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Grandma’s Easy Lemon Bundt Cake (Enhanced Version)

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My paternal grandmother and her sister often fixed a lemon cake that was baked in a tube or Bundt pan for family gatherings. I am not sure if they both used the same recipe as Grandma would not usually write down her recipes. I think she did not want people to know how to make things she made because she liked being THE ONE who made them.  However, I remember being surprised when my mom made a cake that tasted an awful lot like my grandma’s cake one day when I was very young.  I remember asking my mom if Grandma had given her the recipe.  She said no, but that she discovered the secret when she took Grandma to the grocery store: boxed cake mix and instant lemon pudding.

I was about 9 years old when Grandma began to teach me how she made her “signature” dishes.  Unfortunately, she died just before I turned 11 so,  I only learned some of her recipes. However,  the dishes I  learned how to make included her peach custard pie (my favorite) and her lemon cake.

She had apparently originally made the cake from scratch, but began making it using the mixes when they became available.  (Grandma would have been 36 years old when instant pudding was first sold.) The only thing my mom’s version lacked was some lemon juice Grandma added to the cake’s liquid ingredients.

Although I made Grandma’s version without any changes over the years, I decided that it needed more of a lemon punch and made a few…um, enhancements.

I added zest to the cake and the glaze.   I also made the glaze with lemon juice instead of milk like my grandmother did.   Additionally, I made a soak of simple syrup and lemon juice for the bottom of the cake as soon as it came out of the oven.  While the soak does make the bottom a little sticky, it adds moisture and more lemon flavor.  It is definitely an optional step though.

To be honest, I would not have considered adding the zest and more juice to this or any other recipe several years ago.  It would simply not have been worth the hassle of zesting and juicing more lemon.  Today, I find it VERY easy to zest and juice citrus thanks to a few purchases that have been worth more than I ever imagined.  Here are links to the tools that make this cake even easier and quicker for me than it used to be.

I currently have an obsession with mini-Bundt cakes. They are great to serve at parties, showers, luncheons,  etc.  They are great to pack for lunch and for portion control.  Plus, they are cute.  They require a little less than half of the bake time of a full sized cake. Prepping them (or a regular Bundt pan) is so much easier (and I think more effective) when I use Baker’s Joy spray. It has the flour and a non-stick spray in one can. I have tried the Pam brand version, but I will stick with Baker’s Joy. I can purchase it for about $3 a can in my local grocery store, but Amazon does carry it if you can’t find it.

 

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