Best Orange Bundt Cake with Citrus Rum Glaze
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This almost-made-from-scratch Orange Cake with Citrus Rum Glaze is a simple recipe that starts with a box of yellow cake mix, a package of lemon pudding, and fresh-squeezed orange juice. After baking, pour a sweet rum-orange glaze over the top, letting the moist cake soak it up. My family loved it!
Why you’ll love this Orange Cake Recipe!
Ingredient notes
- Cake mix | Make this cake recipe easy with a box of your favorite yellow cake mix.
- Instant pudding | Bring density and moisture to the take while enhancing the citrus flavor with an instant lemon pudding mix.
- Oranges | Fresh orange juice squeezed from about two medium Navel oranges makes the best orange cake! Squeeze some fresh juice from about half an orange to give the homemade glaze a natural orange flavor, too.
- Oil | Add vegetable oil to make a perfectly moist cake.
- Eggs | Toss in four large eggs at room temperature for a fluffy orange cake.
- Citrus extract | Make the citrus flavor shine with lemon or orange extract.
- White sugar | Sweeten the simple glaze with standard granulated sugar.
- Butter | Give the glaze a creaminess with butter.
- Rum | Add dark rum for sweet and subtle yet rich notes.
- Powdered sugar | Have some confectioners’ sugar handy for sprinkling on top of the cake.
How to make this Easy Rum Orange Cake recipe
Today’s easy orange cake uses boxed cake mix to give you a head start. Even without being made entirely from scratch, the cake has authentic flavor because of the fresh oranges and attention to detail!
STEP 1 | Preheat and prep
Get started by preheating the oven to 325 F and greasing a 10-inch Bundt pan with cooking spray.
STEP 2 | Combine the cake batter ingredients
Next, stir together the dry cake mix and pudding mix in a large bowl, adding the orange juice, oil, eggs, and lemon extract.
Then, beat the ingredients on low speed until they are well blended. Scrape the bowl, and beat for another 4 minutes on medium speed, then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
STEP 3 | Bake and cool
Now, bake for 50 to 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Next, let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Step 4 | Make Orange Rum Glaze, drizzle, and enjoy!
As the cake cools, make the rum glaze. Start with a saucepan over medium heat and gently boil the orange juice, sugar, butter, and rum for two minutes.
Next, drizzle all over the cooled cake and sprinkle with confectioner sugar. Then, slice and serve your delicious rum cake!
tips
- When I have an extra minute, I like to use cake goop, a homemade cake release recipe that lets your baked cake beautifully slip out of the pan to cool and ice. It only requires three staple kitchen ingredients– Vegetable shortening, vegetable oil, and flour!
- Combine the batter ingredients using a hand-held electric mixer or stand mixer. If you don’t have these helpful kitchen tools, thoroughly mix the batter by hand with a wooden spoon.
- Avoid splinters and cut down on waste with a metal cake tester that eliminates the need for toothpicks when checking the doneness of a cake and reaches much further for more accuracy.
- To avoid a mess and get the perfect drizzle, transfer the finished glaze to a container with a pour lip, like a measuring cup.
Check out my favorite cakes made with fresh fruit, like this Cherry Cake with Buttercream Frosting, Apple Walnut Bundt Cake, and my refreshing Lemon Ricotta Cake.
Variations and substitutions
- More Delicious Toppings. Add to the glaze or swap it out with more tasty topping ideas, like homemade whipped cream, decorative orange peel spirals, fresh orange slices, or tangy orange zest.
- Orange Rum Cupcakes. Adjust the baking temperature and time to make mini orange rum cakes with a cupcake tin.
- If preferred, use another mild oil for this recipe, like canola oil.
Storage tips
- Make this recipe in advance, or store yummy leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to three days on the countertop away from sunlight at room temperature. After three days, make sure you move it to the refrigerator.
- You can also freeze orange rum cake by wrapping the cake in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. When you’re ready to serve it again, let the cake thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours.
Frequently asked questions
First, make sure the icing is ready to drizzle. If it’s not fluid enough, you may want to add more rum or a small amount of water. Then, use a lipped container to easily pour the sauce over the cake in a zig-zag pattern or coat it entirely. After you let the glaze set for a few minutes, it’s ready to be served!
The cake is baked, cooking off most of the alcohol from the rum. You may be left with a tiny amount, but it’s not enough to take effect on anyone unless they are severely allergic to alcohol. The icing is also boiled and will result with little to no alcohol.
A popular choice is Bacardi Oakheart because it has excellent flavor and is affordable.
Dark rum is best for baking because of the richness it brings. However, some people don’t taste much of a difference between dark and light rum in their baked goods.
What to serve with Orange Cake
Enjoy your perfect orange cake with a refreshing beverage, like this Strawberry Mojito Mocktail or my Fruit Tea.
And, there’s nothing better than serving a slice of tender cake with a cold scoop of homemade ice cream! Try my Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe or this No-Churn Blueberry Ice Cream!
Looking for more Tasty Fresh Orange Recipes?
Fresh oranges are delicious in desserts, like this Cranberry and Orange Bread. They’re also perfect for pairing with savory dishes, like my Orange Marmalade Pork Chops. And the possibilities don’t end there — serve fresh oranges for breakfast with this Stuffed French Toast!
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Easy Rum Orange Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 18.25 oz. pkg. yellow cake mix
- 1 3 oz. pkg. instant lemon pudding mix
- ¾ cup fresh orange juice about 2 medium oranges
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon lemon or orange extract
Glaze
- ⅓ cup fresh orange juice about 1/2 orange
- ⅔ cup white sugar
- ¼ cup butter
- 3-4 tablespoons dark rum
- Confectioners’ sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 F . Grease a 10-inch Bundt pan with cooking spray or cake goop.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the dry cake mix and pudding mix. Add the orange juice, oil, eggs, and lemon extract. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat for another 4 minutes on medium speed. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.
Glaze
- In a saucepan over medium heat, gently boil the orange juice, sugar, butter, and rum for two minutes. Drizzle all over the cooled cake. Sprinkle with confectioner sugar just before serving.
Notes
-
- Store leftovers in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to three days on the countertop away from sunlight at room temperature. After three days, make sure you move it to the refrigerator.
- You can also freeze orange rum cake by wrapping the cake in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil. When you’re ready to serve it again, let the cake thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours.
Nutrition
Life Love and Good Food does not claim to be a registered dietician or nutritionist. Nutritional information shared on this site is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Worked very well and was delicious. There is a lot of glaze and it’s very liquid. I pricked the cake all over with a fork and poured the glaze on very slowly in 3-4 “layers” to get it to soak into the cake. Made it once for dinner at home and twice as a gift. Was very popular each time. I like the idea of using Grand Marnier and might try that. I also froze slices and the cake was perfect after defrosting at room temp for 30 mins.
This is the most fluffiest delicious cake I’ve made out of a box! I will keep this recipe forever!
Excellent recipe – proportions of ingredients work well, even if you want to adjust the recipe. I used Grand Marnier instead of rum for extra orange flavor but this recipe works well both ways. For a variation, consider adding 1 3/4 tspns of ground/powdered green cardamom seeds (only the black seeds inside the pods) and 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon. Spice cake with a gentle kick from the rum.
looks and sounds delicious! definitely craving a slice.. rum and orange go so perfectly together!