Description
This Perfect Pound Cake recipe is a classic dessert that’s perfect for any occasion. Made with a combination of butter and cream cheese, this pound cake is rich and flavorful. This cake also features the reverse creaming method, resulting in a smooth and velvety texture that's sure to impress. Whether you're a novice baker or an experienced one, this homemade pound cake recipe is easy to follow and yields consistently delicious results every time.
Ingredients
- 204 g (1 1/2 cup) cake flour, sifted
- 250 g (1 1/4 cup) white granulated sugar
- 2 g (1/2 tsp) baking powder
- 2 g (1/2 tsp) kosher salt
- 170 g (12 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
- 4 oz (1/2 a brick) cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit / 165 Celcius with an oven rack in the center position. Generously grease a 9x5-inch non-stick aluminum loaf pan with butter, ensuring that you've evenly greased each corner. Reserve to the side.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt) together. Reserve to the side.
- In another mixing bowl, add the softened butter and cream cheese. Using a hand mixer, beat together until light and fluffy.
- Transfer the butter and cream cheese mixture to the dry ingredients and using a silicone spatula fold the ingredients together briefly until semi-combined. This helps ensure that dry ingredients don't fly out of the bowl when you blend with the hand mixer.
- Using the hand mixer on medium, continue blending the dry ingredients with the butter and cream cheese mixture until aerated.
- Lower the hand mixer speed to low and add the vanilla and almond extracts. Then, working one at a time, add each of the eggs. Blending each one until just combined before adding the next. Only beat the batter until the final egg is fully combined but no longer, so you don't overwork the batter.
- Pour the batter into the reserved prepared loaf pan.
- Optional step: If you would like to better control the crack that forms on the top of your pound cake as it bakes, you can do the following: Melt a small pat of butter in a small bowl in the microwave. Using a pastry brush, coat a butter knife or offset spatula with the melted butter and use it to draw a 1-inch deep line down the center of the batter, lengthwise. Alternative methods for encouraging an even crack can be found in the notes below.
- Transfer the cake to the oven to bake for 45 minutes. Gently slide the cake out and tent loosely with foil, then transfer it back to the oven to continue baking a further 25-35 minutes or until the internal temperature of the cake reached 210 degrees F / 99 degrees Celsius when tested with an instant-read thermometer and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, then gently run an offset spatula or butter knife around the sides to loosen. Tip the cake into your hand, then place on a wire rack to fully cool before slicing.
Notes
Nutritional information on Whip & Wander is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site.
Methods for encouraging an even crack in the top of the pound cake as it bakes: The most simple way to encourage an even crack is to quickly rinse a butter knife or offset spatula under water. Draw a line lengthwise down the center of the batter, about 1-inch deep. Alternatively, If you have an extra moment to melt butter, it works even better than water as it helps define the crack more strongly. Brush the melted butter onto the knife or offset spatula before drawing a 1-inch deep line down the center of the batter. A third option, that helps a well-defined crack form in the top, is to pipe softened butter directly onto the batter using a piping bag or small zip-top bag, snipped on the end.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 440
- Sugar: 32 g
- Sodium: 168 mg
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated Fat: 15 g
- Carbohydrates: 52 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 129 mg