Easy Orange Cake Recipe With Glaze
This Easy Orange Cake is a moist, citrus-packed Bundt cake that brings a bright pop of sunshine to any dessert table. Combining an orange cake mix with apricot nectar helps this heirloom recipe achieve a velvety texture and an irresistible orange flavor so that every bite is moist, flavorful, and fruity!
A Slice of Summer Sunshine
This orange cake recipe is one of my Grandmother Lucy’s favorite cakes, so she often has it sitting under a dome on her counter whenever folks come to visit. It is very moist with an irresistible orange flavor, just the right thing for a hot summer’s day or a picnic.
I love that this orange bundt cake is incredibly easy to make. All you need is an orange cake mix, as well as fruit nectar, oil, sugar, and eggs. Mix the ingredients together, pour them into a bundt pan, and then it’s time to bake. That’s it! I love pairing my orange cake with an easy glaze. However, you could also simply sprinkle on some icing sugar before serving or serve with some fresh .
If you’ve never had orange cake before, you’re in for a treat. If you have had it before, you’re probably making out your grocery list now. While you’re at it, you might want to snag the ingredients for my Bakery-Style Strawberry Bread with Glaze!
Recipe Ingredients
- Orange supreme cake mix
- Apricot nectar
- Oil (I like )
- Sugar
- Eggs
Tips for the Perfect Orange Bundt Cake
- The Cake Mix Secret: Many modern cake mixes have shrunk in size. To keep this old-fashioned recipe from sinking in the middle, I recommend adding an extra 1/2 cup of dry mix from a second box.
- Prevent the Stick: Bundt pans can be finicky. Use a good cooking spray, or better yet, grease and flour every nook and cranny of that fluted mold so your cake slides out like a dream.
- Nectar Substitutions: Can’t find apricot nectar? Mango nectar is a fantastic backup. If you’re feeling adventurous, try strawberry banana nectar with a strawberry cake mix for a fun twist!
- Glaze Consistency: Add your milk to the powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time. You want it thick enough to slowly drizzle down the sides without running right off the cake.
How to Make Grandmother Lucy’s Orange Cake
1. Mix the Batter
Preheat your oven to 325°F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, apricot nectar, oil, sugar, and eggs. Use an electric mixer to beat the ingredients until the batter is smooth and well combined.
2. Prep the Pan
Grease your Bundt pan (or “fluted mold” if you’re being fancy) thoroughly. Pour the vibrant orange batter into the pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.
3. Bake Until Golden
Bake for exactly one hour. Your kitchen is going to smell heavenly! Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes (this is crucial for helping it release) before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Whip Up the Glaze
While the cake cools, whisk together your confectioner’s sugar, softened butter, and milk. If you want an extra citrus kick, swap the milk for a tablespoon of fresh orange juice.
Cut all of that together with a fork and add a wee bit more milk. Add the milk just a tablespoon or so at a time because we want this to be the consistency of glue, and it can get too thin really fast. You should also add a teaspoon of vanilla extract or butter flavoring, too.
5. Drizzle and Serve
Once the cake is cool to the touch, drizzle that thick glaze over the top. For a beautiful finish, garnish with a bit of fresh orange zest or decorative orange slices.
And serve to those you love, who love cakes bursting with . Enjoy!
Storage
You can store leftover cake in an airtight container either at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can also freeze the cake (without glaze) for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight and bring to room temperature before serving and glazing.
Mix It Up With Recipe Variations
If you want to swap the Bundt pan for something else or add a little personal touch, try these simple twists!
- Change the Pan: You can bake this as two loaf pans (40–50 mins), 24 muffins (20–25 mins), or two round cake layers (25–30 mins).
- Fruit & Crunch: Fold in a cup of sugared cranberries or finely chopped walnuts for extra texture.
- Warm Spice: Add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the batter for a cozy, spiced citrus flavor.
- Chocolate Twist: Stir in mini chocolate chips or a swirl of cocoa powder to create a delicious chocolate-orange marble cake.
You may also enjoy these other cake recipes:
- Grandmama’s Coconut Cake With No-Fail Seven Minute Frosting
- Phenomenal Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Cherry Pineapple Dump Cake
- S’mores Poke Cake
- Pumpkin Praline Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 box orange supreme cake mix see note
- 1 cup apricot nectar
- 1/4 cup oil
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 eggs
Instructions
- Place all cake ingredients in a bowl and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Pour into a well-greased Bundt pan.
- Bake at 325°F for 1 hour. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before flipping onto a rack.
- Whisk glaze ingredients together until they reach a thick, glue-like consistency.
- Drizzle over the cooled cake and serve.
You add sugar to this with cake mix? Seems like a lot! Is this right?
I make a simular cake like this that I learned years ago when I worked at a small bakery. I substituted Orange Juice for my liquid and added 2 teaspoons of Orange Extract to the cake mix (I only use Duncan Hines and I make mine in loaf pans….but when I saw your Ceramic Fluted Pan…I forgot the recipe and said ” I wonder where she found that…I love it!”…then to my surprise you gave me my answer…maybe I can get someone to give me one for mother’s day too, since it’s around the corner!….anyway, for the glazing I made mine a little differently, instead of butter, I used a couple of teaspoons of Orange Extract, then brushed a good coat of it on the cake letting it soak in, before giving it another coat…any leftover glaze was put in a dish for those with a real sweettooth to drizzle over their servings…Really good and yummy!
I hope you can get someone to make you one for Mother’s Day as well!! You deserve it!!
Which Duncan Hines cake mix did you use?
“Similar”
Does this cake with the glaze need to be refrigerated? I would love to have a cake that didn’t need to take up room in my fridge.
No, it will be fine for a few days. But then again mine never lasts more than a couple of days. 🙂
Canned Nectar is also found on the Hispanic food aisle in a lot of grocery stores. Like a previous review I’ve made with lemon cake mix and apricot nectar so I’m heading out to locate the orange supreme mix and apricot nectar.
Thanks for sharing Phyllis!
Okay, I used Pineapple supreme with Mango nectar. I will let you know how it turns out!
There is no Orange Supreme at my Kroger! Bah humbug!
Do you have a Family Fare,a Meijer’s, Walmart around? Sometimes you have to go to different stores to find what you want when it comes to Brand Names…Duncan Hines is a National Brand so you should be able to find it somewhere in your area…Duncan Hines is the only cake mix I’ll use…if your store carries this brand but not the flavor, go to the manager and ask for it…or check with the guy that orders for the store…or go to your Kroger site on line and ask them why your store doesn’t carry that flavor….good luck!
My great-grandmother used to make a similar cake. She called it Apricot Nectar Cake. I’m pretty sure she used a lemon cake mix as the base. She died in 1999, and a couple years ago my sister and I got to wanting some of her apricot nectar cake, so we got the recipe from our mom. We shopped around and finally found apricot nectar. We bought several cans to keep them in our pantries…you know, just in case. 😉