Cruze Farm Buttermilk Poundcake

Recipe from Cheri Cruze

Adapted by Christine Muhlke

Published April 25, 2009

  • Tony Cenicola/The New York Times. Stylist: Jill Santopietro.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
75 minutes
Rating
4(193)
Comments
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Strictly traditional poundcakes don’t include any leavening – just one pound each of eggs, sugar, flour, and butter – which explains why they are often leaden and crumbly. This recipe has a touch of baking soda and a shot of buttermilk, which work together to lighten the crumb and give it moisture and tang. It’s the perfect foil for summer berries and superb plain on its own. Buttermilk you can buy from local dairy farms may not be “real” buttermilk – which is the leftover liquid from churning cream into butter – but it will certainly be fresher and richer-tasting than supermarket brands. —Christine Muhlke

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Ingredients

Yield:Serves 10 to 12

FOR THE CAKE

  • ¾ cup butter, plus more for greasing the pan

  • 3 ½ cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring the pan

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • ½ teaspoon baking soda

  • 2 ½ cups granulated sugar

  • ¾ cup solid shortening

  • 4 large eggs

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 1 cup cultured buttermilk (see note)

  • Juice of 1 lemon, strained

FOR THE GLAZE

  • ⅔ cup sifted confectioners' sugar

  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice

  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 to 12 servings)

77 grams carbs; 93 milligrams cholesterol; 567 calories; 9 grams monosaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams saturated fat; 27 grams fat; 2 grams trans fat; 1 gram fiber; 207 milligrams sodium; 7 grams protein; 49 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. FOR THE CAKE

    1. Step 1

      Bring all the ingredients to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Grease and flour a bundt pan, tapping out excess flour.

    2. Step 2

      In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda. In another medium bowl, whisk the sugar to break up clumps.

    3. Step 3

      In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and shortening, stopping to scrape down the sides. Slowly drizzle in the sugar; cream the mixture well. Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding the next when the last has been incorporated. Mix in the vanilla. On low speed, mix in a third of the flour mixture until just combined. Add a third of the buttermilk, mixing until just combined. Repeat with the remaining flour and buttermilk. Add the lemon juice and mix to combine.

    4. Step 4

      Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a cake tester inserted comes out clean, about 75 minutes. The top of the cake will be lightly browned, and the sides will shrink slightly from the pan. Cool for 20 minutes before inverting onto a cake platter.

    5. Step 5

      Before serving, stir together the glaze ingredients and spoon over the top and sides of the cake. It’s even better the next day.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
193 user ratings
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Comments

hazel Henry

I have been making this cake for years to the delight of my family. I have made some adjustments over the years though 1.5 cups sugar; all butter and replaced ap with cake flour, and added lemon zest. same cake, just less sweet. lovely with a whipped cream cream cheese frosting.

Melva L

This is without doubt the best poundcake ever. And it does taste better the second day ...

kahyatonhsera

Metric: 170g butter, 437.5g flour, 500g sugar, 170g shortening, 250ml buttermilk, 85g icing sugar, 1 tsp = 5ml. I used 430g flour, 320g sugar, and 340g butter, omitting shortening. Excellent cake, fine tender crumb, subtle but nice lemon flavour. Accidentally put lemon zest into batter instead of glaze, which I thought improved it. Sub'd 1 Tbsp Limoncello for lemon juice (had only half a lemon), added tiny pinch of salt to balance sweetness and acid in glaze. Will definitely make again.

Essa A

This cake is REALLY good. Shortening makes all the difference; if you’re swapping all butter, don’t expect the same result. For the buttermilk derived from churned cultured butter, I used the whey left from making ricotta, mixed with some cream, as I thought it was closer to what’s called for here than supermarket buttermilk, which is cultured milk, not real buttermilk. Also, if you can, bake it and let it sit for a couple of days before serving. The icing is mandatory to get the full experience. 10/10.

Eleanor

Delicious and delicate. I also put the lemon zest in the batter: no regrets!

Eileen

Please give the dry ingredients measures also by weight in grams. It is so much better to measure this way.

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Credits

Adapted from Cheri Cruze

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