{"id":6201,"date":"2016-11-07T19:00:12","date_gmt":"2016-11-07T19:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/food-dee-dum.com\/?p=6201"},"modified":"2016-11-18T15:18:56","modified_gmt":"2016-11-18T09:48:56","slug":"classic-sour-cream-pound-cake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/food-dee-dum.com\/2016\/11\/07\/classic-sour-cream-pound-cake\/","title":{"rendered":"Classic Sour Cream Pound Cake"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Or an Easy\u00a0“No-Recipe” Cake<\/h2>\n

The first cake I ever baked was out of a children’s cookbook that was gifted\u00a0to me for my 9th birthday. It was a simple chocolate cake, a variation of the plain butter cake. But soon after that, my cousin Maneesha taught me the desi<\/em> version of the classic\u00a0pound cake. I say desi<\/em> because, here in India, we don’t measure in pounds!<\/p>\n

The best part about the pound cake was that there was no need to remember complicated recipes and quantities. It was straightforward, uncomplicated and almost always had the same result. I clearly remember Maneesha didi’s<\/em> white enamel mixing bowl and that we used to beat the cake in it by hand. And I mean, literally, by hand. No wooden spoons, no hand beater and definitely no stand mixer. Just our hands. She lived in the house above ours and whenever she felt like baking, didi<\/em> would give me a holler and up I would scamper. Pull out the weighing scale, the cups, the beloved mixing bowl and an ancient round oven. The result would be a delicious cake and lots of appreciative oohs and aahs from our parents.<\/p>\n

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Of course, at that point, I had to be supervised around the stove and the oven so didi<\/em> did all the heavy lifting and just gave me the batter bowl to beat. Over time, she taught me the basics of beating the butter and sugar well, sifting the dry ingredients multiple times\u00a0to aerate them and mix well, how to grease and flour the cake tin and so on. If it weren’t for her enthusiasm to involve me in her hobby, I don’t know if I would be a passionate baker today. Which is why, every time she visits us from Dallas, I try to fit in a fun baking session<\/a> with her son. Full circle, maybe?<\/p>\n

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A classic pound cake is one of the easiest cakes to make and, in my opinion, one of the first that any enthusiastic baker should master. All you need is a pound each of butter, sugar, flour and eggs. And, of course, some baking powder. How didi<\/em> taught me to make it (since we don’t use pounds and 453 grams is a strange number to work with) was a simple variation. Step 1:<\/em> decide how large a cake you want – 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 eggs? Step 2:<\/em> Weigh them and then use an equal weight of flour, powdered sugar and butter. Plus 1\/2 tsp baking powder for each egg. And 1\/4 tsp vanilla extract for each egg. And there you have your recipe. No need to remember complicated measurements.<\/p>\n

e.g. if 2 eggs weigh approximately 120 grams, then use 120 grams each of flour, sugar & butter. Plus 1 tsp baking powder. And 1\/2 tsp vanilla extract. This is usually sufficient for an 8 or 9 inch round\/ an 8×8 inch square \/ 9×5 inch loaf tin. Bake at 160\u00b0 C for 35-45 mins, or until done.<\/p>\n

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There are so many advantages to making this cake. One:<\/em> any enthusiastic baker will always have these ingredients at home. Two:<\/em> because the ingredients are are weighed, the recipe is usually more reliable. Three:<\/em> the cake lends itself to many easy flavour variations. Four:<\/em>\u00a0it keeps well for quite a few days. Five:<\/em> It’s versatile – a\u00a0nice browned crust with a moist, tender crumb makes it the perfect tea-cake. Serve as thick plain slices or slathered with fruit preserves or with whipped cream and fresh fruit. It also makes a wonderful base for other desserts – you can layer slices with fruit and cream, or ganache or a wonderful rich caramel sauce. Need I list more?<\/p>\n

This has been my go-to cake for years. But as time went on, I modified it a little. I started using less baking powder and relied more on the creamed butter+sugar for volume and the eggs to get the rise I wanted. It resulted in the cake being a little more moist (more the baking powder, more the cake dries out, in my experience). I also occasionally started adding sour cream<\/a> to the batter. It makes the crumb even more tender and I’ve always been happy with the result. But you can make the exact same recipe without the sour cream as well. The cake will be very slightly<\/em> less moist and the crumb, a tad less tender. But it will still work beautifully.<\/p>\n

So without further ado, here’s how I make my Classic Sour Cream Pound Cake.<\/p>\n

Here’s what I used (for a 10″ bundt pan):<\/h3>\n

(My original measurements are in grams, but I have tried to approximate for those who may not own a kitchen weighing scale. If you’re one of those, I highly recommend you get one! It’s an amazing addition to a baker’s repertoire and the secret to consistently good cake recipes.)<\/em><\/p>\n

240 gms Powdered Sugar \u00a0(~1-1\/3 cup)
\n240 gms Unsalted Butter (~1-1\/4 cup)
\n4 eggs – 240 gms
\n1 tsp vanilla extract
\n240 gms All-Purpose Flour (~2 cups)
\n1 tsp baking powder
\n1\/4 tsp baking soda
\n1\/4 tsp salt
\n240 gms sour cream (~1 cup)<\/p>\n

Here’s how I made it:<\/h3>\n

Turned on my oven to pre-heat at 160\u00b0 C and buttered and floured my 10″ bundt cake pan. Because of the crevices in the pan, I like to use a silicon brush to spread softened butter into all the corners and crevices before dusting with flour. You can even use this recipe for 2 loaf pans (9″x5″ each).<\/p>\n

Then I placed the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and whisked them well to ensure\u00a0the leavening agents were distributed properly.<\/p>\n

Next, I placed the softened butter and powdered sugar in the bowl of my stand mixer and, using the paddle attachment, creamed them together until they were pale, fluffy and\u00a0seemed double in volume, approximately 4 minutes on high speed.<\/p>\n

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Once the butter and sugar were well creamed, I added in the eggs one at a time, beating for 1.5-2 minutes between each egg. I also added the vanilla extract along with the first egg.<\/p>\n

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It’s important to beat well between each egg addition to ensure volume and rise in the cake. Once this was done, I added half the flour mixture and beat on low just until the flour disappeared into the batter, maybe 30 seconds.<\/p>\n

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Next I added the sour cream and mixed for another 30 seconds, just until incorporated.<\/p>\n

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Lastly, I removed the bowl from the mixer and added in the rest of the flour mixture, folding it in gently using a spatula.<\/p>\n

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I spooned the batter into the prepared cake pan and baked it until a skewer inserted in the centre came out clean, about 45 minutes.<\/p>\n

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I allowed it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then upturned it onto a cooling rack. Letting it sit there in the pan for another 5 minutes, I easily lifted the pan off the cake.<\/p>\n

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That’s it. And we’re done. Once it cooled a little, I dusted the top with powdered sugar. But the shape of this particular bundt has pretty deep crevices so the sugar didn’t show up much. The shape is more suited to a glaze kind of topping!<\/p>\n

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Simply slice and serve, as is, or with a fruit preserve of your choice. Fresh fruit and whipped cream work wonderfully too. A cup of coffee or tea alongside is just the kind of perfection I live for!<\/p>\n

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Oh, and also, you can toast it and slather on butter too. This is a brilliant option when it’s a few days old and not as moist as when\u00a0it starts out! It really is a perfect cake, no?<\/p>\n

A few things to keep in mind to make the perfect pound cake, also known as cake basics!<\/h4>\n