Monday, August 29, 2011

Reprise~The Absolute Best Pound Cake

Today is a special friend's birthday, Becky Turner, Random Musings of a Decolady. She had been ill for a very long time but fought a good battle. About four weeks ago she lost her battle and passed. She leaves behind her husband, two daughters, a new son in law and many other family members. I know her family misses her dearly as do so many whom she touched. I had never met Becky face to face but met her about ten years ago on a food message board and we had communicated ever since. She was one special lady and I learned so much from her in so many ways. We also shared the fact that we both have a farm as a second home. Mine is in S GA and hers was in Tenn. We often communicated back and forth about some of the things we did at our farms, some of the things we grew on our farms and we both had ponds and enjoyed the pleasures and relaxation of fishing. She was a wealth of information and I intend to plant a fig tree in rememberance of Becky at our farm. She had fig trees at her farm and we often talked about her favorites.

I am sharing her recipe for Pound Cake which has become my favorite. She changed it up many times when she would share it but basically it is the same and this is the way she shared it with me.

Today was her birthday and we shared that date as well, it is also my 42nd anniversary. Dear Becky, you are missed so much so in honor of her I am reposting her recipe for Pound Cake.

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I have been married for 40 something years and therefore have made many Pound Cakes. I thought I could bake a really special Pound Cake and most often would bake a Sour Cream Pound Cake. Not long ago a very dear friend shared her tried and true Pound Cake recipe. I baked it for Mr. "H" and he declared that he loved this better than any other I had EVER baked. That was good enough for me.

Now I know this sounds so very simple but I think everyone should have an excellent Pound Cake recipe in their repertoire and this one is definitely different. There are endless possibilities when serving. I also picked up another little trick that I will share as well.


Becky's Pound Cake

1 1/2 cups butter
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
3 cups unbleached or all-purpose flour, sifted
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Grease and flour a large tube pan. Or use Baker's Joy.

Cream butter and sugar till perfectly smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Add flour a little at a time. Slowly add milk, flavoring and salt. Add baking powder last. Pour batter into prepared pan and place in COLD oven. Turn temperature to 325*F and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Cool slightly and remove from pan.

My notes: If using loaf pans you can use two or two smaller bundt pans. Check with a cake tester after 55 minutes since they will cook more quickly.

Now the little trick I wanted to share, welllllllllllll it was new to me and I absolutely treasured this little piece of advice. I was visiting in Jackson, MS last August and had gone by to surprise a very dear friend who works in a kitchen shop there. While there she showed me the smaller bundt pans and told me that one larger bundt pan recipe would fit these two smaller ones (I actually had never seen or maybe not noticed them before). Well, I loved the idea especially since there is just the two of us here at home and we often get tired of the cake before it's all eaten. I had always just made two loaf pans and loved the idea of a more decorative pan. The other thing is that I used these two little bundt pans repeatedly at Christmas for Christmas presents for friends. Who knew??????? Well I didn't but I am so glad that my dear friend shared that little tidbit of info. It has become invaluable


This recipe makes a nice little crunchy crust on the bottom after it's inverted also.

This has now become my new favorite Pound Cake recipe and just goes to show, you can teach an old dog new tricks. From sharing a new recipe to showing one some new items out there that really work for me. A SPECIAL thanks to both of my friends.








15 comments:

  1. I have always used the Fanny Farmer pound cake recipe, but this looks wonderful, and being able to make TWO loaf pans at once ... well that's almost irresistible.

    I love the crunchy bits best of all.
    Yum.
    Cass

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  2. Pound cake is my son's all time favorite! I am going to try this one tomorrow! I hope it tastes as good as it looks;)!

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  3. I love the addition of almond and making it in the 2 pans is brilliant!

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  4. That looks so delicious. Love the smaller sizes. I found one small Bundt pan at a yard sale so I'll be on the lookout for another one.

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  5. Carolyn, I LOVE the idea of baking this in the two smaller loaf pans. I can see I need to get a pair of them myself for baking this cake. Come fall there will only be the two of us here and I, too, am appreciative of this tip.

    Thanks so much! And I am so glad you all like this cake as much as we do.

    P.S. It looks lovely in the cloche!

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  6. Love that pound cake recipe as well. Glad that you are enjoying your new pans!

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  7. Delicious looking pound cake. The cake pan you have seems really nice!

    I'm having the very first GIVEAWAY on my blog. Please stop by to submit an entry. Good luck.

    http://utry.it/2011/01/happy-birthday-to-meand-very-first.html

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  8. I love a good pound cake - thank you very much for the recipe! When given the choice, my husband says that I will always pick the heavy pound cake over the creamy, sweet or chocolate cake, and he's right!
    Could you please let me know who makes the little bundt pans? I haven't seen them up here, but I will look when I go to California next month if I have an idea of the manufacturer.
    Thank you!

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  9. I LOVE poundcake! And so anxious to try your recipe. Where did you find the two small bundt cake pans? GREAT idea... especially as I strive to give away lots of baked goods so I'm not tempted to keep it here and eat it! :) Thanks for linking to Saturday Swap!!!

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  10. Pound cake is truly my favorite and your recipe sounds delicious--especially that crunchy top. My mother's recipe is started in a cold oven. My grandmother's recipe is first covered to steam a little and then uncovered. So many ways and recipes for this lovely cake. I'm going to put your recipe on my "must try" list.

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  11. Carolyn -- I'll have to try your recipe next time I make one -- I love poundcakes but don't make them often enough and I like those two smaller bundt pans -- what size are they (cups?)

    Martha

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  12. Pound cake is always such a delicious dessert and it goes so well with so many things. Yours look beautifully golden with a great crust on the outside. I have a new linky party on my blog called "Sweets for a Saturday" and I'd like to invite you to stop by this weekend and link this up. http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2011/01/sweets-for-saturday-1_21.html

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  13. yum and gorgeous!!
    thank you for sharing and for sharing your tips.
    love pound cake!!

    joan

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  14. Those little pans are so cute! I have never seen them - but I will look because they are much more fun than using two loaf pans. I adore a simple pound cake - perfect with everything from cherry compote to whipped cream t chocolate frosting. A tried-and-true recipe is a great thing to have!

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  15. It's a wonderful cake and beautiful way to remember Becky.

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