is baked more often around the holidays. But it also makes for a great birthday cake!

What is the difference between a bundt and a cake?

As you have probably figured out by now, the difference between a regular cake and a bundt cake is not so much the recipe, but rather the size and the baking pan. Any cake batter can be baked in a bundt pan (and vice versa), as long as you take into account the size of the pan and the baking time.

A cake is delicious on its own, but once you bake it in a bundt pan, it immediately transforms into a beautiful cake to serve your guests. Just like this banana bread bundt cake!

Making a bundt cake

When you’re starting out with a bundt cake recipe, there are a number of things you need to keep in mind. Starting with a nice and especially good bundt cake pan; I share my favorite bundt pan brand below. Also, greasing a bundt baking pan is especially important because it has so many different patterns and corners.

And finally, how and when can you remove the bundt cake pan so that your cake comes out in one piece? Read the tips below carefully and everything will be fine.

​Good bundt pan

A bundt baking pan is a round baking pan with a hole in the middle. Bundt pans come in different sizes with different intricate designs and markings. Apart from large bundt pans, there are also mini bundt pans that allow you to bake six smaller bundt cakes at a time, just like a stainless steel cupcake pan.

I now have a huge collection of bundt baking pans at home, and my favorite brand is Nordic Ware. Not only because this brand has several beautiful bundt cakes in its collection, but also because the quality is very good. I almost never have a cake stick to the pan. If it did happen, it was usually because I turned the cake out too fast, but more on that later. There are so many beautiful bundt designs out there that it is hard to choose.

When you buy a bundt cake pan, pay close attention to the size you buy. I now have such a large assortment at home that I have all sizes and shapes in the cupboard.

Converting a bundt cake to a regular cake

To convert round, square or rectangular cake pans into a different size cake pan, I have developed an incredibly handy (even if I say so myself) conversion tool for you. However, bundt pans are a different story because they have a hole in the middle.

For this reason, the size of a bundt baking pan is mainly indicated by a measure of capacity, usually cups or liters. If you want to convert a bundt baking pan to another baking pan (or vice versa), the best way is to calculate the capacity of that pan, e.g. with water.

For square or rectangular pans, you can also do the following calculation: length x width x height (of the pan) / 1000 = measure of capacity in liters. You can then compare this to your recipe for a bundt pan, or vice versa.

For example, suppose you found a delicious sheet cake recipe and you want to bake it in your new bundt pan, but you wonder if it will fit. The cake recipe is for a 25 cm x 25 cm pan with a height of 4 cm. Then the arithmetic is 25 cm (length) x 25 cm (width) x 4 cm (height) = 2500 / 1000 = 2.5 liters capacity. In this case, it would fit perfectly in a 2.6 liter bundt baking pan (note: the square shape refers to the height of the cake, not the pan).

On a simpler note: a normal loaf cake recipe for a 25cm loaf can be doubled in size for a 2.4-2.6 liter bundt pan. Depending on how much cake I want, I multiply the recipe by 1.5 or 2.

How do I remove a bundt cake from the pan?

Anyone who has ever baked a bundt cake knows the feeling: you hold your breath for a moment when you remove the bundt cake pan. Just to see if your cake has come out of the pan in one piece.

To properly remove a bundt cake from the baking pan, you first need a good quality bundt baking pan. In addition, it is extremely important that you grease the pan properly, and there are several methods for doing this.

How to grease a bundt pan?

The most common and foolproof way to grease a bundt is to use some soft butter, a brush and some flour. Use the brush to apply the butter to sides of the pan. It is very important that you grease every spot, corner and seam. If you miss a square centimeter, chances are your cake will not come out in that spot. A pastry brush with bristles works best for this. And yes you also do this for a pan with nonstick coating

Once the pan is well greased, dust the pan with a little flour. Then hold the pan upside down and tap the countertop twice to remove any excess flour. The batter is now ready to go in the prepared pan! Note: If you are making a chocolate cake, it is best to dust the pan with cocoa powder instead of flour. This way, you will not see a cloud of flour on your bundt cake after baking.

A second option is to coat the inside of the pan with nonstick spray. Again, cover every part of the pan (inside, of course) with the regular cooking spray and then dust with flour as described above. Not everyone thinks this works well, but it always works for me and using a spray oil is definitely quicker. I also love the baking sprays with flour in it.

Cake Goop / Cake Release – On US baking blogs I regularly read about a goodie called either ‘cake goop’ or ‘cake release’. It’s a mixture of flour and oil, shortening, or hard margarine, and if you grease your baking pan (whether it’s a bundt pan or a regular baking pan) with it, you don’t need to grease the pan, dust it with flour, or line it with baking paper. Your cake would release perfectly with this mixture. I am very curious and will try it out for you soon, after which I will of course share it here on the blog.

When can I remove the bundt from the pan?

It varies from recipe to recipe when it is best to remove the bundt, but unless the recipe states otherwise, I always use the following steps:

Use a cake tester or skewer to test if the bundt cake is done. If any batter sticks to the skewer, put the cake back for another five minutes (at least) before testing again.

If the skewer comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven.

Allow the bundt to cool on your countertop for 10 to 15 minutes, this will help the cake release from the pan.

Place a cooling rack, wire rack or serving plate on top of the cake and turn it over in one motion. The bundt cake should now be completely loose. If not? Then you can give the mold a light tap with a wooden spoon. A hard tap on the countertop may also help.

Why you shouldn’t take your bundt out of the mold right away

I’ve talked about my failed bundt experience before. Or I should say in the plural, because it has happened to me more than once. But it was never the recipe, it was always my impatience.

When you take a cake out of the oven, it is still very soft, too soft and therefore not firm enough to remove from the pan. If you let your cake cool for 10-15 minutes, the cake will become firmer and you can turn the bundt pan over with confidence.

Trust me, it really is better to wait a few minutes than to have to make the bundt all over again.

How do you decorate a perfect bundt cake?

The festive nature of the bundt cake lends itself perfectly to decoration. The most common way to decorate a bundt is with a glaze. You make this by mixing a generous amount of icing sugar with a small amount of liquid (water or citrus juice for more flavor) until you have a firm, pourable icing, to which you can add coloring and flavoring if you wish.

You can also use melted chocolate or chocolate ganache as a topping. Or maybe even a nice cream if you like it a little chunkier. And, of course, don’t forget about the other decorations: sprinkles, cookie bits, coconut or nuts.

How do you store a bundt cake?

Just like a cake, a bundt should be stored out of the refrigerator. Wrap it in aluminum foil and place it on the counter, but not in the sun. This will keep a bundt cake (even with a glaze or melted chocolate on top) for at least a week.

The cake will dry out faster in the refrigerator, but if you have decorated the bundt with a frosting or ganache, the cake should be refrigerated. Ideally, you should wait until the last minute to decorate the bundt with cream or ganache so that the cake doesn’t have to sit in the refrigerator for too long.

Baking a bundt Cake

And now you want to get started with a tasty bundt recipe. Fortunately, I already have the necessary inspiration for you online. There will be a lot more bundt recipes coming up soon but for now check the recipe below!

• Banana bread bundt cake