Cream Cheese Pound Cake

The cream cheese is what lifts this above an ordinary pound cake. Half a pound of it folded into the butter and sugar adds tang to balance the sweetness, fat to keep the cake moist for days, and a fine, velvety crumb that no plain pound cake can match.

Almond extract is the move some pound cakes skip but really shouldn’t. Just a teaspoon and a half deepens the vanilla and adds a slight marzipan undertone that’s understated but unmistakable. Cake flour (not all-purpose) keeps the texture tender by lowering the protein content of the batter.

Six eggs sounds like a lot. They are. Pound cake needs them, both for richness and as the only leavening agent in a recipe with no baking powder or soda. The 90-minute bake at 325°F (160°C) is the patience this cake demands.

Pro Tips

• Use full-fat block cream cheese, not whipped or low-fat, the structure relies on full-fat dairy.
• Bring everything (butter, cream cheese, eggs) to true room temperature before mixing, cold ingredients leave streaks no matter how long you beat.
• Fold the flour gently as the directions warn, overmixing develops gluten and turns this dense cake tough.
• Invert at exactly 15 to 20 minutes after baking, not earlier (cake collapses) or later (cake sticks to the tube pan).

Variations

• Sub lemon zest and 1 teaspoon of lemon extract for the almond extract for a citrus-leaning version.
• Add a powdered-sugar-and-milk glaze drizzled over the cooled cake.
• Press a tablespoon of poppy seeds into the batter for a poppy seed pound cake.