Classic Pound Cake
An old-fashioned pound cake made from just five ingredients — flour, butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla — baked in a bundt pan until golden and rich.
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- Preheat your oven to 325°F.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Don't rush this step — properly creaming the butter and sugar beats air into the batter, which is what gives the finished cake its tender crumb.
- Mix in the vanilla until evenly incorporated.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until fully combined after each addition before adding the next. Adding them gradually rather than all at once helps the batter stay emulsified instead of curdling.
- Add the flour in three equal parts, mixing just until blended after each addition. Stop as soon as the flour disappears into the batter — overmixing at this stage will develop the gluten and make the cake dense rather than tender.
- Spray a 12-cup bundt pan generously with baking spray, then pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula.
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Every oven runs slightly differently, so start checking a few minutes before the full bake time is up.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes before turning it out to finish cooling completely — this rest gives the cake structure time to set so it releases cleanly from the pan instead of breaking apart.
- Slice and serve.
Chef's Note: Pound cake gets its name from the old ratio behind it — a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs, and flour — and while this version isn't measured by weight, it keeps that same simple, no-leavening-needed spirit. All of that structure and rise comes purely from properly creamed butter and well-incorporated eggs, which is exactly why the creaming step at the start deserves the full five minutes rather than a quick mix.
Room-temperature butter and eggs aren't just a suggestion here — cold ingredients won't emulsify properly into the batter and can leave you with a denser, less even crumb. This cake keeps beautifully at room temperature wrapped tightly for several days, and it's an easy one to make a day ahead of when you actually plan to serve it.
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