Grandma's Southern Sour Cream Pound Cake

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Soul Food

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 1 30

Total Time: 1 45

Servings: servings

Calories: 364kcal

Author: Jazzmine Woodard

Old-school pound cake from scratch with sour cream from my late grandmother's recipe book

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Equipment

1 tube pan
1 stand mixer or hand mixer
1 mixing bowl
1 whisk
1 silicone spatula
1 wire rack optional

Ingredients

For the Cake

½ pound unsalted butter softened room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream at room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour sifted or fluffed (see notes)
½ teaspoon baking soda
6 eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Glaze

1 ¾ cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter softened to room temperature
1-2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour tube pan and set aside.
Make the Cake Batter: Using a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or a hand mixer, cream butter and granulated sugar until it has a pale yellow color (about 3 minutes). Mix in sour cream until incorporated.
½ pound unsalted butter, 3 cups granulated sugar, 1 cup sour cream
In another mixing bowl, sift flour and baking soda together, then stir into the creamed mixture.
½ teaspoon baking soda, 3 cups all-purpose flour
Add the eggs to the mixture, one at a time, fully beating between each addition.
6 eggs
Bake the Cake: Stir the vanilla extract into the cake batter, then pour it into prepared tube pan and bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a toothpick or skewer inserted into multiple parts of the cake comes out clean.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes then carefully invert it onto a plate or wire cooling rack to come to room temperature.
Make the Glaze and Serve: While the cake cools, beat together the powdered sugar, butter, milk, vanilla extract, and salt until smooth and uniform. Pour glaze over top of the cake before serving.
1 ¾ cup powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, 1-2 tablespoons milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Video

Notes

How to Measure Flour

Flour tends to get compacted, which can lead to too much flour in your baked good and result in a denser or drier texture than desired. To avoid this, it's important to sift the flour before measuring it. This can be accomplished by running the flour through a sifter or mesh sieve or fluffing the flour in its original container, then using a small measuring cup to scoop the flour into the size measuring cup you need (example: using a half-cup to scoop flour into a one-cup), then leveling off the excess with a knife or leveler.

Modifications

Use vanilla extract or paste, or substitute with whiskey or cognac, if you feel so inclined.

My grandma used a tube pan, so I use a tube pan, but you can also use a 10-12 cup bundt pan if you don't have a tube.

Storage

Pound cake tends to keep well at room temperature for a few days or in the refrigerator for up to one week. Keep it in an airtight container or wrap snugly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil so it retains moisture.

To freeze, fully cool the cake and do not frost it, then wrap it tightly with plastic wrap, followed by aluminum foil, before placing it in the freezer. You can do this with a whole cake, half a cake, or individual slices. Either way, it will keep for up to three months.

Nutrition