Daffodil yellow and showered with powdered sugar, It’s Lemon Thyme Cake has enough lemon inside that even my COVID-dampened senses could taste it! The crumb is light and moist, giving the cake an airy quality, and the thyme lends it a hint of the unexpected.
And this cake isn’t just easy to make—it’s SO INCREDIBLY easy that it’s actually DIFFICULT to screw it up. Trust me on this one. This would be great for the kids to make mom for Mother’s Day. Or make it for spring occasions like Easter, We Got Vaccinated Day, or just a Tuesday. Heck, it’s so easy you could make it for ALL of those occasions. Dump everything together, mix it, bake it, profit!
The cake keeps well for a week or so if it’s kept in an airtight container, but don’t worry, it will not last that long.
You will need:
1 box lemon cake mix
1 box lemon pudding mix
4 eggs
3/4 C vegetable oil
1/4 C lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons)
1/2 C Limoncello
1 T thyme leaves (or 2 T for a really Thyme-forward flavor)
baking spray or oil and flour for the pan
a Bundt pan
Turn your oven to 350F. Dump all of the ingredients into your mixer bowl.
Mix slowly to incorporate, then on medium-high for 2-3 minutes, until the batter is light and fluffy.
While your cake is mixing, grease and flour your Bundt pan. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!! If you don’t oil and flour it well, pieces of your cake WILL BE TRAPPED IN THE PAN FOR ALL ETERNITY. I like to use baking spray, but of course I didn’t have any, and I was not going back to the store YET again (I forgot the Limoncello the first time).
If you don’t have baking spray, you can do what I did. Spray the pan evenly with oil (or rub oil on the interior), making sure you get into all of the cracks and crevices of your pan. Wipe out any excess with a paper towel. Sift a bit of cake flour into the pan, then rotate and tap it gently until the entire pan is coated in flour. Tap the pan upside-down over the sink to get rid of any excess flour.
NOW you can put the batter into your pan.
Pop it in the oven and set a timer for 35 minutes.
When your timer beeps, the cake should be done. You can test it with a toothpick or skewer (when it is ready, the skewer should come out with a few crumbs on it, but no wet batter), but I’ve made it about 35 times and 35 minutes is always on the money for me.
Let the cake cool in the pan for ten minutes. At the end of ten minutes, gently wiggle the edges of the cake loose from the pan. Then put a cooling rack or serving plate on top of the cake and flip it over. Leave the flipped-over cake, Bundt pan-side up, for a few minutes, then tap and gently shake it as you pull it up. It should come out looking like this!
I like to immediately shower it with powdered sugar. If you get it on while the cake is still warm, it may melt into the cake a little—don’t worry, just give it another shower when it’s cool. You can use a sieve, a sifter, or even what I use—a tea infuser—to get the powdered sugar looking instaworthy.
Serve the cake warm or let it cool, if you can wait that long!
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