Elvis has left the building. But the cake’s still here.
Did you know that Elvis’ favorite cake, one he enjoyed on his birthday AND at Christmas every year, was vanilla pound cake?
I grew up loving chocolate cake. Still do. But over the years I’ve also developed a great appreciation for vanilla cake, the dessert equivalent of your little black dress: simple, classic, goes with everything. And my very favorite vanilla cake is super-dense, golden pound cake.
Hey, all you chocolate fans out there: I hope you enjoyed the chocolate zucchini cake that held down the top spot on this blog for the past couple of days. Because today the Choc-Dog’s giving way to America’s Favorite Flavor: vanilla.
Yes, you heard it right. After all these years of triple chocolate chunk ice cream, fudge brownies, extra-bittersweet single-source Criollo-bean bars, and mudslide pie, vanilla is STILL America’s top flavor choice—at least when it comes to ice cream, which is the only online listing I’ve found for favorite flavors. Chocolate is #2, as it’s been for some time. And #3 is… no, not strawberry. Try butter pecan. (Thanks, I will!) Strawberry and Neapolitan (vanilla-chocolate-strawberry) round out the top five.
(OK, I know you’re desperate to hear the rest of the top 10. In order, they’re chocolate chip, cookies ’n’ cream, pecan praline, cherry, chocolate almond, coffee, and rocky road. Can’t say that I’d turn my nose up at any of ’em.)
But back to cake. Drake’s Cakes, one of the Northeast’s classic snack food brands—proud purveyors of Yankee Doodles and Ring Dings—was born in 1888 when Newman E. Drake baked his first vanilla pound cake. I wasn’t there to witness the event, but about 70 years later I enjoyed my first cellophane-wrapped slice of Drake’s pound cake, and we’ve been buddies ever since. While the following recipe doesn’t hew to the original 1 pound each of flour, sugar, eggs, and butter (thus the name: pound cake), it does come close to Drake’s version. In fact, I must (modestly) say that, being homemade, AND made with King Arthur flour… it’s even better!
First, take the butter, cream cheese, and eggs out of the refrigerator so they can warm to room temperature; this will take 2 to 3 hours, so plan ahead. Do you REALLY have to do this? Well, no; but it ensures lump-free mixing, which is a plus in something as fine-grained as pound cake.
Put the butter, cream cheese, salt, and sugar in a bowl. You can actually add the baking powder and extracts at this point, too; it’s customary to add them with or just after the flour, but I’ve done it both ways and it doesn’t seem to make any difference. Plus, the more I put into the bowl at one time, the less likely I am to forget something!
Mix till smooth. Because the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature (hint, hint…), this happens quickly and easily.
Beat in the eggs; the mixture will look a little grainy/curdled.
Beat for 3 minutes after you’ve added the final egg. The batter will grow somewhat in volume, though it’ll still appear grainy.
Add the baking powder, then the flour and extracts. Notice how the flour does away with the graininess. Nice stuff, that King Arthur Flour… Actually, with 10 ounces of butter/cream cheese, 10 1/2 ounces of sugar, 10 ounces of eggs, and 7 3/4 ounces of flour, this cake doesn’t depart too radically from the original ingredient proportions. Why the lesser amount of flour? Because King Arthur Flour is higher-protein than other flours, meaning you can use less of it. See? We save you money every which-way!
Not a deal breaker, but to ensure easiest release of your lovely cake, once it’s baked—line the bottom of your 9” x 5” x 2 3/4” loaf pan with parchment paper.
If you use a stoneware 12” x 4” x 4” tea loaf pan, the parchment won’t be necessary.
Now, pay attention, class, and repeat after me: I WILL USE THE CORRECT SIZE OF LOAF PAN. That would be 9” x 5” x 2 3/4” deep, or 12” x 4” x 4” deep. Take out your ruler, and measure the inside top of your loaf pan. Please don’t use a smaller pan, e.g., 8 1/2” x 4 1/2”. Here’s what’ll happen:
That’s why you put your loaf pan onto a baking sheet; helps with the cleanup when the pan you’re using isn’t QUITE big enough…
Next, you’re going to gild the top of the cake with an extra touch of vanilla. Not straight vanilla; but a sugar/vanilla/water combination that adds wonderful flavor, color, and some delicate crunch.
Just drizzle it on; no need to cover the entire surface.
Bake the cake for 60 to 70 minutes. It’s a bit challenging trying to figure out when it’s done; the center will test done, while the very top, right under the crust, will still be kind of soggy. Check carefully and often towards the end. It’s actually easier using the 12” x 4” pan, as the longer, thinner loaf bakes more evenly.
And there you have it—a dense, golden cake with a thin, deep-brown crust. And lovely shards of vanilla-sugar on top.
Thick slices make a wonderful base for ice cream (and fudge sauce, or strawberries, or butterscotch…)
Read, review, and rate (please!) our recipe for Golden Vanilla Pound Cake.
Buy vs. Bake
Buy: Sara Lee All Butter Pound Cake, family size, 31¢/ounce
Ingredients: Eggs, Enriched Bleached Flour, Sugar, Butter, Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Mono- and Diglycerides. Contains 2% or less of each of the following: Modified Corn Starch, Guar Gum, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Stearoyl, Lactylate, Leavening, Salt, Milk, Protein Concentrate, Vanillin (Artificial Flavor), Annatto (Color), TBHQ and Citric Acid (Preservatives), Soy Flour.
Bake at home: Vanilla Pound Cake, 16¢/ounce
Ingredients: King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, butter, sugar, cream cheese, eggs, salt, baking powder, vanilla extract, almond extract.
September 8th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Okay, couldn’t you have posted this sooner? I just made the lemon/poppyseed loaf (from the muffing mix) last night… Now I’ve got to wait. *sigh*
Sounds and looks good. I’ve got the “Dark & Decadent Hot Fudge Sauce” (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/detail.jsp?select=C76&byCategory=C261&id=1456) in my pantry that seems like it could use a friend…
Mike, get the Ben & Jerry’s vanilla ice cream, and Bob’s your uncle—instant paradise! - PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 9:41 am
There’s something to be said about ‘traditional’ desserts. Sure, I love a wicked good triple chocolate bombe, and creme brulee is wonderful. I’d never pass up a good tiramisu, and frankly, anything laced with irish whiskey has my vote too (there’s a restaurant in Milwaukee that makes a wicked good bread pudding with an irish whiskey sauce)….But if given the opportunity?
I’d choose pound cake too. Maybe because I remember eating it with strawberries and whipped cream at my grandparents’ homes growing up, maybe because it is that ‘pound’ of butter…I don’t know. But I love it, in all of its incarnations.
Same goes for apple pie, lemon meringue, chocolate cake, blueberry cobbler/grunt, and peanut butter cookies.
But I’m not sayin’ that I am not looking forward to my ‘Three Cheers for Chocolate delivery in a few months….I’m just sayin’ that I appreciate the simple things in life.
PJ - wouldn’t it be funny if there was a way to predict who would win the presidency by his (or her!) favorite dessert? I know there is the “First Lady Cookie contest…”, but I’d find it funny to see what our potential Commander in Chiefs would like for dessert.
But I’m nosy like that.
Well, I think one of the debate questions should definitely be “What’s your favorite dessert?” I predict Sarah Palin would say Baked Alaska! - PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 11:00 am
That looks lovely. I especially like the idea of the vanilla/sugar/water on top.
Hi — I actually use this glaze for yeasted coffeecakes, too. I think it would be yummy on pie as well, though I haven’t tried it… PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Oh my goodness! It just came out of the oven (and the 12×4x4 pan since I lined it properly!) and. . .I couldn’t wait for it to cool. . .Must be the cream cheese, because this is the most consistently dense, but at the same time light and almost creamy cake ever. Thanks to KA, and of course all the rest of the royalty out there!
And I’m using the last (alas!) of my Montana huckleberries, picked while I was on vacation to gild the lily. MMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!
September 8th, 2008 at 3:56 pm
Vanilla pound cake! My favorite cake (next to red velvet) and with a new glaze on top? Excellent. One question: how could I make this recipe big enough for a Bundt pan? Would I double it, or is it just not a good recipe for Bundt pans? I know it would affect the glaze aspect, but we love pound cake so much around here that I like to make as much at a time as possible!
Depends on the size of your bundt pan, Jackie. For a small )9-cup) pan, use as is. For a large (12 cup), maybe do half again as much? I think that would work- Try it, let us know! - PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Photos look beautiful! I’ve made pound cakes in the past that taste wonderful and moist right after they’re made, but even the next morning are dried out. Any suggestions on how to combat that?
1) Wrap tightly with plastic wrap; 2) don’t refrigerate, ever; 3) try this recipe! I carted a couple of plastic-wrapped pieces of pound cake around with me for about 5 days, waiting to deliver to my mother-in-law, and they were perfectly lovely and moist… PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
Can’t wait to try this! It’s the first time I saw that topping thing, I’m mighty curious as what it taste like with that topping.
The topping doesn’t change it a WHOLE lot - just adds a nice little finishing touch. Something different. And pretty. PJH
September 8th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
ohhhh i am so making that tomorroW
September 9th, 2008 at 10:06 am
Just in time! I need to bake a birthday cake for my father-in-law’s birthday on Saturday - he’s a plain-vanilla kind of guy and this will be perfect!
September 9th, 2008 at 11:34 am
Hi PJ, seems to be a slight discrepancy on the amount of flour called for. I think the original recipe calls for 7 3/4 ounces, and you mention 8-1/4. I might be wrong. My eyesight isn’t that great.
Also, my favorite (so far - haven’t tried this one yet) pound cake recipe substitutes a small amount of shortening for the butter. How do you suppose it would work in this case? I’m not even sure what’s the reasoning behind using both butter and shortening in a cake recipe. Is it for economic purposes?
Also, I was surprised to read someone said her pound cake only tasted good right out of the oven. My experience with pound cake has always been that it tastes better the following day s. You have sharp eyes. Thanks for pointing that error out to us. The 7 3/4 ounces is the correct amount. We will correct that error. I agree that most pound cakes get better as the flavors meld. Mary at King Arthur Flour
September 9th, 2008 at 7:04 pm
Reading the blog here seems to differ from the “read our recipe” link - when adding the baking powder and extracts, does it really matter which method (with the butter mixture or after the eggs are incorporated)?
In any event, I followed the linked directions and it smells great. Its cooling now - can’t wait to try it! One question, every time I make a quick bread or pound cake or whatever in a loaf pan, the middle REALLY “bubbles” up…is there a way to combat that? I noticed yours didn’t do that much in your picture.
Thanks!
I tried it both ways, adding the BP and extracts before, or after - it works fine either way. I decided I like to add them before, though, as there seems to be a greater chance of my remembering to do it then! I’m kind of flummoxed by the big mounding I sometimes get in the center, too. I notice one thing - it seems more pronounced when I’m baking two loaves at once, and place the loaf pans parallel to each other with their short sides facing forward/back. If I just bake one loaf at a time, with the long side of the pan facing me, it seems to do better. Go figure… I THINK it has to do with the edges of the cake becoming set before the center, which causes the center to rise more. I’ve never tried using insulating cake strips on a loaf pan, but I bet they’d work… - PJH
September 9th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
Thanks for the reply back! I only made one loaf, with the long side facing me as you said you had. I’ll just have to keep trying. I did use a glass loaf pan, but turned the oven down about 25* as I’ve heard one should do with glass and it still bubbled up. Either way, I’ll just have to keep trying which is fine with me! Thanks again
September 10th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
This recipe is so similar to my Grandma’s Holiday Gold Cake it isn’t funny! The difference is the almond extract in hers. I’m making this over the weekend….I read Julia & Julie, a story about a woman who prepared every recipe in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking….I think I’m going to do the same with a Bernard Clayton or Paula Peck cookbook!
Thanks for the inspiration.
September 11th, 2008 at 10:38 am
Love these blogs even though I’m not baking like I used to. I just love reading about the baking and the recipes.
Question: When recipes call for unsalted butter and all you have is salted, how should the salt amount called for in the recipe be changed?
There is some flexiblity here. Start by cutting the salt amount in half.
Elisabeth @ The Baker’s Hotline
LaVerle, for every 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter you use in place of unsalted, reduce the salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon. - PJH
September 11th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Hi PJ, just got a chance to bake this. I had to finish the KAF lemon-poppy seed muffin (well loaf) first. I made it in a 12×3x3 pan (I like small pieces of pound cake to grab and go) and it baked just fine, no overflow. I also substituted a tablespoon coconut rum for the vanilla and almond in the cake, and 1 teaspoon of the coconut rum in place of the vanilla in the sugar drizzle. Tastes great and has a wonderful texture.
Thanks for a new favorite!
Glad you liked it, Mike - PJH
September 11th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
I made this cake and was very satisfied with the taste. I was slightly disappointed with the crust. It was somewhat darker and crustier than I prefer. What, if anything, would you suggest that might remedy that matter?
Cheryl, try a stoneware or glass pan (set the temperature 25° lower for glass), and tent the top of the loaf as soon as it’s no longer sticky - maybe 40 minutes into the bake. Hope that helps - PJH
September 12th, 2008 at 9:33 am
I am a bona fide cake freak, including cheesecake, which is not cake, but soooo yummy. In my prime I baked very ambitious cakes, mostly with chocolate as either the prime flavor ingredient or add-in. Even better with coffee added, or a variety of alcoholic beverages. But pound cake seems to me to be the comfort food of desserts. It can be a base for lots of other desserts, a snack or a really rich one can make one moan with pleasure. And it’s deceptively easy. You have to be REALLY not paying attention to totally ruin a pound cake. And for some reason, it seems particularly desirable in the fall. Oh my, I think I may need to bake one today - my mouth is watering! I DO like a sort of crunchy crust on mine - it helps offset the stunning richness.
September 12th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
This cake looks awesome! I have a question, though. I am a huge King Arthur fan. I live about 2 hours away and frequent KA about 4 times a year and order by mail too. Unfortunately, my husband was just diagnosed with diabetes. At KA I found the sugar free mixes, but I would love to be able to make the pound cake and other old favorites, but I’m a bit scared of trying it. Would you have any suggestions on how to make the pound cake legal for diabetics? I hope so..I miss baking so!
Michelle, that’s a very tough challenge. Search on “splenda” in these blogs and you’ll find a series Susan did last winter about baking with artificial sweeteners; some things (and some sweeteners) work better than others. Good luck - PJH
September 13th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
I couldn’t wait to bake this gorgeous cake but your recipe calls for a 9″ x 5″ x 2 3/4″ loaf pan. I realized I only have a Pyrex loaf pan which measures just 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.5. Naturally, I though I’d order the correct sized pan from you, but the only metal loaf pans on your website are not the correct sizes, either. The Oversized Loaf pan is 10×5, and the Standard Loaf Bread Pan is 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2, just like my glass one. I hesitate to buy the ceramic Tea Loaf Pan because I don’t think I’ll get as much use from it, so what do you recommend? Thanks for your help!
Cindy, here in the test kitchen we actually prefer the ceramic tea loaf pan to a 9 x 5 - it’s the same capacity, bakes the same way, and makes a smaller slice - good for those of us on the constant diet. Any recipe that calls for a 9 x 5, you can use the 12 x 4. And I like baking sweet things in ceramic when I can, as it’s gentler; less chance of burning the crust. So that’s my recommendation- PJH
September 16th, 2008 at 5:00 pm
I got a last minute call to bring food to church on Sunday - so I whipped two of these out Saturday night. They were a hit - simply inhaled during coffee hour! Whoo Hoo!
Well, glad we could help with your “pastoral” duties, Natalie - PJH
September 17th, 2008 at 11:54 am
I send boxes of Xmas cookies every year to friends and family all over the country. I’m looking for a small cake that will also travel well, I was thinking fruit cake (not always a favorite) or rum cake.
Can this cake be baked in many mini sized pans? Would it travel well? Could you soak with rum for a rum pound cake? As a preservative, of course.
Yes, yes - all of the above! Great idea. Not sure just how long it would be preserved; probably not many months, as fruitcake is, but it would certainly travel well, especially bruhed with some syrup. Suggestion: Make a trial batch first to nail down the pan size, baking time, and how much to brush (don’t want to use so much syrup it falls apart; it’s not as sturdy as a fruitcake). Good luck - PJH
September 17th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
I made this pound cake twice and gave it as a gift, and it was a hit.
I would like to know if it can be made with cake flour.
Yes, Sofia - I made it with cake flour as a test. It didn’t rise as high, but it was very nice. PJH
September 20th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Just for the record, for high-altitude baking, it was too moist of a batter. Next time I make it I will only use 4 eggs instead of 5, since there really isn’t any other way to eliminate liquid in the recipe. I ended up baking the cake 20 min longer than recommended, and it was over-baked and too brown on the outside. It still tasted great, and was nice and dense, but on the dry side.
I used a 1/4 tsp of orange oil with the vanilla and it was very tasty, but next time I will use lemon oil or just vanilla, since I’m not an almond extract fan. I’m guessing that a pinch of ginger coupled with lemon oil would also create a very tasty result.
Thanks for the great recipe. Everyone at our church potluck loved it.
September 20th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Just a follow up: This has to be the BEST pound cake I’ve ever made–and I’ve made more than I can remember in my search for the perfect one! As promised, it was moist, dense, tender, with a fine crumb.
I found a very inexpensive metal 9×5 inch loaf pan with a gray nonstick finish at Target. The one tiny flaw was that even when using a pan with a lighter colored nonstick finish and removing from the oven at 60 minutes (it had just reached an internal temperature of 198°), the cake’s sides and bottom were overly brown–much too brown for my taste. The top of the cake, however, was perfectly golden brown.
Since the top was perfect, I don’t think tenting is the answer, but do you think reducing the oven temperature by 25° would solve the problem?
Thank you for ending my search for the ultimate pound cake You hit the nail on the head! Turning the oven done will help keep the sides and bottom from getting too brown. Mary @ King Arthur Flour
September 21st, 2008 at 9:49 am
Excellent, excellent, excellent. There is absolutely no way to miss with this one. Even my picky teenagers enjoyed it. Thank you very much.
October 9th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
Am wondering if you used the convection oven (with fan) or simply top/bottom heat in the oven to bake this cake? or any cake in general? which would be best method to heat up/bake cakes in the oven? really need some advice on this. my cakes never turn out fully baked at the recommended baking time. im worried.
Aeshon, we’ve never had convection ovens in our test kitchens, so I have no experience using them. Readers, does anyone have any advice for Aeshon? - PJH
November 4th, 2008 at 10:48 am
PJ, I have been making your recipes for years. This one is a real wonder winner! I have made it maybe 20 times since it was posted. I often make it in 2 smaller pans so I can give them to my daughter to keep one and take one to the office for her colleagues to enjoy. Since the market melt down, my daughter’s job in the finance industry has become even more stressful. Elvis’ favorite cake has made a lot of people less stressed!
I don’t know if anyone ever replied to the question about baking cakes in a convection oven but I used to bake with one in an industrial stove. It is possible to bake cakes but it takes some extra care. I found that loaf cakes just never cooked properly. Layer cakes ok if you lower the temp to the recommended level, usually around 35-50 degrees. The best results were from bundt cake pans. I was able to turn off the convection fan and that was really the best.