Easy Mandarin Orange Bundt Cake

Don’t you just love them, the sweet little mandarins you see piled high in the store’s produce bins. They are so good! Not only are mandarins good for snacking on but they are perfect for adding to desserts like this Easy Mandarin Orange Bundt Cake.

moist with a dense tender crumb

This orange cake recipe bakes up light, moist with a tender crumb that is deliciously rich, dense, and buttery. The best part of this cake is the bits of fresh mandarins baked in the batter for a delightful citrusy flavor

Bundt cakes, oh how we love these made from scratch simple cakes with the decorative flutes and icing dripping down the sides.  Bundts are easy to make, no messing with layers and loads of icings.  Sometimes a simple dusting of powdered sugar is all that is needed for decoration, after all, why cover up such a pretty molded cake.

Jump to:

• 🍊More favorite mandarin orange recipes
• 🧾Cake Ingredients
• Tips and Tricks 
• What are Mandarins?
• Let’s Bake
• Baking essentials
• Recipe

🍊More favorite mandarin orange recipes

For a rich and creamy dessert, this Mandarin Orange Creme Caramel is easy to make, it’s a bit elegant, and best of all the taste is amazing.

Sweet Mandarin Orange Scones are a family favorite with Satsuma mandarins baked right in. Tender and delicious.

🧾Cake Ingredients

• Cake flour for a tender crumb
• Baking soda and salt
• Mandarin Oranges, Zest, and juice for a wonderful mandarin flavor
• Sugar – white sugar brings out the citrus flavor of the mandarins
• Butter and Sour cream – both add flavor and moistness
• Eggs
• Powdered sugar for the icing drizzle

Tips and Tricks 

• It is best to use a good quality bundt pan.
• Bundt cake pans have a lot of nooks and crannies plus the center tube so make sure you thoroughly grease and flour the pan, otherwise, your cake may get stuck. Use either cooking spray or vegetable shortening for the best results.  After you dust the pan with flour if there are any areas not covered flour simply redo these areas.
• Instead of flour, you can dust the pan with sugar which leaves a nice flavor and crunch to the crust of the cake. I always use sugar.
• Bundt pans come in many sizes, this recipe is for a 10-cup bundt pan.
• After you fill the bundt pan with the batter make sure to tap it several times against the countertop to get rid of any air pockets in the batter
• Bundt cakes have a long baking time and this cake takes 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 30 minutes to bake. Test the cake with a cake tester and when it comes out clean it is done.
• Once your cake is baked let it sit for 15 minutes then flip it over onto a cooling rack.   You want the cake to still be warm when you flip it since it will release better. If you let the cake completely cool in the pan it just might get completely stuck.
• Before flipping your cake over jiggle the pan a little to loosen the cake, and if necessary slide a knife down the sides to coax it loose and jiggle the pan.  Let the pan sit on the cake upside down for about 5 minutes before removing again until the cake releases.

Gold Nugget Satsuma Mandarin Oranges

Grown in Northern California

Let’s Bake

Step 1. Start by zesting the mandarins over the sugar with a Microplane citrus zester,  then mix the zest and sugar together. Mixing the zest in the sugar brings out the oils in the mandarin zest and flavors the sugar in a glorious way.

Step 2. Next, separate the segments and using a serrated knife cut into small slices.  I suggest doing this on a rimmed plate to catch all the juice.

Baking tip – Another way to cut the mandarins, because it can be a bit tricky, is to cut the slices with scissors. You will have less juice, but you can also cut the slices into pretty small pieces.

Step 3. Make the cake batter by beating the butter, adding the sugar/zest mixture then the eggs one at a time.

Step 4. Mix in the dry ingredients followed by the sour cream.

Step 5. The last step is mixing in the mandarin slices and the juice by hand.

Step 6. Pour the batter into the greased and sugared bundt pan, tap it on the counter to remove any air bubbles, and bake for 1 ¼ to  1 ½ hours.  Always test with a toothpick, and in the case of a bundt cake, you may want to use a skewer because it’s longer.

Step 7. Let the cake cool in the pan for about 15 minutes, then remove from the bundt pan and place on a cooling rack. See above for my Tip on removing the cake from the pan.

You have options for finishing your cake because options are always good.  You can give your cake a light dusting of powdered sugar or add a little bling to your cake with a little drizzle of icing or a glaze.  I’m going for the icing drizzle today because I like icing!!

Step 8. Mix the powdered sugar and orange juice to make a smooth consistency, then spoon the icing over the cooled cake.  

You can add a little or a lot of icing, it’s up to you.  Here is a tip when icing a bundt cake, to keep your cake plate clean tuck some wax paper underneath, and simply remove it when the icing is set.

Bundt cakes are simply elegant and perfect for parties, they are easy to slice and serve. Set on a pedestal cake plate for a lovely presentation. However, if you have a family like mine, they just start slicing the cake on the cooling rack. 

Baking essentials

When it comes to pans I have found a good heavy bundt pan will bake the best cake and a nonstick surface helps the cake release with ease. And, this citrus zester is my favorite tool and makes zesting so easy.

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Recipe

First published: Dec. 18, 2019. Last updated: Feb. 11, 2021 for better readability.

About Jere’

From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending.  Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing both sweet and savory recipes with all my baking friends.