Dorie Greenspan Always Shows Up at Christmas
In this house, Dorie Greenspan is something close to a deity. Every Christmas season, right on cue, she publishes a new book just as I’m running out of baking gifts for Andrew—who already owns just about every baking book ever written and still manages to cook through them with alarming enthusiasm. Thank God for Dorie. Her 2025 release, Dorie’s Anytime Cakes, arrived exactly when it’s needed, and as always, it delivered recipes you can trust.
Seventeen Steps—and Not One Too Many
This Buttermilk Lemon Bundt Cake is classic Dorie. The recipe runs long—seventeen steps long—but that’s the point. She’s not overwriting; she’s making sure nothing goes wrong. Some recipes suggest. Dorie insists.
A Cake With Real Pedigree
It also comes with lineage. The cake traces back to Maida Heatter,“Queen of Desserts,” whose rigorously tested recipes helped define American baking in the 1970s. If a cake like this is still circulating decades later, it’s because it works.
Why the Bundt Pan?
Then there’s the Bundt pan—arguably the quiet star here. Those sculpted ridges aren’t just decorative; they help the cake bake evenly while creating a surface that holds onto every drop of lemon syrup. The center tube ensures the crumb cooks through cleanly, and the shape turns a simple batter into something that looks far more ambitious. A classic fluted Bundt—like those made by Nordic Ware—is particularly perfect here, giving the syrup more edges and crevices to cling to, so every slice carries that bright, citrus finish.
The Lemon Factor
As for the cake itself, it leans unapologetically into lemon. The batter is tender and light, but it’s the syrup—brushed over the warm cake—that defines it. It soaks in slowly, sharpening the citrus and keeping the crumb moist for days. It will look like too much syrup. It isn’t.
Why You’ll Make It Again
What you end up with is a cake that delivers every time: grounded in Maida Heatter’s discipline, refined by Dorie Greenspan’s precision, and elevated by a pan that does more work than it gets credit for.
For More Bundt Cakes Recipes click here: https://chewingthefat.us.com/?s=Bundt
Dorie Greenspan’s Buttermilk Lemon Bundt Cake
This Buttermilk Lemon Bundt Cake is classic Dorie. The recipe runs long but that’s the point. She’s not overwriting; she’s making sure nothing goes wrong. Some recipes suggest. Dorie insists.
Ingredients
- FOR THE CAKE:
- 175g all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- Zest from 2 lemons
- 1½ tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 200g caster (superfine) sugar
- 113g unsalted butter, room temperature (plus 1 tbsp for the pan)
- ½ cup buttermilk (or ½ cup milk + 1 tsp vinegar, rested 5 minutes)
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs (for the pan)
- FOR THE LEMON SYRUP:
- 60 ml fresh lemon juice
- 35 g caster sugar
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Position a rack in the lower third of the oven.
- Step 2 Generously butter a 6-cup Bundt pan, making sure to get into every ridge.
- Step 3 Add half the panko breadcrumbs and rotate the pan to coat. Add remaining crumbs and press lightly to cover all surfaces. Tap out excess.
- Step 4 Combine lemon zest and lemon juice in a small bowl
- Step 5 set aside to allow the flavors to bloom.
- Step 6 In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Step 7 In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar on low speed until pale and fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Step 8 Add the eggs and mix until fully incorporated.
- Step 9 Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, mixing gently until just combined after each.
- Step 10 Add the buttermilk in 2 additions, mixing on low speed for about 30 seconds until smooth.
- Step 11 Stir in the lemon zest mixture until evenly incorporated.
- Step 12 Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and smooth the top.
- Step 13 Bake for about 60 minutes, until deeply golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Step 14 Let the cake rest in the pan for 5 minutes.
- Step 15 Meanwhile, stir together lemon juice and sugar for the syrup until sugar dissolves.
- Step 16 Turn the cake out onto a serving plate while still warm.
- Step 17 Slowly brush the syrup over the top and sides, allowing it to absorb before adding more. Use all of it.
- Step 18 Let the cake cool completely before serving.
- Step 19 A Small but Critical Note
- Step 20 Do not rush the syrup. This is where the magic happens. It may look excessive—it isn’t. Give it time to absorb, and the cake will reward you with a perfectly moist, intensely lemony crumb that keeps for days.
