Perfect Pound Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan; dust with flour, tapping out excess. Beat butter with sugar, baking powder, and salt on medium-high speed until very light and fluffy, about 6 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl, then beat 1 minute more. Scrape bowl again, then beat in vanilla.
• Add eggs, a bit at a time, beating well after each addition. Reduce speed to low and add half of flour, then sour cream, then remaining flour, beating until just combined after each addition. Remove bowl from mixer and use a spatula to get all the way down to bottom, stirring and folding to ensure all the butter is fully incorporated. (This will prevent butter streaks on the top of your cake.) Scrape batter into prepared pan.
• Transfer pan to oven, reduce temperature to 325°, and bake until top is golden and a tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 1 hour, 5 minutes. (Starting at a higher temperature, then dropping down gives the cake a jump-start before allowing it to bake nice and slowly, so it doesn't get too dark.)
• Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool 1 hour, then invert cake onto rack, turn top-side up, and let cool completely. Slice to serve; or store, unsliced, in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days; or freeze, wrapped in plastic, up to 3 months (thaw to room temperature before serving).

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 (8 1/2 by 4 1/2 by 2 1/2-inch) loaf pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper.
• Cream the butter and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. With the mixer on medium speed, beat in the eggs, 1 at a time.
• In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour. Divide the batter evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.
• When the cakes are done, let them cool for 10 minutes. Take them out of the pans, place them on a baking rack and allow them to cool completely. Wrap well, and store in the refrigerator.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a tube pan.
• Cream the butter and shortening together in a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, starting at the slowest setting and increasing to a medium speed after 3 or 4 minutes. Cream on this setting until done.
• Add the sugar a little at a time. Add the eggs, 1 egg at a time, mixing after each addition, until well incorporated.
• In a mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt, and mix with a wire whisk until thoroughly combined.
• Reduce the stand mixer setting to the lowest speed. Start adding a little of the dry ingredient mix followed by some milk. Alternate the dry ingredients and the milk ending with dry ingredients. Then add the vanilla extract.
• Pour the batter into the prepared tube pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pound cake comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Remove the pound cake from the oven and let it cool down for 3 to 5 minutes.
• Gently flip tube pan over to remove the cake, and cool the pound cake on a wire rack. If the pound cake cools too long while still in the tube pan, it might break or not come out.
• Cool the cake for 30 minutes before dusting with confectioners' sugar. Serve the same day or lightly toasted the following day.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F
• In a medium bowl, lightly combine the milk, eggs and vanilla.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients, and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend.
• Add the butter and half the egg mixture. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened.
• Increase to medium speed and beat for 1 minute to areate and develop cake structure.
• Scrape down the sides. Gradually add the remaining egg mixture in 2 batches, beating for 20 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients and strengthen the structure.
• Scrape down the sides, then scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a spatula. The batter will be almost 1/2 -inch from the top of a 4-cup loaf pan. (if pan is smaller, use excess for cupcakes).
• Bake 55-65 minutes or until a wooden tothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cover loosely with buttered foil after 30 minutes to prevent overbrowning.
• The cake should start to shrink from the sides of the pan only after removal from the oven. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes and invert it onto a greased wire rack.
• If baked in a loaf pan, to keep the bottom from splitting, reinvert so that the top is up and cool completely before wrapping airtight.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease and flour a tube or Bundt pan.
• Combine all ingredients (I prefer strawberry or lemon yogurt) in a large bowl and blend at low speed.
• Beat 3 minutes at medium speed.
• Pour into prepared pan.
• Bake for 1 hour or until top springs back when touched lightly in center.
• Cool in pan for about 15 minutes then remove and cool completely on rack.
• Serve plain or glaze if you like.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 12-cup fluted tube pan (such as Bundt®).
• Place sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl. Cream together using an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or a hand mixer, on medium speed, until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating for 45 seconds after each addition. Add vanilla extract and beat for 30 seconds.
• Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Add 1/2 of the dry ingredients to the butter and egg mixture, mixing on low speed, until just blended. Add 1/2 cup milk and beat on low speed until just blended. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula between each addition. Repeat with remaining dry ingredients and milk.
• Pour batter into the prepared baking pan, filling no more than 2/3 full. Smooth the top with a spoon or a spatula.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the cake is just starting to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 1 hour and 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 15 minutes before inverting onto a plate. Allow to cool completely before serving.

Steps:

• Don't preheat oven. Grease and flour a 10 inch tube or Bundt pan. Sift together the all purpose flour and self-rising flour; set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the margarine, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Alternately beat in the flour mixture and the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Finally, stir in the lemon extract and vanilla.
• Pour batter into a 10 inch tube or Bundt pan. Place cake in cool oven and set oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Steps:

• Pre-heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and line a 900g loaf tin with parchment paper (mine was 19cm x 9cm x 6cm). Put all of the ingredients except those for the icing into a large bowl and beat together, either using an electric hand whisk or a wooden spoon until smooth and combined. Pour the mix into the loaf tin and spread evenly with the back of spoon. Bake for 40 - 45 mins.
• Once out of the oven, leave to cool and make the icing. Combine the icing sugar and vanilla paste with three tbsp of water - you may need more but add it gradually to get a thick icing. Spread it over the top of the cake; it's fine if it drips down the edges. Allow to set and then slice.