Rich, decadent and moist, this old-fashioned Southern vanilla pound cake recipe with caramel icing is a simple and easy dessert that comes together with just a handful of basic pantry staples.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Southern
Keyword homemade, moist, old fashioned, simple, vanilla pound cake recipe
Prep Time 35 minutesminutes
Cook Time 1 hourhour15 minutesminutes
Cooling Time 3 hourshours
Total Time 4 hourshours50 minutesminutes
Servings 16slices
Calories 510kcal
Author Blair Lonergan
Ingredients
FOR THE POUND CAKE:
3cups(360 grams) all-purpose flour
1cup(2 sticks) salted butter, softened at room temperature
Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease and lightly flour a tube pan or Bundt pan; set aside.
Sift the flour three times.
In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 5-6 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl periodically.
With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour and the cream, starting and ending with the flour. Mix until combined. Stir in the vanilla.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Tap it a couple of times on the counter to release any big air bubbles.
Bake the cake in the center of the oven for about 75 minutes, or until the top is browned and the sides begin to pull away from the pan.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert on a serving plate to cool completely.
MAKE THE ICING:
Once the cake is cool, prepare the icing. Place the butter, brown sugar, cream and salt in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; let cool for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently as it cools slightly. Gradually whisk in the confectioners' sugar until smooth and thick; drizzle over cake.
Notes
Properly measure the flour. Weigh the flour on a kitchen scale or spoon the flour into the cup and lightly level with the straight edge of a knife. Packing the measuring cup too tightly and using too much flour will result in a dry cake.
Sift the flour three times for the best texture. I know this sounds like a lot, but it only takes a few minutes and it's well worth the effort. Sifting multiple times gives the flour a light, airy quality, prevents any dry lumps in the batter, and makes it easier to mix the flour into the other ingredients.
Make sure that all of your ingredients are at room temperature so that they blend together smoothly.
Cream the butter and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5-6 minutes. Whipping this air into the batter will help the cake rise during baking.
Don't leave the cake in the pan for too long after baking -- about 10-15 minutes is plenty. After that, condensation will start to form and the moisture will negatively impact the crust.
Make the cake about 1 day ahead of when you plan to serve it. The cake just gets better as it sits!