This Easter Bundt Cake is sure to be a showstopper with its delightful color cake swirls and decadent cheesecake flavor. You won’t want to wait for a holiday to make this Spring bundt cake recipe!

Around here, we take rich and scrumptious cheesecake flavor any way we can get it! Luscious Brownie Bottom Cheesecake & Cherries, heavenly Salted Caramel Cheesecake, or no-bake Strawberry Cheesecake Dessert are just a few of our favorites. Darling “Potted” Chocolate Cheesecake or sinfully easy Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake Parfaits are gorgeous make-ahead party-ready dessert treats!

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bundt cake decorated for Easter or Spring

Why Easter Bundt Cake With Sour Cream Works

Moist, tender crumb, and rich cheesecake flavor is only the start of what sets this Easter bundt cake recipe apart. A slice of pretty swirled colors visually hits your happy button before the first bite!

  • A decorated Easter bundt cake makes a gorgeous holiday centerpiece.
  • Easy, versatile, and loaded with yummy cheesecake flavor!
  • Boxed cake mix and pudding mix are super convenient bundt cake hacks.
  • The creamy cheesecake flavor is heightened with tangy sour cream.  
  • An Easter swirl cake is visually appealing inside and out!
  • Decorated glazed bundt cake is easily adapted for any occasion.

Easter Bundt Cake Recipe Ingredients

A swirled, vanilla-glazed bundt cake is so good there’s no need to wait for a special occasion to make this holiday dessert. More than one notable element makes this bundt cake recipe with pudding the perfect choice for a holiday dessert.

Bundt Cake Ingredients:

  • White Or Vanilla Cake Mix – use a boxed cake mix that does not have “pudding in the mix.” 
  • Cheesecake-Flavored Instant Pudding Mix – this bundt cake recipe only requires a small box of instant pudding mix.
  • Sour Cream – adds moisture and enhances the tangy cheesecake elements. Allow sour cream to come to room temperature.
  • Milk – should also have the chill off of it.
  • Vegetable Oil – any neutral flavor oil you have on hand is fine. 
  • Eggs – large eggs, brought to room temperature.
  • Vanilla Extract* – use pure vanilla extract. Green, Pink, & Purple – gel food coloring.

For specific amounts, please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

Bundt Cake Glaze Ingredients:

  • Powdered Sugar – white confectioners sugar should be sifted for a smooth, creamy bundt cake glaze without lumps. 
  • Butter – melted, not hot, and cooled.
  • Milk – bring to room temp to avoid curdling bundt cake glaze. Clear Vanilla Extract – is best for a clean white glaze, or you can use a bright white gel food coloring to offset regular vanilla.

Easy Easter Bundt Cake Decorations:

Spring & Easter themed sprinkles

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How To Make Easter Bundt Cake Recipe With Cheesecake Pudding

Prepare a greased and floured bundt cake pan and gather your supplies. You’ll need a stand or electric mixer, mixing bowls, a spatula and wooden spoon, a whisk, a wire cooling rack, and a happy decorating mindset

When you are making this recipe, you’ll want to use the full recipe at the bottom of the page.

Easter Swirl Bundt Cake Directions:

  1. The Batter: Mix all the bundt cake ingredients on low for 30 seconds, scrape down the bowl, and beat on medium for 1-2 minutes until well combined.
  2. The Colors: Dye three separate ½ cup cheesecake bundt batter by mixing a drop of food coloring, stirring well after each drop, until the batter reaches your desired colors.
  3. The Swirl: Pour the cheesecake batter into the prepared bundt pan, drop spoonfuls of the colored batters randomly throughout, and gently swirl with a butter knife a few strokes. 
  4. The Oven: Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out with only a few crumbs. Cool completely (at least 1 hour) before applying the glaze.

Vanilla Bundt Cake Glaze:

  1. Stir powdered sugar and melted butter until combined.
  2. Whisk in the milk and vanilla until completely smooth.* 
  3. Pour vanilla glaze over the cooled bundt cake so the glaze drips down the sides.
  4. Top glazed bundt cake with spring/Easter-themed sprinkles, slice, and serve.
  5. Store covered for 2-3 days.

*If you’d like the bundt cake glaze to be thinner, add more milk, one tablespoon at a time until it is a pourable consistency.

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slice of bundt cake with Easter colors swirled inside

Sour Cream Bundt Cake Easter Dessert Recipe Notes/Tips

  • Be sure to thoroughly coat the bundt pan with no-stick spray, getting every crevice.
  • Using a cookie scoop makes it easy to add the colored cheesecake bundt cake batter into the bundt pan and more even distribution of the pretty Easter swirls.
  • Gently run the butter knife back and forth through the batter only a few times to swirl the colors. Over-blending the colored batter will combine the dyes and turn them brown.
  • To avoid curdling the bundt cake glaze, have your milk at room temperature, and the melted butter cooled before incorporating.
  • Clear vanilla is recommended for an Easter bundt cake glaze to keep the pure whiter color. Although regular vanilla can be used, it will tint the glaze to more of a tan color.
  • If you don’t have a clear vanilla, fix a tinted vanilla bundt glaze by adding a drop or two of bright white gel food coloring. Easy-peasy!
  • Remember to add your decorative Easter sprinkles to the bundt cake glaze right away so they adhere in the way you like. Once the natural drying process occurs, it will be more difficult for your bundt cake decorations to stick.
slice of cake on a plate with bite on a fork

How To Store This Recipe

Refrigerate/Leftovers

Store cooled bundt cake at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Freeze

This cake can also be frozen for a couple of months if covered tightly. When you are ready to enjoy the cake, thaw it in the fridge overnight.

cut bundt cake with colorful swirls inside

Easter Bundt Cake Recipe FAQs

Can I use any flavor cake mix in an Easter swirl cake?

Of course! You can use any flavor of cake mix you like, although it is recommended that bundt cake batter be white or yellow when making a swirled Easter bundt cake. The same idea goes for the instant pudding mix to ensure it doesn’t completely change the color of the batter. Yellow and white cake makes the bundt batter easier to dye into different colors and keeps the swirls more vibrant and contrasting.

Can I make a swirl cake if the batter isn’t white?

Yes, you can create swirls in some darker-colored cake batter by mixing half of a white cake; coloring the batter and swirling it into the dark batter is an easy way to create lighter swirls.

Can a swirled bundt cake recipe be made in a 9×13-inch pan?

Yes! However, it is important to not overfill the 9×13 pan; leave approximately half an inch to a quarter of an inch of space at the top to allow the cake to expand. Also, bundt cakes usually need to be baked longer due to the deeper and dense batter. When using a 9 x 13” baking pan with a bundt cake recipe, more than likely, the baking time will need to be adjusted downward. It’s recommended to check the cake with a toothpick every 10-15 minutes until it comes out clean.

Why do you add a pudding mix to a cake mix?

Adding a pudding mix to a boxed cake mix is considered a boxed cake “hack” and a recipe enhancer. Pudding provides a flavor boost but, more importantly, a moister texture.

How does a dry pudding mix make a cake more moist?

Due to its gelatin content, a dry pudding mix adds moisture to a boxed cake mix. Gelatin is the key ingredient that absorbs liquid and creates a thick, creamy texture in pudding mixes. Adding a dry pudding mix to a cake recipe has the same effect; gelatin absorbs and swells with liquids that are retained as added moisture within the cake structure.

bundt cake with swirl inside

Easter Bundt Cake Substitutions

  • Use heavy cream instead of milk for the glaze. Since it’s thicker than milk, add only 2 tablespoons and mix it in. Then add more cream only if necessary.
  • Plain greek yogurt is an easy substitute for sour cream in a swirl bundt cake recipe. To replicate the tender moistness of sour cream, use whole-milk greek yogurt if you can. 
  • Light or fat-free sour cream will give your Spring bundt cake tangy notes and moistness for fewer calories, but you sacrifice some of the richness whole-fat sour cream provides.  
  • Lemon, Coconut, or Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix – feel free to sub-in your favorite Jello instant pudding flavor. Pistachio flavor pudding will give you a pretty, soft green bundt cake.

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easter cake photo collage
cut bundt cake with colorful swirls inside

Easter Bundt Cake

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 (15.25-ounce) box white or vanilla cake mix (not with pudding in the mix)
  • 1 (3.4-ounce) cheesecake-flavored instant pudding mix
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • ½ cup milk
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Green, pink, and purple gel food coloring

For the glaze:

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract

Topping:

  • Spring / Easter themed sprinkles

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously grease and flour a 10-cup Bundt pan.
  2. To make the cake: In the bowl of a hand or stand mixer, beat the cake mix, cheesecake instant pudding mix, sour cream, milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds; scrape edges of the bowl. Beat on medium speed for 1-2 more minutes, until well combined.
  3. In 3 separate bowls, add ½ cup of batter into each one. Add a few drops of food coloring (one color per bowl) to the batter, stirring well after each drop, until the batter reaches your desired color.
  4. In the bundt pan, pour all of the uncolored batter and spread evenly. Place spoonfuls of each colored batter randomly into the prepared pan. Gently run a butter knife back and forth through the batter a few times to swirl the colors (don’t swirl too much or it will all blend together and turn brown).
  5. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out with only a few crumbs. Cool completely (at least 1 hour) before applying the glaze.
  6. To make the glaze: Add the powdered sugar and melted butter to a medium bowl; stir until combined.
  7. Whisk in the milk and vanilla, mixing until completely smooth. If you’d like the glaze to be thinner, add more milk 1 tablespoon at a time until it is a pourable consistency.
  8. Pour over the cooled cake, letting the glaze drip down the sides.
  9. Top with spring / Easter themed sprinkles, slice, and serve.

Notes

Store cooled pound cake at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days.

This cake can also be frozen for a couple of months if covered tightly. When you are ready to enjoy the cake, thaw it in the fridge overnight.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 378Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 120mgSodium: 128mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 0gSugar: 29gProtein: 5g

Nutrition information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin, and freshness of ingredients used and are just estimates. We encourage, especially if these numbers are important to you, to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

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Easter bundt cake slice and whole cake