Golden Vanilla Pound Cake

Golden Vanilla Pound Cake

This pound cake is a rich, dark brown outside, with an ultra-fine, golden crumb. If you like a dense, firm, loaf-shaped classic pound cake, then this one's for you. One non-traditional touch: the vanilla-sugar glaze drizzled on top before baking, which gives the cake a crackly-crunchy top crust. Read our blog about this cake, with additional photos, at Baking Banter.

 Ingredients View by: Volume  Weight 

Cake

3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

5 large eggs, at room temperature

1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons  All-Purpose Flour

Topping

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon water

Cake

7 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature

3-ounce package cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 1/2 ounces sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

5 large eggs, at room temperature

7 3/4 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Topping

7/8 ounce sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon water

Directions

 1) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 5" x 2 3/4" loaf pan, or a 12" x 4" x 4" tea loaf pan. To avoid overflow, be SURE to use the correct size pan!

 2) In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the butter, cream cheese, salt, sugar, baking powder, vanilla extract, and almond extract until well combined.

 3) Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; the mixture may look slightly curdled/grainy. After you've added the final egg, beat at high speed for 3 minutes. The batter will still look a little curdled, but will have gained a bit of volume.

 4) Sprinkle in the flour gradually, with the mixer going at low speed. Mix just until combined. The batter will be smooth and thick (not pourable). Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

 5) To make the topping, combine the sugar, vanilla, and water. Stir till the mixture is syrupy. At first it'll seem very stiff, but will become "drizzlable" as you stir.

 6) Drizzle the topping over the batter.

 7) Set the cake on a baking sheet, for easiest handling and as a precaution against potential overflow (which shouldn't happen if you use the correct size pan). Bake it for 60 to 70 minutes (for either size pan), until the cake is golden brown, and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. The center should register at least 200°F on an instant-read thermometer. If you prefer a lighter crust, tent the cake with aluminum foil for the final 10 minutes or so of baking.

 8) Remove the cake from the oven, and after 15 minutes loosen the edges, and turn it out of the pan to cool on a rack.


This tastes like a REAL pound cake buttery soft and the yellow colour, i put may be a bit more butter in it as mentioned, i usualy do experiments in all recipes :) and they turn out great u can use the normal cheese spread or the fresh cream in place of it, i dint use any from the both i just wanted it as pure and simple so even no almonds extract:)