Bundt cakes or pound cakes are often dense, but this Orange Buttermilk Bundt Cake is a whole lot lighter; hence the title Light Orange Buttermilk Bundt Cake. It is lighter because the eggs used in the recipe are separated and the egg white are whipped. The glaze drizzled over the crunchy top, adds a lot of flavor and aroma to an already flavorful cake.
How did I figure out to separate the eggs? Well, I didn’t. Coincidentally, I was watching Milk Street on TV and they were featuring this cake. That’s how I know. This recipe is Milk Streets recipe; the only change I made was using orange instead of lemon and adding a glaze. It is amazing how a little change in recipe, the separation of the eggs and then whipping the egg whites, can make such a difference. If you are not a fan of pound cakes, because they are too dense, you should try this recipe and it may sway you.
How often do you watch the various food channels? I rarely watch any of them. Don’t seem to find time, nor do I have the patience to sit through these hours and hours of watching. I do have the patience to leaf through cooking magazine or cookbooks or browse the internet.
I believe the difference is that when I read a book/magazine or go through blogs, I can decide the speed and skip parts, most blog video are short and I still follow the entire recipe. On TV, I often have to sit through watching the water boil, or the butter brown or see how a chef peels carrots, cleaning an avocado. It is not that the recipe is not interesting, it is the way it is presented – too slow and too detailed for my taste. But, that’s just me. I am sure many of you love it and I am happy for you. Luckily we have the choices at our fingertips.
This is how we make this Light Orange Buttermilk Bundt Cake. I can totally understand that you want to skip this part and prefer to go directly to the recipe.
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a bundt pan, and make sure you cover every nook and cranny; this is particularly important in a bundt cake form. Then sprinkle with some sugar and cover all sides. The addition of the sugar give the cake a lovely crunch.
Line of 4 bowls or containers:
- Mix cake flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine buttermilk and orange juice
- Add the egg whites and whip them until light and foamy. Add 3 tablespoons of sugar and mix until you have soft peaks, no stiff peaks.
- Combine sugar and orange zest and mix with a mixer until the sugar becomes most and starts to cling together (you can use the same mixer attachments as the egg whites). I love this part, because your entire kitchen will smell like an orange orchard. Add the remaining butter and mix until you have a cohesive mixture. Increase the mixer speed and mix until everything is pale and fluffy. At this moment, add the egg yolks, one by one and mix after each addition.
Now it is time to combine the 4 bowls. Add 1/3 of the dry mix (cake flour, baking soda and salt) to the sugar/butter mixture and mix. Add half of the buttermilk mixture and mix again. Repeat this and end with the dry mix. Now fold in the whipped egg whites; not all at once, but gradually
Transfer batter to bundt pan and smooth the top. Bake in the oven for about 50-60 minutes. Allow to cool in form for about 10-15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely on wire rack.
Make the glaze by mixing sugar, yogurt and orange zest. Drizzle over the cake. The glaze is very transparent, but the flavor is not. It really adds a stronger citrus kick. Cut a slice and enjoy this Light Orange Buttermilk Bundt Cake! Thank you Milk Street.
Light Orange Buttermilk Bundt Cake
Ingredients
- 4 ounces salted butter room temperature
- 5 tablespoons salted butter room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 3/4 cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoon orange zest
- 3 tablespoons orange juice
- 5 large eggs separated
Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 1/2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
- 1/2 tablespoon orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a bundt pan, using 1 tablespoon of butter, on the inside and make sure you cover every nook and cranny. Then sprinkle with some sugar and cover all sides. Turn cake form upside down, to get rid of the excess sugar.
- In a bowl, mix cake flour, baking soda, and salt. In second bowl combine buttermilk and orange juice and in a third bowl you’ll add the egg whites and whip them until light and foamy. Then add, while the mixer is running, 3 tablespoons of sugar. Mix until you have a thick and glossy consistency. You’ll need to stop when you have soft peaks, no stiff peaks.
- In a 4th bowl, combine sugar and orange zest and mix with a mixer until the sugar becomes most and starts to cling together (you can use the same mixer attachments as the egg whites) Add the remaining butter and mix until you have a cohesive mixture. Increase the mixer speed and mix until everything is pale and fluffy. At this moment, add the egg yolks, and mix after adding each yolk.
- Add 1/3 of the dry mix (cake flour, baking soda and salt) to the sugar/butter mixture and mix. Add half of the buttermilk mixture and mix again. Repeat this and end with 1/3 of the dry mix. Now fold in the whipped egg whites; not all at once, but gradually.
- Transfer batter to bundt pan and smooth the top.
- Bake in the oven for about 50-60 minutes. Bake until the cake is golden brown and when pressed is bouncing back.
- Allow to cool in form for about 10-15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely on wire rack.
- Make the glaze by mixing sugar, yogurt and orange zest. Drizzle over the cake.
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