This Tie Dye Bundt Cake is SO fun, is the softest and moistest vanilla cake, and is customizable based on season, holiday, or event.
I'm so excited to share this treat with you! It's so easy to make in just two bowls (before dying) and with one whisk. The marble effect is SO simple and really makes for a unique and impressive treat!
Marble Bundt Cake Ingredients
- All Purpose Flour: All purpose flour is perfect for this cake! No need for cake flour- this cake is light and fluffy with regular flour! Make sure to measure with a scale or carefully spoon the flour into your measuring cups before leveling the tops to ensure accurate measurements!
- Baking powder + Baking Soda: These two leavening are SO important to the success of this cake. Without both, this cake will not rise properly and will have an extremely different texture. These ingredients are not interchangeable.
- Salt: Salt brings out sweetness in this cake.
- Vegetable Oil: Vegetable oil is the fat in this recipe and provides structure and moisture. You can use any unflavored oil if vegetable oil does not work for you!
- Granulated Sugar: Regular, white sugar is where this cake gets its sweetness and flavor!
- Eggs: This recipe calls for 4 large eggs at room temperature! If you forget to leave them out ahead of time, place them in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes before using.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla is SO important for flavor. Do not skip this ingredient!
- Butter/Almond Extract: Adding butter or almond extract brings out flavor and adds a gorgeous kick to this cake! I highly recommend using one of the two. I personally use butter extract!
- Sour Cream: Sour cream adds moisture to this cake and helps it to be light and fluffy. Make sure to use room temperature sour cream. You can substitute greek yogurt if you prefer.
- Buttermilk: Buttermilk is my not-so-secret weapon in cakes. Adding room temperature buttermilk creates a tender, light crumb! You will not see the same results with regular milk!
Food Dye
I find that using food gel rather than food dye allows for a deep color without using too much dye. Additionally, using too much liquid food dye could change the texture of the batter.
I HIGHLY recommend Americolor. Not only can you purchase directly from the company's website, but you can find this brand of food gel on Amazon, Wilton, and Walmart. I SWEAR by the Super Red color for any and every red, and I actually use Navy in this recipe to achieve that gorgeous dark blue!
I only have to use a few drops of each to reach these dark colors!
Making the Tie Dye Design
- Divide and dye the batter
- Add ⅓ of the plain batter to your bundt pan
- Add 2 tablespoons of blue batter
- Pour 2 tablespoons of red batter on top of the blue batter
- Add 2 tablespoons of plain batter on top of where the red and blue batter meet
- Repeat the process, work around the bundt
FAQ
I highly recommend using buttermilk for the lightest, softest texture. You will not see the same results with regular milk. You can make buttermilk from scratch at home, however. To do this, measure dairy milk regularly and pour into a cup or measuring cup. Remove one tablespoon of milk and add 4 teaspoons of white distilled vinegar. Stir the vinegar and milk mixture and let it sit for 5-10 minutes before using. Milk will be thick and chunky.
You will want to use a 10 inch bundt cake pan. Using a smaller pan will result in the batter overflowing. If you use a larger pan, the cake will not be as tall and will require a much shorter baking time.
HEAVILY spray the bundt pan with cooking spray. Ensure that you spray the center of the pan, as this is where the cake can get stuck. Do not attempt to remove the cake from the pan for at least 45 minutes after taking the pan out of the oven. Carefully run a knife along the outside of the cake between where the cake and pan meet. Do the same between where the center of the pan and cake meet. When removing, quickly flip the pan on top of a wire cooling rack. Firmly and aggressively tap the top of the bundt pan to help release the cake. Repeat the knife process and tapping if the cake does not release.
Food gel is the best way to use as little coloring as possible with the most successful results. I highly recommend the Americolor brand.
Tips for Perfect Cake
- Mixing: Do not overmix when combining your dry ingredients. Especially since you will still need to mix the batter when adding the dye, only mix until the dry ingredients disappear into the wet ingredients. Overmixing will lead to dry, dense cake!
- Baking: Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with moist crumbs. The cake will continue to cook as it is cooling in the pan. The cake should look golden brown in color and should looks slightly shiny on top when it is ready. You should be able to poke the top with your finger and have the cake spring back immediately. Underbaking will lead to gooey, gummy cake and could lead to the bundt cake deflating. Overbaking will lead to dry cake.
- Cooling: LET THIS CAKE COOL. The cake should cool for at least 45 minutes to 1 hour before being removed from the pan. You will risk breaking your cake if you attempt to remove it from the pan before it cools. Do not frost until the cake has cooled, as the frosting will melt.
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Tie Dye Bundt Cake
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes
- Yield: 10 inch bundt 1x
- Category: Bundt Cake, Cake, 4th of July
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Tie Dye Bundt Cake is made without a mixer using simple, accessible ingredients and approachable techniques. Customizable for any occasion, this dessert is so fun, so unique, and will surely impress a crowd with its gorgeous design and delicious taste!
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 3 cups (430g) all purpose flour
- 2 ½ teaspoons (9g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3g) baking soda
- 1 teaspoon (6g) salt
- 1 ¼ cups (250g) vegetable oil
- 2 cups (440g) granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs (200g), room temperature
- 1 tablespoon (12g) vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon (2g) butter extract or almond extract
- ⅔ cup (167g) sour cream, room temperature
- 1 ¼ cup (288g) buttermilk, room temperature
- Red and Blue Food Gel
For the Frosting
- 1 ½ cups (330g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 ½- 3 cups (300-360g) powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon (12g) vanilla extract
- 5 tablespoons (75g) heavy whipping cream
Instructions
For the Cake
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Heavily spray a 10-inch bundt pan with cooking spray. This is essential for the bundt to come out cleanly.
- In a medium bowl, whisk all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined.
- In a large bowl, whisk vegetable oil, granulated sugar, eggs, and sour cream together until smooth and fully combined.
- Add about ⅓ of the dry ingredients to the large bowl of wet ingredients. Whisk until just combined. Add ½ of the buttermilk to large bowl and mix until fully incorporated. Repeat with another ⅓ of the dry ingredients, the remaining ½ of the buttermilk, and the final ⅓ of the dry ingredients. You will simply be alternating adding the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the wet ingredients, starting and ending by adding the dry ingredients.
- Transfer 1 ½ cups (about 375g) of batter to a smaller bowl and another 1 ½ cups (375g) of batter to another smaller bowl. Dye one of the smaller bowls red and the other blue. Add as much dye as necessary/desired.
- Add ⅓ of the plain vanilla batter to your prepared pan. Add about 2 tablespoons (this does not need to be precise) of blue batter on top of the plain vanilla batter. Then, add 2 tablespoons (again, this does not need to be precise) of red batter directly on top of the blue batter. Finally, add another 2 tablespoons (once more, roughly 2 tablespoons) of the plain vanilla batter on top of where the blue and red batter meet. Repeat this process and work your way around the bundt, though feel free to have fun with adding the batter to create a unique design!
- Tap the pan and slightly shake the pan before inserting it into the oven. Do not swirl with a knife or spoon.
- Bake bundt for 40-50 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with moist crumbs and the top springs back when poked with your finger. The top will be golden brown in color.
- Let bundt cool for at least 45 minutes before carefully removing to finish cooling on a wire cooling rack!
For the Frosting
- In a large bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter on high speed until smooth.
- Add powdered sugar in ½ cup (30g) increments to avoid a mess, and mix until the frosting fully combines.
- Add heavy whipping cream to the bowl. Whip on high speed for 5 minutes to create a light, fluffy, smooth, and whiter frosting.
- Top cooled bundt with frosting as desired and decorate as desired.
Keywords: 4th of July Cake, 4th of July Dessert, Patriotic Bundt Cake, Marble Bundt Cake, Tie Dye Bundt Cake, Buttermilk Cake
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