Pound Cake

The past few days have been pretty laid back with only a handful of cooking orders, which has given me a chance to try new stuff and give more time to blogging. I do have my fingers in a lot of pies now, so any time I get off from one, is definitely a boon.

Ever since a friend gifted me Dorie Greenspan’s “Baking From My Home to Yours”, I have been eyeing a lot of goodies to try, but had never gotten a chance to or should I say haven’t had the time to. One such is the Pound Cake; it’s as simple as a cake can get.

This soft, tight crumbed cake is good on its own or with ice-cream and fruit. I prefer eating a plain slice just the way it is. The outer slightly crisp crust is absolutely delicious.

You will need:

2 cups All-purpose flour

1 tsp Baking powder

¼ tsp Salt

1 cup Sugar

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temp

4 eggs, at room temp

1 tsp Vanilla extract

Centre a rack in the oven and preheat oven to 325F.

Butter a 9 x 5” loaf pan. Place on a baking sheet.

Whisk flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Cream butter and sugar in another bowl on high speed for 5 minutes, till light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on medium speed, add one egg at a time. Beat 1-2 minutes after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Turn the speed to low, and add the flour little at a time, just until incorporated. Do not overmix it. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan. Place in the centre of the rack in oven and bake for 70-75 minutes. The cake is done when a knife inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and transfer loaf pan to a rack. Let rest for 30 minutes, and then invert onto rack. Cool completely before slicing and storing.

Slicing: Slice it with a long serrated knife using a sawing motion. You can slice it thin or thick depending on what you are using it for.

Storing: Wrap the pound cake tightly with cling wrap and let sit on your kitchen counter. This tastes better the longer it sits. If wrapped well, the cake will hold good for 5-7 days at room temperature.

I know what I will be snacking on for a few evenings to come ;)