Italian Cream Bundt Cake- Doctored Cake Mix
This Italian Cream Bundt Cake is AMAZING- it is so moist, has wonderful flavor from coconut and pecans, and it all starts with a box of cake mix!
You can bake it into layers if you would like, but today we decided to keep things extra simple with a bundt cake.
If you love scratch Italian Cream Layer Cake, you will love this doctored cake mix version too! All of the flavors that you love in a scratch Italian Cream Layer Cake are accounted for ;0) This cake is sure to be a crowd pleaser!
Table of Contents
How to Make Italian Cream Bundt Cake
You can find our full, printable cake recipe further down in this post. Here is a quick rundown of our steps- you are going to love this recipe!
- Preheat Oven, Prepare Pan: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and grease and flour a 10 or 12 cup Bundt Cake Pan.
- Dry Ingredients: In the bowl of your mixer, add the cake mix, flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Whisk for 30 seconds to blend.
- Wet Ingredients: Add the sour cream, water, eggs, oil and vanilla extract.
- Time to Mix: With your electric mixer on low speed, blend for 30 seconds. Increase to medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. Stop after 1 minute to scrape the sides and bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula and then continue to mix for for the second minute.
- Coconut and Nuts: Fold in the coconut and nuts and pour into the prepared bundt pan.
- Bake: Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour. Test for doneness with a toothpick or long skewer. The cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs attached. Allow the cake to cool in the bundt pan for 10 minutes before turning out.
- Bake Time & Pan Size: This recipe makes 6 ½ cups batter. We used a 10 cup bundt pan. If using a 12 cup bundt pan, check on the cake after 40 minutes as the baking time will be less.
FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
Italian Cream Layer Cakes are traditionally frosted with cream cheese frosting (or a combination of cream cheese frosting & pecans or coconut), and so we wanted to make sure to include this delicious flavor combination in our bundt cake as well!
We used a half batch of our favorite Cream Cheese Frosting since we won't need as much. This is such an easy and delicious frosting. It is a simple combination of cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
- Butter: Cut the butter into slices and add to the bowl of your mixer. Beat on low to medium speed until the butter is softened and smooth.
- Cream Cheese: Cut the cold cream cheese into pieces and add to the butter, beating at low to medium speed until incorporated. If you are using a hand mixer you may need to soften the cream cheese a bit more.
- Vanilla: Add the vanilla. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low speed until blended. You can cover the mixing bowl with a towel to minimize the cloud of powdered sugar.
- Mix until Fluffy: Increase mixing speed and beat until fluffy. Be careful not to over-mix or it will become too soft. (If the frosting becomes too soft, just refrigerate a short while to firm it up a bit.)
Decorating the Italian Cream Bundt Cake
After allowing the cake to cool completely, it's time to apply the cream cheese frosting!
*Remember, cream cheese frosting is softer than most buttercream frostings. If at any time it becomes too soft, simply pop the bowl or your piping bag into the freezer for 5 minutes (or longer in the refrigerator) to firm things up!
As long as the cream cheese frosting makes its way onto the bundt cake, there's really no wrong way to apply it! Decorate however you like ;0)
I used a medium sized round piping tip 12 to create the chunky bead piping that you see around the bottom edge of my frosted layer. I piped the beads vertically all the way around and then applied the frosting above it with a small rounded offset spatula.
Then, I added chopped pecans around the top!
More Cake Mix Recipes to Try!
If you enjoy working with cake mix recipes, you are in luck! We've made many over the years, here are just a few of our favorites from our Box Cake Mix Recipes section: Easy German Chocolate Cake , Hummingbird Cake from Cake Mix, and Easy Strawberry Cake.
Enjoy the Recipe!
Thanks so much for stopping by today! We hope that you try this recipe- you are going to love it! If you make it, please leave a comment and photo below. And if you love bundt cakes, don't miss our roundup of Favorite Bundt Cake Recipes!
*Also, if you are interested in learning more about cake decorating, we have a huge collection of Free Cake Video Tutorials as well as our Free Cake Blog Tutorial sections.
You'll find hundreds of cake decorating techniques and designs to try!
Have you made this Cake? We would LOVE for you to leave a ⭐️ rating as well as a comment and photo below! We really appreciate your feedback!
Italian Cream Bundt Cake- Doctored Cake Mix
This moist Italian Cream Bundt Cake has amazing flavor from a combination coconut, pecans, and cream cheese frosting! Nobody would guess that it starts with a cake mix!
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow cake mix. Do not follow directions on the box- use only the ingredients
- listed below. We used Duncan Hines Perfectly Moist Classic Yellow cake mix.
- 1 cup (121g) cake flour or all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200g) sugar
- ½ teaspoon (2g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (3g) salt
- 1 cup (242g) sour cream (you can substitute with plain or Greek yogurt)
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) Canola Oil
- 1 cup (242g) water
- 3 whole eggs
- 2 teaspoons (8g) vanilla extract
- 1 cup (3g) coconut ( we used Baker's Angel Flake Sweetened Coconut)
- ½ cup (85g) chopped pecans
Cream Cheese Frosting (This is a half batch of our frosting recipe)
- 1 stick, (113g) unsalted butter, slightly softened
- 1 (8oz) Package Cream Cheese. We use full fat cream cheese. Using reduced fat or the spreadable cream cheese will cause the frosting to be too soft. Soften slightly.
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt (1g)
- 3 to 3 ½ cups (345g to 373g) powdered sugar
- *Optional: Crushed Pecans to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degree
- Grease and flour a 10 or 12 cup Bundt Cake Pan - see note below
- In the bowl of your mixer, add the cake mix, flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Whisk for 30 seconds to blend.
- Add the sour cream, water, eggs, oil and vanilla extract.
- With the mixer on low speed, blend for 30 seconds. Increase to medium speed and mix for 2 minutes. Stop after 1 minute to scrape the sides and bottom of bowl then continue to beat for for the second minute.
- Stir in the coconut and nuts and pour into prepared bundt pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.
- Test for doneness with a toothpick or long skewer. The cake will be done when the toothpick comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out.
- The recipes makes 6 ½ cups batter. We used a 10 cup bundt pan. If using a 12 cup bundt pan the baking time will be a less so check at 40 minutes, keep an eye on it.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cut the butter into slices and add to the bowl of your mixer. Beat on low to medium speed until the butter is softened and smooth.
- Cut the cold cream cheese into pieces and add to the butter, beating at low to medium speed until incorporated. If you are using a hand mixer you may need to soften the cream cheese a bit more.
- Add the vanilla. Gradually add the powdered sugar beating on low speed until blended. Cover the bowl with a towel to keep down the cloud of powdered sugar.
- Increase mixing speed and beat until fluffy. Don't over beat or it will become too soft. If it becomes too soft, just refrigerate a short while to firm it up a bit.
- This frosting will pipe best if used while still chilled. You can make it in advance, refrigerate and when ready to use let it soften slightly (do not microwave) and remix.
Decorating the Cake
Apply the frosting however you like! We took ours only about halfway down. I piped chunky beads of frosting with a round tip 12 vertically all the way around before spreading on the frosting above it. Then I sprinkled on crushed pecans.
**Because of the cream cheese frosting, this cake should be refrigerated. Remove from the refrigerator a few hours before serving to allow the cake to warm & soften for best taste and texture.
Notes
NOTES: To determine the baking capacity of your bundt pan, click on the link below. The batter in my 10 cup bundt pan came to within 1 ¼ inches from the top of the pan.
https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/blog/2016/08/02/bundt-pan-size
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Looks delish! :-)
Wow yumm my type of cake... any suggestions on other pans if u don't have a bundle pan ?
Hi Genelle, The recipe should work well in three 8x2 inch round pans or two 9 x2 inch rounds.
Wonderful Recipes
I am a sideline baker as well but I like seen your different yummy things you make
Thank you, Margaret!
I made this for Mother's Day and the family loved it! I will definitely make this again.
would buttermilk work as a substitute for sour cream?
Can I sub butter for the canola oil?
And milk for the water?
I want to try this so bad!
I tried a small piece of this before I threw it away, and it was delicious. The cake fell while baking, obviously I need to adjust for high altitude 5600. What do I need to change?