Perhaps it’s the European in me, or particularly the Maltese portion, that craves and enjoys denser cakes. What a change from the sky-high fluffy layer cakes I so enjoy creating, but wow, so quick, easy, and tasty. I bought a great Bundt pan (it was hard to choose a style, since they are seemingly endless!) from Nordic Ware a few months ago, and have a list of about 25 variations I’m eager to try. Last night I made this classic Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake & Vanilla Bean Glaze, and it turned out so incredibly yummy. The girls sat up on the counter and helped me glaze it–we may have gone a little overboard, but can you really ever have too much Vanilla Bean Glaze?
Here’s a photo that brings me a slightly curious amount of joy, but you can see why! I wish these were mine, but, alas, I only own one Bundt pan so far. I have a feeling I will start to collect them the way I have cake pedestals, because they too are so pretty, unique, and, of course, functional. I love that some are authentically retro, and others simply look that way.
As you can see in the photo, they’re practically art. I discovered and favourited this gorgeous Bundt cake pan extravaganza on Flickr many months back, and I’m so glad I did, because it lead me to its owner: Abbey, the ever-creative and self-described “art-obsessed” blogger from aesthetic outburst. If you haven’t checked out her fun blog yet, and are craving a punch of colour and inspiration, I highly recommend it. Isn’t it funny how the Internet can take you down the most unexpected of roads sometimes, which is when you discover some of the best gems? Love that.
Isn’t that just vanilla happiness on a plate? As, I mentioned, my little cakelets and I may have gone a little gangbusters with the glazing, but, hey, we all needed a turn, and it was so much fun .
The recipe itself is very straightforward, and with the luxe addition of 2 whole vanilla beans into the cake and another into the glaze, I found this to be a really simple, flavourful and, dare I say, special Bundt cake, compared to some of the more basic recipes. (I imagine that if you didn’t want to include 2 whole vanilla beans into the cake itself, you could get away with one and a tablespoon of pure vanilla extract.) As with any pound or Bundt cake, the cake’s texture, or crumb, is dense but moist–divine, if you ask me. I just loved this cake, and had several pieces this afternoon.
Love those vanilla bean flecks!
I find that the flavours in a cake like this tend to improve after a day or so, as long as kept at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. It’s a perfectly delightful breakfast, tea-time snack, or occasion cake. Place it on a plate for a pretty look, or high upon a pedestal to celebrate its loveliness.
For those with an interest in history, I read an interesting article from The Nibble, explaining the history of the Bundt pan, as well as more about the authentic European inspiration, the Austrian Kugelhopf. A quick and interesting read: Bundt History.
- 3 cups 375 g all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1 teaspoon 4 g baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon 2 g baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon 4 g salt
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons 2-1/4 sticks(255 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1-3/4 cups 350 g granulated sugar
- 2 vanilla beans halved lengthwise or 2 tablespoons (30 ml) vanilla bean paste
- 4 large eggs at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon 1.25 ml pure lemon extract
- 1 cup 240 ml buttermilk, at room temperature
- 1 vanilla bean split and scraped or 1 tablespoon 915 ml) vanilla bean paste
- 2-3 tablespoons 30-45 ml whole milk
- about 1 cup confectioners' sugar
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Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
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Whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
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Beat together butter and sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape seeds from vanilla beans with tip of a paring knife and add into butter mixture, reserving pods for another use, and beat until well combined, about 1 minute.
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Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in lemon extract until well combined. At low speed add flour mixture and milk alternately in batches, beginning and ending with flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
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Spoon batter into pan, smoothing and spreading evenly. Gently tap pan on counter to eliminate air bubbles. Bake until the tip of a knife or skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in pan 1 hour, then invert onto a rack and cool completely, about 1 hour more.
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Split vanilla bean and scrape seeds into whole milk. Let sit in a spouted container, such as a large pyrex measuring cup, for about an hour. Add confectioners' sugar gradually, whisking, until you get desired consistency--about 1 cup.
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You want to make sure that it's not too runny, or it won't dry white on the cake, and will run off too quickly. It should take a few seconds to whisk it, and it will feel too thick at first--keep whisking until you get desired thickness. If too thick, add a teaspoon or so of the vanilla milk.
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Once the cake has cooled, drizzle glaze over top.
[Bundt Cake recipe adapted from Epicurious. Vanilla Bean Glaze recipe from The Pioneer Woman]
- For ease, try Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Bean Paste – 4 oz
.
- You can buy Vanilla Beans
online, or find them at gourmet grocers.
Good luck & enjoy!
… it’s so hard to follow your blog… so hard in such a good way… this looks delicious!!!!
That is a gorgeous gorgeous cake! I love your Bundt pan, love the delicate angles that run down the cake. I own only one too and that photograph might be responsible for starting yet another obsession for me (if hubby asks, I am going to blame you, lol). Earlier this year I moved from cake stands and domes to tea towels and retro milk bottles :-)
That cake is scrumptious!
I too wish that was my kitchen and also wish that bundt cake was mine as well :-(
Looks AH-MAZING!!
I love that old stove in the photo! Your bundt looks delicious and you are right, you can never overdo anything with vanilla bean in it! Beautiful photograph with the milk pitcher and glasses in the background, the white against the dark serving plates…Wow!
p.s. I can’t help but recall the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding whenever I hear the word Bundt!
Thanks, Paula! Oh my, I totally forgot about that part of the movie, and I would have most definitely tied that in! xo
I liked that your girls sat up on the counter to help you glaze :-)
I did that with my boys…..well now they prefer to stand with me because they are taller :-)
What a beautiful bundt! I’m with you, I’ve been on a bit of a denser cake kick lately too. Two pound cakes in the past month. :-)
That’s it! I’m asking my husband to move to Canada. I want to be your neighbour :) The cake and photos both look fabulous. And I don’t expect anything less from you.
Oh dear…bundt pan obsessions seem to be contagious! What a beautiful cake.
I love yours molds… great idea!
Oh how I love this post! First I adore all things vanilla – but also this post has me falling in love with Bundt! I really need to get myself a pan. My neighbor asked me for one this week and I had to sadly admit that I didn’t have one – what a bad neighbor I am!! Now I have a reason to go treat myself! ♥- Katrina
Vanilla….yum! Cake looks great =)
Gorge! 2 whole vanilla beans — wow! I just adore this. Beautiful!
Love it, Rosie! I have mini Bundt pans I will try this with! One question: if I use Vanilla Bean Paste, what measurements should I use?
Thanks, Paula! If you use Vanilla Bean Paste, you can sub 1 tablespoon for each vanilla bean, so a total of 2 for the cake and one for the glaze. xo
Thanks, Rosie! I just found your answer. Is there a way to subscribe to your comments? I didn’t get a notification of this.
I just recently discovered your blog and so happy to have found you. Your photos look fabulous. This cake is nice because it’s simple yet elegant. Oh and I wish that bundt cake wall was mine too! What a craeative way to decorate a kitchen.
Laughing at Paula and.the bundt cake scene :-) I could do this one, Rosie! Ps-Starbucks cake pops were so-so. Bet you could do better!
Not sure what was funny?? Was it the tons of mini bundt pans or that I wasn’t sure about the vanilla bean paste substitution? Just found your blog via a friend on FB by the way!
Oh, she was referring to Paula from Vanilla Bean Bake who was remembering the funny bundt cake scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding!I was wishing I remembered that before I wrote the post, because I would have loved to have reflected on that ;)
Oh my heavens, this looks lovely. I love vanilla bean anything and bundt cake..well I could eat a box of bundtinis from Nothing Bundt Cakes in one sitting LOL :) I posted Pink Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream today as my blog post….now I am wishing I had some bundt cake too. LOL Thank goodness I have a bundt cake pan in there!
Thanks for sharing this recipe! I FINALLY just bought myself a bundt pan a few weeks ago to make monkey bread, and I’ve been itching to use it again.
Delicious looking cake. I really like your blog :)
uhmmm…lovely, i love your blog!!
Oh wow, so loving that kitchen with the bundt pans as art, wow! I have the words Eat Cake in my kitchen. I think if I obsess about it then I won’t eat as much! Not sure if that is working! Love your blog, just found you through Twitter and I can’t wait to read more!
This recipe looks amazing! Yummo!
Megan
It’s me again! Do you have a follow button or a place to put my email so I get an email of your posts?
email is mcarusopartridge@gmail.com
love to receive them if I can!
Megan
Thanks, Megan! If you click RSS up on the top right (near the twitter and facebook icons) you can subscribe!
xo
I agree. The flavor of the ingredients is more intense the next day. Thanks for sharing the recipe along with some history of the bundt.
This is the bestest vanilla cake, I can feel the freshness and moistness of the cake, it is absolutely divine, saved the recipe too !
I think I can do this one Rosie! Where do I get Vanilla Beans? (I can hear your cake friends laughing) :S
You’ll love this one, LL! Not a silly question at all about the beans. You can get them at Bulk Barn in a tube with 2 inside. Very $ but worth it! If you found you were using more often, there are better sources online. Let me know how you like it!
no there can never be enough vanilla bean glaze! Can you adopt me Rosie? Pretty please because I need this in my life.You are so incredibly talented my friend
Love the classic beauty of this cake! Love that beyond cake it looks like we have another thing in common, I love aesethetic outburst-great site. I’m a huge stalker of design blogs and tend to find my inspiration there more than food bloogs. :)
Love the simplicity…love the beauty! It looks like Spring to me :-)
Thank you! So glad you guys love this cake. It’s really a quick and easy delight. :)
That cake is a beauty. I know what you mean about liking denser cakes so much. I love them too. That bundt pan collection is adorable. Before I started reading the post I thought, “Oh my gosh! Where the heck did she get all those fabulous pans??” :)
I love the simplicity of a vanilla cake and yours looks amazing! I love the bundt pan collection.
I was going to be double jealous of you if that was your kitchen! Super cute!! But seriously you’ve got me with that cake…Heaven on a plate!
Yum! I love moist dense cake so much more than light fluffy cakes too! I have found a number of cute bunt pans in thrift stores.. the latest one was hot pink! I’ll have to use it to try out this recipe
Thank you all for your sweet comments about my bundt pan collection. :) We’ve since moved and it’s been in boxes- I think I need to hang them up again. This cake recipe though…oh my! It is most certainly on my ‘to bake today’ list. Thanks, Rosie! x, Abbey
I just stumbled upon your blog and it’s gorgeous. I must try your recipes soon!
this looks so amazing! i’m right there with you – i LOVE dense cakes! the cakey-er the better! i have such a craving to bake now!
ooh, that stove looks awesome. and i wish i had more space for collections like that, like a huge wall i could cover with stuff.
Hi Rosie,
I recently discovered your blog and i am just in love. I have always adored baking but only recently began trying things so you are a huge inspiration. Thanks for being so helpful and down to earth ! I sincerely do not have enough nice things to say. I was wondering, what are some baking tools that you can’t live without ?
Thanks again for sharing these beautiful posts with us :)
Hi Kitty! Thanks so much for the comment (and compliments!). You know, I will be putting a post together about the tools I can’t live without soon–stay tuned! Thanks again for the sweet words :)
I have been crazy about bundt cakes lately, and this one looks super tasty. Now I just need to get some more variety in bundt pans in my life.
It’s like a firework, only better.
It’s like a vanilla dream, only better.
It’s like, heaven.
For sure.
I know it must be.
Yummmmmmms!
Love, V ;)
xo
You can never have too much glaze:) Stunning bundt cake.
He publicado la foto y el enlace a esta receta en Mis Favoritos de esta semana, si quieres verlo está en http://blocderecetas.blogspot.com/2011/03/mis-favoritas-semana-12-2011.html
Hasta pronto!
What a gorgeous cake! There sure doesn’t look like too much glaze to me! Love how you incorporated vanilla bean in the cake and the glaze, can’t wait to give this a try!
Just nominated you for a stylish blogger award. Go check it out on my blog.
This looks delicious and elegant – perfect for an Easter brunch! Can’t wait to try the recipe – thank you for sharing!
so lovely! will you be my mom too?! (just kidding real mom, I love you)
oh man that is a great wall of bundts. i too only have 1 bundt pan… well actually for a wedding present i got a mini bundt pan with 6 mini rose topped bundts… but haven’t yet used it! eeps!
there is something so charming and appealing about bundt cakes. definitely the glazing is key… and you guys did an excellent job glazing — gangbusters = crucial with glazing! everyone loves the glaze!!!
gorgeous photos as always… the bundt cake slices on their individual plates reminded me of little cars for some reason! ^__^
I just made this cake tonight, and I have to say, WOW! I don’t think I’ve ever made cake from scratch before (sad, I know) and I thought this would be a good cake to make for Easter. Naturally, I wanted to try it before serving it to my entire family. Good thing too, as my glaze ended up on the runny side and now my cake is sitting pretty in its stand in a puddle of glaze. Oh well, right? That’s how we learn! Anyway, I thought I’d make two of these for Easter, and perhaps use a chocolate glaze for one. Thanks for an awesome recipe! And now I have vanilla bean pods to use for vanilla sugar; double bonus!!
Wow!!!! I also love this kitchen with all the bundt moulds so displayed on the wall!!!!!! Wonderful idea for storing them!!!!! I’ll think about it!
I made this glaze tonight and it actually needed about 3 cups of sugar to absorb all that milk…it was delicious, truly, but with all that I could have glazed 10 cakes and ended up dumping lots of delicious vanilla bean glaze in the trash because I had so much!
Did you use 1/2 cup of milk? It took me about 1 cup of icing sugar, so truly, I can’t imagine why it took 3 cups! I used it all to glaze the bundt cake, and there was nothing wasted.
I totally did…I have no explanation. Next time I will just do it backwards and add the milk to the sugar until it looks right….and then drink what’s left of the vanilla milk;)
I had exactly the same problem as Jenentonic with the glaze… The cake was amazing as part of my birthday cakes display this weekend. And by the way, great blog!
looks wonderful I`m totally in love with it!!!
and sorry, but I`m from austrian and it means “Gugelhupf”, not “Kugelhopf”
I had the same problem as Jenentonic and Louise! :( Wish I would have read through all the comments, or I would have worked backwards as Jenentonic suggested. Oh well – it looks beautiful though. I am using the glaze for homemade donuts!
Thanks!
Glad to hear it looks beautiful! I’ve altered the recipe to yield less glaze, so hopefully that helps next time!
Hi Rosie!
Would you mind telling me the weight of the 3 cups of all-purpose flour in oz./gr.? I just want to make the Bundt and I want it to be really perfect.
Thanks for sharing.
Sure, Eva, I weigh 3 cups of all-purpose flour as 12.5 ounces/360 grams. Good luck!
Thanks a lot for the quick answer!
Eva, 3 cups of all-purpose flour is 375 grams or 13 ounces. Hope this helps!
Hi Rosie!
Your blog is beautiful. Made this cake for the first time and it was divine even without the glaze. Just dusted it with icing sugar – heavenly! Thanks for am amazing recipe.
Sofia xx
Hello, I have made your fluffy vanilla cake and it is wonderful. My question is why the addition of lemon extract for this vanilla cake?
Hello! I want to make this lovely cake, but I want to substitute the vanilla bean for vanilla extract. How much vanilla extract should I use per vanilla bean? Thanks! :)
Hey!
You can pick up vanilla bean paste at Global Foods Market – 4 oz bottle for about $8. (1 oz = 6 tsp. So 4 oz = 24 tsp.)
1 tsp vanilla bean paste = 1 vanilla bean
Hope that helps any readers :)
Think this would make a good cake for a dense wedding cake?? Making a wedding cake but I’ve tried a few recipes for plain vanilla cake want something moist and delicious but also sturdy enough to be tiered. And have yet to find that perfect recipe!
Hi Rebecca,
I love this cake, and yep, it is dense, but I think if that’s what you’re looking for, you will find this a great option. It’s got so much lovely vanilla flavour and I really enjoy the texture. I hope this helps!
Well I’m afraid if I go to fluffy that it won’t withstand being stacked even with proper doweling do you have any other cake suggestions for a fluffier cake? Thank you so much for your help it’s truly appreciated! :)
Hi Rebecca,
Just a note that I you can really do any of the vanilla cakes on my blog, and they should work well–the Fluffy Vanilla Cake is quite a bit lighter, but I have used all of the other vanilla cake recipes for fondant/stacking before. Hope that helps!
Awesome thank you so much totally gonna borrow but don’t worry I’ll give credit where credit is due in the end!:o) appreciate you feedback! Keep up the great work I’ll be sure to post pics of my cake when I’m all done!!
I made this cake yesterday. Very good! I think my glaze should have been a little thicker. But I will for sure be making again. I just love your website, as I love to bake, but am not nearly as good as you………you are a true inspiration! You are very talented.
This cake is very delicious. I made this in a castle form for my daughter’s birthday. I tinted it pink, the glaze too, and decorated it with pastel candies. It was lots of fun, and she really loved it. Thanks for the recipe! I do love your site too! Keep up the recipes and pictures, they are beautiful.
I’m still learning from you, but I’m improving myself. I absolutely enjoy reading all that is posted on your blog.Keep the stories coming. I loved it!
I’ve made this several times now and absolutely LOVE it, and so do my greedy family and friends for that matter! I substituted the lemon extract for almond extract as I’m not so much a lemony type of girl (!) and used the Nielsen-Massey paste and managed to produce fabulose results. Love your recipes Rosie- they always manage to hit the mark! Lots of love from London, X
If you don’t already own one, I highly suggest purchasing a copy of Shirley O’Corrihers’ Bakewise cookbook. It has a fantastic recipe for the densest, most delicious vanilla poundcake I have ever had. It also has wonderful recipes for chocolate and yellow layer cake recipes (and a Tunnel of Fudge cake that is to DIE for).
I love your site beautiful to say the least love love love it please send me via emails thank you Cheyenne
I made this cake yesterday, and it turned out amazing! The cake was fluffy and the crumb was moist. And I loved that all the pieces were dotted by the tiny vanilla seeds. I found it slightly less sweet, so I will add a little more sugar next time. Lovely and no-fuss recipe! Thanks!
Simply amazing recipe!Am planning to make it this weekend for my family.Could you tell how many measuring cups is 2 1/2 sticks of butter as mentioned in your recipe?would love to hear from you.Stay blessed!
Thanks, Rachana! 2-1/2 sticks of butter is the equivalent to 1-1/4 cups of butter. I hope that helps!
Have you tried this in normal round cake pans? Just wondering what the equivalent of this recipe would be (2 – 10″ layers, 2 or 3 – 9″ layers, etc.)?
or how many cups of batter does the recipe make? thanks!
You are part Maltese? Nice. :D
I made the vanilla bean bundt cake today and it was a bit dry. The taste was delicious. Perhaps 1 hour at 350 degrees was too long? Did you measure the flour before or after sifting? I am a novice baker so would appreciate any advice.
I made this cake for Easter. Baked it Saturday so it would be extra good on Sunday. Although the flavor is lovely, it was too dry. So sad.