Kunzea Bundt Cake with Lemon Myrtle Icing

Some cakes are built for a slice on the way past the kitchen bench. This one is built for a table: set down whole, cut in front of everyone, with a pot of tea going around while the icing is still finding its way into the flutes. If you need a centrepiece for Melbourne Cup Day or any other afternoon the whole family or a full table of friends is sitting down together, this is the one to make.

A Bundt tin does half the work here, turning a simple batter into something that looks like it took far longer than it did. Cream cheese in the mix keeps the crumb rich and tender under a deep golden crust, and the real character comes from Dried Kunzea Leaf, a coastal Tasmanian native wild harvested from shrubs that grow along the state's north east. Crushed finely and folded through the batter, it carries eucalyptus, citrus and honey notes through every slice. A sharp Lemon Myrtle icing runs down the sides to finish it off.

That honey note in the leaf is not a coincidence worth leaving alone. Once the cake is out of the tin and still warm, a light brushing of raw Kunzea Honey soaks straight into the crumb, echoing a flavour the cake is already carrying rather than introducing something new. It earns its place on practical grounds too: honey holds onto moisture in a way plain sugar cannot, which is exactly why a Bundt like this is better on the second day than it is fresh from the oven.

At a glance: Serves 10-12 | Prep 15 min | Cook 50 min

Ingredients

For the cake

• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 125g cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons Dried Kunzea Leaf, finely crushed
• ¾ cup (112g) self-raising flour, sifted
• 3 teaspoons lemon zest

For the honey soak

• 2 tablespoons (40g) Kunzea Honey, warmed slightly so it brushes on easily

For the icing

• 1 cup (150g) icing sugar, sifted
• 2 teaspoons butter, melted
• ½ teaspoon Lemon Myrtle
• ½ teaspoon lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons (40ml) lemon juice

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C fan-forced (180°C conventional). Grease a 20cm Bundt tin thoroughly, working softened butter into every flute with a pastry brush or your fingers - this cake is too good to lose half of it to the tin.
2. Beat the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer until completely smooth and no lumps of cream cheese remain.
3. Add the sugar, eggs, crushed Kunzea Leaf, flour and lemon zest. Mix until just combined - the batter should be thick and glossy.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared tin, smooth the top with the back of a spoon, and give the tin a firm tap on the bench to knock out any air pockets that would otherwise show up as holes once sliced.
5. Bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer pushed into the deepest part of the cake comes out clean and the top springs back gently when pressed.
6. Rest the cake in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack while it is still warm.
7. Warm the Kunzea Honey for about 10 seconds in the microwave, or in a small saucepan over low heat, until it loosens enough to brush easily. Brush it generously over the top and down the sides of the still-warm cake with a pastry brush, letting it soak into the crumb rather than sit on the surface.
8. Leave the cake on the rack to cool completely before icing. This step still cannot be rushed: a cake that is still warm, or still slick with warm honey, will melt the icing straight off.
9. For the icing, whisk the icing sugar, melted butter, Lemon Myrtle and lemon zest together, then add the lemon juice a little at a time until the icing is thick, smooth and just holds its shape when you lift the whisk.
10. Spoon the icing over the cooled cake and let it find its own way down the flutes. Give it 15 minutes to set before slicing.

Built for the Cup Day table

A whole Bundt cake solves a real problem: how to put something impressive in the middle of the table without spending the whole morning on it. It slices cleanly into generous wedges, feeds ten to twelve without a second bake, and looks the part next to good china whether the occasion is Melbourne Cup Day, a birthday, or simply a Sunday when everyone happens to be home. Make it the day before, brushing on the honey soak while the cake is still warm from the oven, then ice it the morning of - one less thing to think about while the race is on the television and the teapot is doing the rounds.

Serve it alongside a pot of our Kunzea Relief Tea for an afternoon tea that carries the same native character right through to the cup, or stick with your usual black tea if you would rather keep the Kunzea flavour to the cake alone. Either way, cut it thick. This is not a cake that wants to be dainty.

Tips and swaps

• No Dried Kunzea Leaf on hand? Aniseed Myrtle or Wattleseed both work in the same quantity, each taking the cake in its own direction.
• Crush the Kunzea Leaf finely in a mortar and pestle or spice grinder before it goes into the batter - larger pieces stay chewy in an otherwise soft crumb.
• Warm the honey just enough to loosen it, then brush it on while the cake is still warm from the tin - too hot and it runs straight off, cold and stiff it drags at the crumb instead of soaking in. The icing works the opposite way: it only goes on once the cake is completely cool, or it will slide straight off rather than cling to the flutes.
• If the icing turns runny, whisk in a spoonful more sifted icing sugar. Too stiff, a few drops more lemon juice.
• This cake is at its best the day after baking, once the honey soak has had a full day to settle into the crumb, so it is a good one to make ahead of the day you need it.
• Lemon Myrtle is not part of our range yet, but you will find it at specialty native food suppliers.

Storage

Keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days - the honey soak keeps the crumb from drying out even by the last slice. The un-iced cake freezes well for up to 2 months - thaw completely, then ice fresh on the day you plan to serve it.

Shop the recipe

• Dried Kunzea Leaf - the wild harvested Tasmanian leaf that gives this cake its eucalyptus, citrus and honey character.
• Kunzea Honey - raw and 100% Tasmanian, brushed over the cake warm from the oven for a crumb that only gets better by day two.
• Kunzea Relief Tea - a warming cuppa that pairs naturally with a thick slice on the same afternoon tea table.