Old-Fashioned Butter Pound Cake
A fine-crumbed, buttery pound cake with a golden crust — simple, rich and perfect with fruit and cream.
You'll need: 10-inch tube or Bundt pan (or two 9×5 loaf pans), mixer
A little history
Pound cake gets its name from the original formula: a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour. Before baking powder was common, the only lift came from beating air into the butter and eggs — sometimes for an hour by hand. Recipes like it appear in America's earliest printed cookbooks.
How we've written it for today
A stand or hand mixer does the hard work in minutes, and a little baking powder adds insurance. Room-temperature ingredients are still the key to a fine, even crumb.
Directions
- Heat the oven to 325°F. Generously butter and flour the pan.
- Beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the sugar gradually and beat for 5–7 minutes, until very light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in the vanilla.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt. On low speed, add the flour in three parts, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until combined.
- Spread the batter in the pan and bake for 65–80 minutes (about 55–65 for loaves), until golden and a skewer in the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.
Tips from the recipe card
- Long creaming of butter and sugar is what traps air for a fine texture — set a timer.
- A crack along the top is traditional and nothing to worry about.
Serving & keeping
- Serve with fresh berries and whipped cream.
- Toast leftover slices in a buttered skillet.
Found a recipe like this in an old family notebook? Our guide to reading old recipes can help you make sense of it.
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