This Apricot Cake screams Summer! It’s a semi-homemade cake that is doctored up with apricot nectar and orange. It’s moist, beautiful and tastes like Summer!

So my sister’s best friend’s mom makes this cake – it’s from her church cook book! I made a few subtle changes but no matter what changes are made, this cake is a winner!

I made it for my brother-in-law’s Birthday and he said this cake is a “June cake.” It really is! From the color to the flavors, this cake is great for warm weather. 

Apricot cake is so easy to make as well. It starts with a cake mix and then is doctored up with apricot nectar and orange jello! Yes – how genius right? The result is a very flavorful, fluffy and moist cake. 

I love this ideas of using a cake mix as the starter and then creating a uniquely flavored cake from it. 

It’s a wonderful dessert to make with kids because there is minimal measuring to do – just a lot of dumping and stirring which is perfect for them to help with. 

My favorite part of the cake is the apricot glaze. It’s literally the “icing on the cake” giving it that added layer of sweetness and flavor. I am definitely going to use this base recipe for other cake recipes in the future. I’m thinking a semi-homemade strawberry cake or a peach/pineapple cake? Don’t those all sound so good and so easy? 

Here’s to all the Summer desserts!

Yield: 8-10

Apricot Cake

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A semi-homemade cake docotored up with apricot nectar and orange flavoring.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Additional Time 10 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

• CAKE
• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 package orange jello (the regular size box, not the large)
• 3/4 cup apricot nectar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs
• APRICOT GLAZE
• 1 1/2 tablespoon milk
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted
• 2 cups sifted confectioners sugar
• 3-4 tablespoon apricot nectar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and generously grease a bundt pan.
2. Add all of the cake ingredients in a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. You can use a stand-alone mixer or a hand mixer for this. Pour cake into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes - check for doneness. Continue to bake if needed. Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes then turn onto your serving platter.
3. To make the glaze, mix all of the ingredients until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add a little more apricot nectar. If it's too thin, add a little more confectioners sugar. You have two options. You can pour the glaze over the warm cake allowing the glaze to seep into the cake a little or you can wait until it's cooled and have a thick layer of glaze on top. Your choice!