Make a Perfect Pound Cake, moist and buttery. This is a big cake and serves a lot of people since a small piece will be satisfying. I like the classic, simple look of this pound cake. But if you want to glaze it, mix powdered sugar with a little milk or lemon juice and pour over top.
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servings
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Ingredients
- 1 lb/ 454g unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 cups/ 380g White Sugar
- 6 large Eggs room temperature
- 4oz/ 115ml sour cream room temperature
- 2 tsps Vanilla Extract
- 3 cups/ 425g All Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Coarse Salt
Ingredients
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Instructions
- It’s important that all the ingredients be room temperature and not ice cold. The butter should be left out of the fridge until soft. I leave the eggs and sour cream out until they loose their chill. The batter will come together easily if all the ingredients are room temperature.
- Put the soft butter into a mixer. Save the wrappers. Cream the butter on medium speed for 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides. Cream on medium for another 2 minutes. Add the sugar and cream for 3 minutes. Scrape down and cream for another 2 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time. Wait and make sure each egg is fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. Scrape down and add the sour cream. Now add the vanilla extract. Scrape down again. Add the flour mixed with 1sp salt - little by little so there are no lumps. Scrape down, all the way into the center where flour can hide. Mix for a few seconds and the batter is ready.
- Here’s where the butter wrappers come in handy. I always use them to butter my cake pans. Get in every crevice of the pan you're using - I'm using a bundt pan. Put a little bit of all purpose flour in your bundt pan, turn it around to coat the whole pan. Tap out the excess over your sink. Now that the pan is evenly coated, you’ll have no problem getting the cake out, it’ll literally just fall out in one piece. Spoon the batter all over the pan. Spread it out evenly. Tap the pan on your counter a few times to get rid of any air bubbles. Bake this cake in the center of a heated 325 degree Fahrenheit or 163 degree celsius oven. It’ll take about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Some ovens run very hot, so I suggest you check the cake after 1 hour and cook for a few more minutes if you need to. The cake is ready when you insert a toothpick and it comes out clean or with a few crumbs. As long as there is no wet batter on it, it’s cooked through. The edges of the cake will come away from the side of the pan, that’s another sign that the cake is cooked. The cracking on top is normal with pound cakes.
- Cool the cake on a rack for 45 minutes. After 45 minutes, the cake is still warm but we can turn it out. Take an offset spatula or butter knife, gently pull around the edges. Turn it over. Let it cool completely on the rack.
- The bottom of the cake is domed, if you want a perfect, flat bottom, slice off a thin layer from the bottom with a serrated knife after the cake is cooled. When the cake is cool, cut with a serrated knife. Slightly crispy on the outside, beautiful crumb. Moist and delicious.
Recipe Notes
Hi,I notice other butter pound cake has baking powder or baking soda is it require?
Hi Eric, this recipe doesn’t need baking powder or soda. The eggs provide enough leavening 🙂
Nice.
Thanks
I’m afraid not to use any baking agent can’t I still put some in.
This recipe doesn’t need it but you can if you like 🙂
Trust her judgement, I’ve used this recipe 5xs. My cake comes out perfect and looking beautiful every time.
Hi, I just join your subscription and I made this cake this evening for the first time..11/23/21,and my friends loved it. Thank you….will be using this recipe for a while.
Glad everyone loved it 😀
What size of pound cake tin please
Hi Donna, you can use a 10 inch or 12 cup bundt pan 😀
Not on her recipe
Are you required to sift the flour before hand?
Hi Angelica, you do not have to sift the flour 😀
Hello Anita I have tried several pound cake recipes and I love yours the best. I have made this le.on pound so many times. It’s a quick easy recipe and it’s delicious I have on in the oven as we speak…Thank you for the recipe.
Glad you like the pound cake, Rosetta 🙂
Super I am making it to night putting strawberrys on an cool whip thank u carol
I made This cake for a sweet 15 B-day party… And OMG EVERY ONE LOVE THE CAKE.Thank u so much.God bless
Happy to hear it, Eneida 😀
Hi. The recipe looks so moist. Can I use the same recipe to make mini loaf cakes?
Definitely, Rhonda 😀
Hi Anita, your recipe is much like my moms recipe. I’m gonna make this pound cake for the first time by myself this year cause my mom past in April and she normally would make certain cakes for everyone. But this year in honor of her i will be baking this one. My question is, the All Purpose Flour, what makes it rise if you are not using baking powder? My mother used Gold Metal All Purpose Flour. Is this the right Flour or should i get Self Rising Flour? Oh and no, i don’t have her recipe. I’m doing it by memory on what i observed her doing.
Hi, I’m sorry to hear about your Mom’s passing. It’s wonderful that you’re making this cake to honor her.
Please use All Purpose flour, Gold Medal is fine. The eggs in this recipe and amount of mixing time aid in rising.
You don’t need baking powder. Enjoy the cake 😀
Hey Anita,i was looking at your youtube video and got thrown off with the butter. I saw that you put in 2 sticks of butter but the recipe requires 4 sticks basically. Was it just the editing of did you use only two sticks of butter? thanks 🙂
Hi Mauri, the recipe requires 4 sticks of butter, the video didn’t show all of the butter. Enjoy the pound cake 🙂
I will Like to use this recipe .Can i put fondant to cover t his cake
Hi, yes that should work 😀
Thank you for asking that question. I was wondering the same.
Dear Anita
Do you use baking powder for the sour cream pound cake?
Hi Angela, no baking powder is needed in this recipe. Enjoy 🙂
Hi Anita
May I use brown sugar or Almond flour in place of white sugar and all purpose flour ?
Hi, I haven’t tried them. If you substitute those ingredients, the taste and texture will be different. It’s probably best to use a pound cake
recipe specifically geared towards using almond flour 🙂
Anita,
Your measurements are off and it’s confusing me.
3 cups of flour is not 425 g nor is it 15 oz.
3 cups of AP flour weighs 360g.
Please explain which measurement is correct.
Hi Jasmine, the measurements in the recipe are correct. I weighed them out before using. The weight of flour can vary depending on brand 😀
Hi Anita,
Respectfully, I beg to differ.
The weight of flour differs depending on the type of flour (00 flour, self rise flour, AP flour, etc), however, ALL purpose flour regardless of the brand weighs 120 grams per cup.
As an experienced baker, my guess is that you are scooping your flour (putting your measuring cup in your container of flour and just scooping it); in the culinary world, this is an incorrect method of measuring flour as flour compacts and this method causes you to get WAYYY more flour than intended.
This example is a clear case of that. 3 cups of AP flour Weighs 360 grams (I only use King Arthur flour now, but in the past have used gold medal and even generic brands)…..you have incorrectly scooped your flour which has caused the flour to compact which yields more than 3 cups which is why you are getting 425 g. Either that, or I can confidently say your scale is thrown out of calibration.
The proper way to measure flour is to weigh it or to fluff with a fork and then spoon it in your measuring cup until overflowing and then level off with a straightedge.
425 g may work for this recipe, but to an experienced baker, when reading this recipe, it’s puzzling, because you have two VERY different measurements for flour. If you TRULY weighed the flour, then I recommend ONLY including the weight instead of saying 3 cups since 3 cups of AP flour is 360 g.
Furthermore, most pound cake recipes require 360 g of flour per recipe (a true 3 cup flour batter recipe).
This comment wasn’t to be disrespectful, but it was to encourage you to understand the importance of weight to Cup conversions when writing recipes.
Luckily the average person doesn’t measure out their flour the proper way and will probably be scooping it directly from the container as your measurement implies you do as well which will yield close to identical results as yours.
Using 360g will yield a lighter pound cake but same flavor.
Test it out 🙂
Hi Jasmine,
As you rightly pointed out, there is the dip method and scoop method. The average person scoops flour right out of the canister without leveling. Most of my cakes recipes are designed for the average person, not professional bakers. I am aware of how to correctly scoop flour as I have a degree in pastry arts and baked professionally for many years. When the average person measures flour, it will weigh about 5 ounces (as tested out by Cook’s Illustrated and others). That is the reason this recipe uses 5 ounces. The amount of flour in this recipe yields a dense but moist cake. This pound cake is not meant to be light. I will put up another recipe for a light pound cake in the future. You can definitely use the 360g and see how the cake turns out. Enjoy! 😀
can I use a cupcake pan?
I haven’t tried cupcakes but it should work 😀
What can I use in place of sour cream?
You can substitute whole milk Greek yogurt 🙂
This turned out Perfect. I love the smell in the house. Changed it up with one teaspoon vanilla and one teaspoon maple for fall. Added maple glaze. Will continue to use your recipe.
Glad to hear it 😀
Can I substitute 2 sticks butter and 2 sticks margarine?
That should work 🙂
I love your recipe I used fresh lemon juice/zest and lemon, vanilla, and butter extract and a little extra sugar, sour cream, cream cheese too!! OMG ITS AMASSING
Glad you liked it, Cedra 🙂
I’m trying this recipe for my birthday cake, cant wait to try it!! Thanks
Enjoy 🙂
I’m afraid not to use any baking agent can’t I still put some in.
This recipe doesn’t need it but you can if you like 🙂
Hello I notice that on your ingredients you point out 1 TSP of salt but on the video you did not add it! Why?
Hello can I use salted butter if I don’t have unsalted butter?
Hi, yes, reduce the salt in the recipe to 1/2 tsp 🙂