The orange and walnut bundt cake is a dessert with oranges perfect for our autumn and winter breakfasts and snacks. It is a delicious, soft, and fragrant cake. It is made with orange juice and therefore is also a lactose-free dessert. In fact, no other dairy products are used.
During citrus season, I often make desserts with oranges, lemons, and mandarins. My absolute favorite desserts are the mandarin cake, the orange juice cake, the orange chiffon cake, the chocolate and orange cake without mixer, and the creamy ricotta orange dessert.
I wanted to enrich this dessert with walnut pieces, to give the bundt cake a crunchy note. If you prefer, you can also add almonds, hazelnuts, or raisins. You can also omit the walnuts, but I recommend using them for this cake, as they go really well with oranges.
This orange bundt cake can also be made with mandarins or other fruit juices without added sugars, such as blood orange or Ace.
Preparing this soft and fragrant orange bundt cake is really simple. You will only need common electric beaters and a bowl, but you can also make the orange bundt cake with the Thermomix. Both methods are included in the recipe.
Now let’s see how to prepare this delicious orange bundt cake. But first, I leave you some links to orange desserts that might interest you!
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Economical
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 6 People
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
- Energy 363.35 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 56.17 (g) of which sugars 28.73 (g)
- Proteins 6.24 (g)
- Fat 14.14 (g) of which saturated 1.19 (g)of which unsaturated 7.50 (g)
- Fibers 1.16 (g)
- Sodium 78.12 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 110 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients to prepare the orange and walnut bundt cake
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- orange zest (grated)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup sunflower seed oil
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 12 walnut halves
- as needed powdered sugar
Tools to prepare the orange and walnut bundt cake
- Bundt Pan 8.5 inches
- Electric Whisk
- Bowl
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Nutcracker
- Citrus Juicer
- Lemon Grater
Steps to prepare the orange and walnut bundt cake
Now let’s go through all the steps to make this delicious soft and fragrant orange bundt cake. I’ll first put the traditional method with bowl and electric beaters and then the method to prepare the orange bundt cake with the Thermomix.
Before starting the preparation of the bundt cake, crack the walnuts with a nutcracker and try to remove the skin of the walnut halves as best as you can. Chop the halves roughly with a knife and set aside.
Thoroughly wash an orange, grate the peel and set aside. Cut the orange in half, from which you took the zest, and squeeze it to extract the juice. If you don’t reach 1/2 cup, supplement with another orange. Set aside.
In a bowl, put the egg and sugar. With electric beaters at maximum speed, work for 3-4 minutes, until you get a light and frothy mixture.
Add the grated orange peel, seed oil, orange juice and mix with the beaters.
Finally, add a pinch of salt, sifted flour and baking powder. Work the mixture just enough to have a smooth and lump-free dough.
Finally, add the coarsely chopped walnuts to the mixture. Distribute them in the mixture by mixing with a spatula from bottom to top.
Grease and flour a 8.5-inch diameter bundt pan, pour the mixture, and bake in a preheated static oven at 350°F for about 30 minutes. Always do the toothpick test before taking the bundt cake out of the oven.
If the toothpick is still wet, cover the bundt cake with aluminum foil and continue baking for a few more minutes.
Once ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely before removing it from the pan.
You can serve your orange and walnut bundt cake sprinkled with powdered sugar.
Now let’s see how to prepare the orange and walnut bundt cake with the Thermomix.
Peel the orange and put the orange peel in the bowl together with the sugar: 10 sec. speed 10. Gather everything at the bottom with the spatula.
Then squeeze the orange until you get 130 grams of juice and pour it into the bowl.
Insert the egg, sunflower seed oil, flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix 1 min and 30 sec speed 5.
At this point, add the coarsely chopped walnut halves with a knife and mix 30 sec Counterclockwise speed 2.
Grease and flour a 8.5-inch bundt pan and pour in the mixture. Bake in a preheated static oven at 350°F for about 30 minutes.
After this time, do the toothpick test. If it’s dry, the cake is ready. Otherwise, continue baking for another 5 minutes, covering the cake with aluminum foil.
Take it out, let it cool, and then sprinkle it with powdered sugar.
Storage and Variations
– The bundt cake can be stored for 3-4 days in a closed container or under a cake dome.
– You can use orange or mandarin juice. Alternatively, you can also use fruit juices in cartons without added sugars (if they are regular juices, reduce the sugar required in the recipe by 30-40 grams).
– You can also use different dried fruits instead of walnuts: pine nuts, hazelnuts, almonds, or pistachios. If you don’t want dried fruit, you can omit it.
– Instead of dried fruit, you can add 40-50 grams of chocolate chips. Put them in the freezer for half an hour and then flour them before adding them to the dough.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Can I use whole wheat flour?
Yes, but since whole wheat flour absorbs more liquid than all-purpose flour, it’s preferable to use half whole wheat flour and half regular flour.
Can I substitute sunflower seed oil?
Yes, you can substitute sunflower seed oil with the same amount of mild-flavored olive oil or the same amount of melted and cooled butter.
What if I don’t have a bundt pan?
You can make a cake with the same batter in a 9-inch diameter pan, or a loaf cake, or muffins. In the latter case, you will need to adjust the cooking times. Muffins will cook in less time. Check for doneness after the first 20 minutes: if they are already risen and golden, they are ready.
Can I use lemon juice instead of orange juice?
Better not, lemon juice is too sour and would ruin the final taste of the bundt cake.
