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Between the tender, moist, buttery orange pound cake itself and the light, sweet orange glaze that tops it, this dessert is loaded with real, fresh orange flavor from seven oranges.
Buttery, moist, ever so slightly dense pound cake is one of my favorite baked goods. This pound cake is loaded with fresh orange zest and orange juice from real oranges and has the most wonderfully tender, moist texture with the perfect crumb. It’s topped off with a delicate, orange-infused glaze that will have you licking the whisk before it even makes it to the cake.
Why You’ll Love This Orange Cake Recipe
I have been searching for the perfect orange cake for years and this is it. Here are some of the reasons I find it completely irresistible.
- Fresh orange flavor. I used so much orange in this recipe in the form of freshly squeezed orange juice and freshly grated orange zest. That real orange flavor really comes through in the cake and the glaze.
- Texture. This pound cake strikes the perfect balance between dense and pleasantly tender. You have the buttermilk to thank for that as well as the thorough creaming of the butter and sugar.
- Moist. No one likes a dry pound cake. Luckily this one is anything but. It’s wonderfully moist with just the right amount of crumb to it.
What Is Pound Cake?
A pound cake is a simple dessert that got its name back in the 18th century due to the fact that it was traditionally made up of one pound each of butter, sugar, eggs, and flour. The recipe has since been adjusted (different measurements and additional ingredients) to yield a more appealing texture and flavor. Pound cakes are characterized by their relatively dense texture, moist crumb, and rich buttery flavor.
Recipe Ingredients
Time to gather all of your ingredients to make this fabulous orange cake recipe. Be sure to scroll to the recipe card below for precise measurements.
For the pound cake
- Buttermilk – The buttermilk adds nice tenderness and moisture to the cake. Do not try to use a different dairy product. It won’t yield the same results.
- Oranges – To make freshly grated orange zest.
- Fresh orange juice – If you have time to squeeze your own orange juice, I highly recommend it.
- All-purpose flour – You could use a 1:1 gluten-free flour instead.
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Unsalted butter – The butter should be softened at room temperature otherwise, it won’t cream properly with the sugar.
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs – It’s best to use room-temperature eggs as they will combine more easily with the other ingredients.
For the glaze
- Oranges – To make fresh orange zest.
- Powdered sugar
- Fresh orange juice – Again, squeeze your own if you can. The flavor will be so much better than anything store-bought.
How to Make Orange Pound Cake
Here’s a quick overview of how to make orange cake. Have a look at the recipe card below for more detailed instructions.
- Prep. Preheat the oven to 350 °F and grease and flour a bundt pan.
- Combine the wet ingredients. Whisk together the buttermilk, orange zest, and orange juice.
- Combine the dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
- Cream. Beat the butter and sugar together with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs. Beat the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar, one at a time.
- Put it all together. Starting with the wet ingredients. gradually add the wet and dry ingredients in parts, alternating between wet and dry, mixing on low speed.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes.
- Cool. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan before turning it out onto a cooling rack for an additional 30 minutes.
- Make the orange glaze. Whisk together the orange zest, powdered sugar, and orange juice. Pour the glaze over the cake.
Tips for Success
If you’re like me, you want to get things right the first time. Luckily I have done all of the experimenting for you here so that you actually can! Just make sure to pay close attention to these simple tips and tricks.
- Grease and flour your bundt pan. Baked goods made in bundt pans are notorious for being difficult to extricate. Do yourself a favor and liberally grease every nook and cranny of the pan. You’ll also want to flour it as this works to prevent sticking as well.
- Don’t skimp on creaming time. You’ll want to cream together the butter and sugar until the texture and color have significantly lightened. This incorporated air into the batter which helps ensure that your cake isn’t overly dense.
- Alternate wet and dry ingredients. If you mix in all of your wet ingredients followed by your dry ingredients as opposed to adding them in parts, alternating between the two, you will find yourself with a tough, dense pound cake.
- Don’t over-mix. Over-mixing the batter will cause the glutens in the flour to overdevelop. This is a one-way ticket to an overly dense pound cake.
- Prevent burning. If you notice that the top of your pound cake is getting a bit too brown as it bakes, feel free to tent it with aluminum foil.
- Adjust the glaze. If you would like a slightly thinner glaze, feel free to add more orange juice than is prescribed in the recipe. Do so gradually, 1 teaspoon at a time.
Serving Suggestions
While this orange pound cake doesn’t need company to make it exceptionally enjoyable, a sweet addition or two never hurt. Here are some of my favorites.
- Ice cream. Enjoy orange cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. If you’re looking for something even more special, try my Fig and Honey Mascarpone Ice Cream or this Pistachio Ice Cream.
- Whipped cream. Grab some at the store or whip up the honey cream from my Boozy Peaches and Honey Cream Shortcakes recipe.
- Fresh fruit. I love serving this pound cake with fresh raspberries and/or blueberries.
- Sauce. Try the raspberry sauce from my recipe for Instant Pot White Chocolate Cheesecake. You could also ladle a bit of my Strawberry Cake Filling over a slice of orange pound cake.
Proper Storage
- Countertop. Once the cake has fully cooled, seal it in an airtight cake carrier or wrap it in a double layer of plastic wrap. You could also slice the cake and store the slices in an airtight container. In any case, orange pound cake will keep at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Freezer. Pop the fully cooked cake in the freezer for a couple of hours to firm up before wrapping it in a double layer of plastic wrap. You could also slice the cake and seal the slices in an airtight container. You can store orange cake in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow it to thaw at room temperature before diving in.
I do not suggest storing leftover pound cake in the fridge. While this will prolong its life, the cold temperatures will dry the cake out.
More Easy Cake Recipes
In a baking mood? Good. Here are some other truly spectacular, wonderfully easy cake recipes for you to try.
- Strawberry Angel Food Cake
- Slow Cooker Chocolate Cake
- Homemade Strawberry Sheet Cake
- Better Than Sex Cake
- Apple Almond Cake
- Lemon Pound Cake
Glazed Orange Pound Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
For the pound cake:
- ¾ cup (177 ml) buttermilk
- Zest of 5 oranges, finely grated (this can be less if you don’ want it to be real orange-y. I wanted to make sure you could taste the orange flavor!)
- ⅓ cup (79 ml) fresh orange juice
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 5 large eggs
For the orange glaze:
- Zest of 2 oranges
- 2 cups (240 g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon fresh orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F (177 °C). Grease and flour bundt pan, set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine buttermilk, orange zest, and orange juice. Set aside.
- In a bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- With the mixer on low, alternate adding the buttermilk mixture and flour mixture to the bowl, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
- Pour batter into prepared bundt pan and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean. If the top is browning too quickly, you can tent it with a piece of foil.
- Cool cake completely before flipping it out onto a cooling rack. Let cool for another 30 minutes after you’ve flipped it out on a cooling rack.
- In the meantime, make the orange glaze by whisking together orange zest, powdered sugar, and orange juice. Add more orange juice if you like a looser glaze.
- Pour glaze over top of the bundt cake. Cut and serve.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Can I use oil in place of butter and if so how much
you would replace it with the same amount of butter called for in the recipe, however, the consistency of the cake may be off. i can’t tell you 100% as i haven’t tried replacing oil with butter in this recipe.
Please state what size bundt pan; 10 or 12″? Thanks
hi Anna! the one i linked in the recipe card is a 12 cup one. i looked in the description of it and it’s 10″ :) hope that helps
I was looking for a great orange pound cake recipe to make today and found yours. Can’t wait to see how it turns out. I hope my family will enjoy something different from our usual lol.
How would this recipe translate to a 12 x 12 x 3” pan?
To be honest, I’m not sure; I haven’t tried it this way so I can’t give any sort of advice. Sorry!
I noticed one of the comments stated she baked cake for 90 mins, however your recipe states to bake 50-60 . Which is correct? Also I will be using a tube pan, not a bundt pan.
Thanks
Hi, in that comment I also clarified and said that the 90 minutes “cook” time, I included the chill time and the making the icing time. She read it as cook it total for 90 minutes instead of actually baking for 50-60 minutes, as stated in the instructions. 50-60 minutes worked for me and should work for you too if you’re using a tube pan!
Thanks! I made the glaze for a standard pound cake a few months back, and it was delicious. This week I’m going for the orange pound cake with the glaze! Can’t wait to try it.
Can you clarify how much zest you use? Is it zest of 5 oranges for the cake and zest of another 2 oranges for the glaze? Thanks.
Apologies!!! In converting recipe plugins, the subheaders didn’t come through. I’ve fixed it and it should be more clear now!! XOXO
Tried out this cake this evening.
It was delicious.
I was slightly puzzled while going through the recipe, for under cooking time you said 90 mins and in the recipe directions you said the cake should be baked for 50-60 mins.
Well my cake baked for 90 mins and it came out perfect and flipped over perfectly too. The Orange glaze on top was the ultimate touch to this moist delectable cake.
I just had a problem with orange zest as our local oranges are loose skinned ( I live in India ) and it fragmented before I could grate it. So I scraped out the white pith and then cut the peel into tiny segments and used them. Since I was worried about this twist I had to make in the recipe I used the peel from only two oranges-It was good and orangey . The peel had mostly dissolved or were tiny juicy pieces when eating the cake.
Thank you.
Hi, the 90 minutes “cook” time, I included the chill time and the making the icing time.
Hello.
There is no buttermilk where i live . Are there any substitutes for buttermilk ?
You can make your own buttermilk! For every 1 cup of milk, add 1 tbsp. of white vinegar to it and let it sit for a few minutes :)
Absolutely delicious!!!!