Classic butter pound cake
A rich cake with a fine crumb and clear butter flavour, ideal with coffee.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 1 h 5 min
- Total
- 1 h 30 min
- Makes
- One loaf cake
Ingredients
- 227 g softened butter
- 198 g sugar
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 240 g all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 113 ml milk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Method
- Heat the oven to 175°C. Grease and line a 9 × 5 inch loaf pan.
- Beat the butter for 2–4 minutes, until very light and creamy.
- Gradually beat in the sugar, then the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl.
- Whisk flour, baking powder and salt separately; combine milk and vanilla in another bowl.
- Add one-third of the flour to the butter mixture, then half the milk; repeat, ending with flour.
- Beat for just 20–30 seconds, until smooth and fluffy.
- Transfer to the pan and bake for 60–65 minutes, until a tester carries only a few moist crumbs.
- Rest for 5 minutes, then turn onto a rack to cool completely.
Notes
Room-temperature butter, eggs and milk blend evenly and produce a finer crumb. Reference: King Arthur Baking — King Arthur’s Original Pound Cake.