Dorothy Kern
After numerous rounds of testing I’ve finally found the BEST Pound Cake Recipe. This is a classic sour cream pound cake that’s rich and dense with a moist and tender crumb. It’s going to be the ONLY pound cake you want to make from now on.
I’m going to teach you everything I know about making this classic cake recipe so you can make it too!
I love a good pound cake, don’t you? Good pound cake recipes don’t even need frosting, which is perfect for me because I like cake more than I like frosting.
I don’t ever really remember eating pound cake growing up…maybe once in awhile someone would bring one to a potluck or we’d buy one at the store but I most certainly never made my own from scratch.
Since I started blogging I’ve made several flavored variations but never a classic vanilla pound cake and so I set out to find my favorite recipe and THIS is it!
If you love a dense yet moist and tender, flavorful vanilla cake, then you’re going to want this recipe. It’s the perfect base for ice cream, whipped cream, or berries. Read on to lear all about how I perfected the recipe and how to make it!
Table of Contents
What is pound cake?
Originally, pound cakes were made from just four ingredients: a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour. That’s where the cake got it’s name, from all the pounds of ingredients.
My recipe has those base ingredients with just a few others to make it rich and delicious without sacrificing the classic taste.
Pound Cake vs Bundt Cake
There is always confusion about pound cakes and bundt cakes and how they relate to each other. Believe me, I was often wrong at first when using the terms too.
A Pound Cake is dense and heavy; it’s not a light and fluffy cake (like a traditional Yellow Cake). It’s tender but thick!
A bundt cake is simple one made in a bundt pan, which is where I think the confusion stems from.
Pound cakes are often baked in bundt pans (or loaf or tube pans) often called a bundt cake, but not all bundt cakes are pound cakes.
For example, my Lemon Butter Cake is a bundt cake but it is NOT a pound cake, and you can tell by the crumb and taste.
Pound Cake Ingredients
My pound cake recipe is a sour cream pound cake. It’s got the classic ingredients (butter, flour, sugar, eggs) but I also add:
- Sour Cream, for flavor and to keep the cake moist
- Baking powder
- Vanilla, for flavor
- Salt
- Cornstarch
Sour cream keeps the cake moist and adds a nice flavor. I add the baking powder because of the sour cream.
Traditionally, pound cake recipes didn’t call for leavening (baking soda or baking powder) because if you mix it right, and for long enough, the eggs do all the work of rising. I added a bit of baking powder because the sour cream adds weight to the cake so the eggs need a bit of help.
Cornstarch is in the recipe because several of the recipes I’d tried before called for cake flour. I always forget to buy cake flour (and if you’re just going to make this cake once for a special occasion it’s annoying to have to buy something special). Cake flour is a combination of cornstarch and all-purpose flour, so I added some cornstarch to emulate it.
How to make pound cake from scratch
Here are some tips on baking this cake:
- Cream the butter and sugar for a few minutes. The butter and sugar will become light in color and fluffy.
- Make sure your eggs are ROOM TEMPERATURE and mix them in, one at a time.
- Don’t overmix the cake, as soon as the batter comes together, stop mixing.
What pan do I use for pound cake?
This cake is best baked in a 9-10″ bundt pan, but you can also bake it in a tube pan (angel food cake pan). You can’t bake angel food cake or cakes that are constructed for a tube pan in a bundt pan but you can bake this one in a tube pan if that’s all you have.
In a pinch, you can also bake this as two 9×5-inch loaf pans, but baking time will be affected.
How long should you bake a pound cake?
Pound cakes take a long time to bake; this one will take 60-70 minutes.
You know your pound cake is done when a toothpick or long skewer comes out clean.
Let the cake cool for about 10-15 minutes and then turn the cake out onto your serving plate. It will come out easier when it’s still warm!
Turn the cake out of the pan when it’s still warm for easy removal!
PRO TIP
Once cooled, all it needs is a dusting of powdered sugar. Serve it plain or with berries for a delicious dessert!
Pound Cake Recipes
Other cake recipes
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Pound Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter softened
- 2 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup sour cream room temperature
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 10-inch fluted bundt pan (or spray well with the nonstick cooking spray that has flour in it).
- Place butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cream the mixture for a few minutes, or until it’s light and fluffy and light in color.
- Mix in the eggs, one at a time, beating just until the egg is mixed in before adding the next one.
- Add baking powder, vanilla extract, and salt and stir, then add the sour cream, cornstarch and flour. Mix just until combined.
- Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for about 55-65 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from close to the middle of the cake.
- Let cool 15 minutes then turn out onto serving plate and cool completely. (The cake will come out easier when it’s warm.)
- Dust cooled cake with powdered sugar for serving. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Recipe Video
Nutrition Information
Nutritional information not guaranteed to be accurate
This is the BEST Pound Cake Recipe! It’s an easy old fashioned sour cream pound cake that’s moist and tender and full of vanilla flavor.
All text and images © DOROTHY KERN for Crazy for Crust. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or link back to this post for the recipe. Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be accurate.
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Published on: August 17, 2020
Hi … substitute for egg in pound cake
For this recipe you cannot substitute the eggs. The eggs cause most of the leavening, so you’ll need to find a recipe that is built for egg-free.
can i freeze part of this cake?
Yes I freeze cake all the time!
Hi! Can I just use cake flour and omit the cornstarch ?