Orange Pound Cake with Fresh Orange Zest Glaze
This orange pound cake is soft, buttery, and packed with fresh orange flavor. Made with real orange zest, juice, and finished with a simple orange glaze, this cake has the velvety pound cake texture you love — with a bright citrus twist.
Citrus season is such a delicious time here in my home state of Arizona. Trees are fragrant with blossoms and full of ripened oranges, lemons and grapefruits! Incorporating citrus into my baking is a no brainer. I’m constantly looking for ways to bake with lemon, like my Lemon Blueberry Olive Oil Cake – SO good! Or, if I’m in an orange zesty mood, Homemade Orange Sweet Rolls satisfy every time! This orange pound cake is almost identical to my Moist Lemon Pound Cake, and surely one you’ll fall in love with!
Why this Orange Pound Cake recipe is worth making
- While most pound cakes can be a bit dry, this recipe turns out moist and velvety every time!
- A quick and easy recipe.
- The yummiest way to enjoy citrus season.
- Make mini loaves for the cutest baked gifts!
Ingredients
- Butter, Sugar and Eggs are in good supply in any classic pound cake recipe and this is no exception. Just like in my Lemon Pound Cake recipe, these ingredients create a dense but moist, and almost velvet-like texture. It’s so iconic and so good!
- Fresh Orange Zest and juice add so much flavor and a bit of tartness that goes well with all that sugar.
- Sour Cream is that ingredient that gives this orange pound cake that soft and moist crumb.
- Find the full list of ingredients and measurements in my recipe card below.
Variations
Feel free to make this recipe your own and add things you like to enjoy with orange desserts. Depending on the time of year, or what you’re in the mood for, there are endless possibilities to switch up this orange pound cake! Here’s a few suggestions:
- Add mini chocolate chips for a yummy chocolate orange flavor combination.
- Mix in your favorite dried fruits like cranberries or blueberries.
- Incorporate some cozy spices like cinnamon.
- Add your favorite nuts like chopped walnuts, pecans, or almonds.
How to make Orange Pound Cake
Prep the oranges
Step 1: Zest the oranges. Avoid zesting too deep – you don’t want to get any of the white pith underneath the outer peel.
Step 2: Juice the oranges. If needed, you can also strain the fresh orange juice.
Mix the Orange Pound Cake Batter
Step 3: In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set it aside.
Step 4: Cream together the butter, sugar, and orange zest until smooth.
Step 5: Add the eggs, one at a time. Mix them well in between each addition.
Step 6: Add the sour cream, orange juice, and vanilla. Mix on medium low speed to combine all the ingredients.
Baker’s Tip: After you’ve added the sour cream, orange juice and vanilla, the mixture will get (for lack of a better word) chunky. Don’t worry – this is normal. Once you add the flour mixture, it will all come together and smooth out.
Step 7: Gradually add the flour mixture. Mix on low speed until fully combined. Avoid over mixing as this can create a denser texture.
The orange pound cake batter should be thicker than a cake batter, but thinner than a bread batter. Once combined, it’s time to fill the pans.
Step 8: Grease the pans generously with nonstick spray and fill them 2/3 full. This recipe will make either 2, 8-inch loaves or 5, mini loaves. I like to use these mini loaf pans. Bake at 325°F for about 45 minutes. Check the inside with a cake tester or toothpick – it should come out clean.
Step 9: Allow the orange pound cakes to cool in the pans for 15 minutes before removing from the pans. Transfer them to a wire cooling rack until they cool completely.
Add the Orange Zest Glaze
Step 10: Mix together the ingredients for the orange zest glaze. I use this same orange zest glaze on my Cranberry Orange Rolls and it is so delicious! I like to make it on the thicker side, but still thin enough to drizzle. The thick it is, the better it will set up on top of the orange pound cake, instead of soaking into the cake. Let it set for about 10 minutes and the orange zest glaze will harden and make it easier to serve or place in a bag.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, orange pound cake freezes really well. Allow it to cool completely. Wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer ziplock bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, just allow it to thaw in the plastic wrap at room temperature overnight. Then you can add the orange zest glaze before serving.
Navel oranges work well for orange pound cake. They are easy to zest and juice, and generally have a sweet enough flavor. Just be sure not to get too aggressive when zesting your oranges – you don’t want to get any of the white pith as that can taste bitter.
Yes! I have almost the exact same recipe for a Lemon Pound Cake. I opt for adding coconut to it, but it’s completely optional. It’s so delicious!
You’ll absolutely love this orange pound cake with orange zest glaze! It’s everything that’s good about citrus season, but you can easily make it any time of the year! Along with my Cranberry Nut Bread, it’s one of my most favorite easy and festive Christmas recipes too! I love giving mini loaves out for gifts!
More Citrus Recipes You’ll Love
Orange Pound Cake
Equipment
- 5 mini loaf pans 5.75 by 3.25 by 2.25-inches (optional)
- 2 8-inch loaf pans optional
Ingredients
Orange Pound Cake:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- the zest of 2 oranges
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- ⅓ cup orange juice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Orange Zest Glaze:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 Tablespoons milk
- the zest of 1 orange
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the whisk attachment, cream together the butter, sugar and orange zest on medium low speed for two minutes until fluffy. Stop halfway through to scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Be sure there are no clumps of unmixed butter.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition.
- Add the sour cream, orange juice and vanilla. Mix until combined. (Mixture may separate a bit, but it will come together when flour is added)
- On low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Stop the mixer, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula and mix for another 10 seconds. Try to avoid over-mixing.
- Generously grease the loaf pans generously with nonstick spray. This recipe makes either 2, 8-inch loaves or 5 mini loaves. Spoon the batter into the pans, filling no more than two-thirds full.
- For 8-inch loaves, bake for 50-60 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Mini loaf sizes will need less bake time (closer to 45-50 minutes). All ovens bake differently so be sure to keep an eye on it.
- Let the orange pound cake cool in the pans for 20 minutes before removing and cooling completely on a wire rack.
- Prepare the orange zest glaze by combining the powdered sugar, milk and orange zest. Add more powdered sugar or milk to get a thick consistency.
- Drizzle over loaves after they have completely cooled. The glaze should set up and harden in about 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Each oven bakes differently. When making this recipe for the first time, check the bread about 10 minutes before suggested bake time. Rotate pans if oven is baking with hot spots. Cover loosely with foil if bread is browning too much before it’s baked all the way through – this will prevent it from browning too much while it continues the bake the center.
- I prefer to make this orange pound cake recipe in mini loaves (5.75 by 3.25 by 2.25-inches). They bake better and are easier to slice.
- You can freeze loaves for later use. Freeze before glazing. Wrap loaves in plastic wrap and store in a freezer ziplock bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. When thawing out the loaves, take them out of the freezer the night before and let thaw on counter. Glaze about 30-60 minutes before serving.
- If you love this recipe, you will also love my Lemon Pound Cake too!
I made Lemon Coconut bread was delish , yum!
Hi Janet,
I’m so glad you liked it! It’s one of my favorites!
I’m thinking of making and serving this for our empty nester FHE this Monday! Would like to top each slice with a scoop of lightly sugared strawberries and/or raspberries topped with whipped cream. Would that fight with the lemon flavor and would you leave off the glaze?
Hi! Did you mean the orange flavor? I think strawberry shortcake would be amazing with this orange pound cake! I’ve also used my Lemon Coconut Bread for strawberry shortcake and loved it! With or without the glaze – both are great, just depends on what you like! Let me know how it turns out!
Made this for my mom and she loved it! Reminded her of what her grandma used to make. Its delicious!!
How sweet! So happy to hear this!
This sounds so good! We’ve been finishing up some renovations at my home and my kids have been so darn helpful! I want to make a special treat for them as one of the ways to say thank you and this sounds awesome! We finally had our cabinets refaced so now that we’ve finished that, I can dive into this! Thank you for sharing!
I’m thinking of making these as gifts. Would you have any tips for packaging as gifts?
Great gift idea! These would be so cute in a clear cellophane bag with a ribbon and tag tied on. I have some packaging ideas here, including printable tags: https://thatbreadlady.com/free-printable-gift-tags-my-favorite-holiday-treat-recipes/
Also, since this bread has icing, make sure the icing is completely set before bagging. Use cellophane bags instead of poly bags – cellophane tends to not cling to the icing better. Hope this helps!