I adore lemons. They are used in both sweet and savoury cooking in my kitchen. So, in honour of our eldest daughter’s birthday and inspired by last week’s first Great British Bake Off episode, I bring you my 100% gluten free Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake.
This gluten free cake tastes no different to a regular cake made with ‘wheat’, which I am really pleased about, as it means more people can make and eat this delicious treat!
That said this Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake can be made with regular, plain white flour if you do not need to make it gluten free.
Such a delightfully light, moist cake, with the tang of limoncello spiked drizzle soaked through the entire cake.
My Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake, is a true lemon drizzle cake, in the sense that it has hot lemon syrup poured over a skewer spiked cake. Using a Bundt pan means that the syrup soaks from the bottom to the top, creating a fabulously flavoured cake.
As this cake was made for my daughter, to be shared with family and friends, I was very restrained when it came to adding the limoncello. For adults you could easily double, or triple the amount stated. Remember though it is the lemon flavour that needs to hit the palette first. Don’t knock everyone out with too much vodka 😉.
The colours used to decorate this cake are simply her favourite. I piped a line of thick, lemon icing along each ridge of the cake and then added sky blue sugar sparkles, pressing them in gently to the icing so they would stay. A finial dusting of white, edible glitter in the centre adds the necessary sparkle, even if it doesn’t show up in all of the photographs.
I chose to use the Heritage Bundt Pan by Nordicware.
Recipe: Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake serves 10-12
I highly recommend Wilton cake release spray to grease the Bundt pan, alternitavely use melted butter and brush every part of the inside of the pan, then add 1 tablespoon of gluten free flour, tip the pan around until it is completely covered and tip out any excess flour – I cannot guarantee the same sharp edges using the butter/flour method.
For the Cake
275g/10oz Unsalted Butter softened to room temperature
275g/10oz Caster Sugar
1/4tsp Salt – I use Maldon Sea Salt
275g/10oz Certified Gluten Free Flour – I use Doves Farm
2tsp Baking Powder – I use Waitrose as it is gluten free
1tsp Vanilla Extract – I use Nielsen-Massey extracts
1tsp Lemon Extract or juice of half a lemon
Zest of one lemon
6 Large Free Range Eggs
For the Drizzle
Approx 50ml Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice – juice of 2 lemons
Approx 50ml of tap water to make up to 100ml with the lemon juice
100g/4oz Caster Sugar
2tbsp Limoncello – more can be added for a pronounced flavour if desired
Icing to Decorate the Cake
200g/7oz White Icing Sugar
Juice of one whole lemon – approx 30mls, make up to volume with water if needed
Optional – sprinkles and edible glitter – ensure they are gluten free
Method: Preheat the oven to 170C/150C fan, gas mark 3.5
- Prepare the Bundt pan by spraying or brushing on cake release, ensuring every part of the inside of the pan is covered.
- Into a large bowl add the butter, sugar and salt. Whisk/beat until pale and creamy.
- Weigh the gluten free flour and sift into a separate bowl with the baking powder.
- Add the 6 eggs to the butter/sugar mixture and 2 tablespoons of the pre weighed, sifted flour – this will stop the mixture from splitting, which can lead to a denser cake. Whisk/beat the eggs into the butter and sugar until you have a fully combined, light mix.
- Add the rest of the flour/baking powder, the lemon extract, vanilla and lemon zest.
- Using a metal spoon fold all the ingredients together until they are fully combined.
- Spoon the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan.
- Place the Bundt pan in the centre of the preheated oven and bake for 50-60 minutes.
- Whilst the cake is baking make the drizzle:
- Squeeze the strained juice of 2 lemons into a measuring jug, make the volume up to 100ml with tap water. Place 100g of sugar into a small saucepan and add the lemon juice liquid to it. Swirl to mix and place over a medium heat. Do not stir! Swirl occasionally, until the sugar is fully dissolved and the liquid starts to bubble. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add your desired amount of limoncello and place a lid on the saucepan.
- The cake is cooked when it is golden in colour, coming away from the sides of the pan and an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Once baked remove the cake from the oven. Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes in the Bundt pan.
- After 10 minutes use a wooden skewer to create holes right through the cake. I poked approximately 25 holes in the cake, this will allow the syrup to moisten the entire cake, not just the bottom – remember the Bundt cake is upside down.
- Drizzle over the warm, boozy, lemon syrup, making sure you cover the entire base of the cake.
- Leave the cake for a further 5 minutes in the pan, to allow the drizzle to soak right through to the top of the cake.
- Now turn the Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake out on to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
To Decorate the Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake:
- Sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Add 30mls of lemon juice and stir.
- Add extra water to create a thick icing, that can still be piped.
- Spoon the thick icing into a disposable piping bag (or piping bag fitted with a 3-4mm piping nozzle). Snip the end off of the disposable bag to leave a 3-4mm opening.
- Place the cooling rack over a large baking tray – this will catch all the drips.
- Starting from inside of the Bundt hole pipe the icing, following the lines of the swirl. Keep the pressure steady and pipe into the groove of the swirl, finishing when you reach the edge. Pull the bag away from the cake and any excess icing will drip through the cooling rack.
- Continue working around each swirl until the cake is completed.
- If adding sprinkles, either follow my design, adding them just away from the centre of the cake, or let your imagination take over and create your own design!
- Finally add a dust of (I used) white edible glitter, to give your cake some added sparkle.
- Carefully transfer the cake to a board/stand/plate.
Take photos of your beautiful creation.
Then serve it sliced with a cup of tea or coffee, or if it’s adults only, a shot of limoncello alongside 😉.
I am so pleased our daughter chose the light blue sprinkles for this cake. To be honest, it isn’t a colour I would put with a lemon cake and yet it looks so beautiful. She has a brilliant eye for design and I regularly ask her opinion on colour schemes/layouts and photographs for Feasting is Fun.
Thank you Star and very happy birthday.
If you have enjoyed this recipe for Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake you may also like these:
I have other gluten free cake recipes such as my Marshmallow Frosted Mango Cupcakes and my Strawberry Whipped Cream Giant Doughnut.
My aim is to make as many recipes as possible gluten free. Obviously this is going to take some time to retest recipes and make adjustments as needed.
Next on the agenda is cracking gluten free pastry. I’ve been asked many times for a recipe, so I will be working on that over the coming weeks.
Whatever you are making, baking and creating in your kitchens, remember food always tastes better when it’s shared. So why not invite your neighbours round for a cup of tea and a slice of something delicious?
Sammie xx
My Boozy Lemon Drizzle Bundt Cake has also been submitted for this weeks #GBBOTwitterBakeAlong on Twitter. Click on the hashtag on Twitter and join in the Baking Community fun!
