Here you’ll find a delicious vanilla buttermilk pound cake that will stay moist for days, with a pillowy and comforting texture, and a delicious vanilla flavor.
Why you’ll love this buttermilk pound cake?
If you love pound cakes at least half as much as I do, this vanilla buttermilk pound cake is definitely for you, especially if you’re a beginner, for three main reasons:
- It has the iconic comforting and pillowy texture of a pound cake and will stay moist for literal days thanks to buttermilk.
- It has a perfect vanilla flavor.
- Finally, this cake is really quick to make as it can be baked (including cooking time) in only an hour, which makes it the perfect quick treat for unexpected guests.
How to make this buttermilk pound cake?
Possible adaptation of this recipe.
Ingredients and substitutions.
This cake recipe requires different ingredients, some of which could be substituted according to your needs :
- Room Temperature Unsalted Butter: As with any pound cake, I don’t think you can swap it as it gives this signature texture and flavor to the cake.
- Granulated Sugar: This recipe requires a fairly important amount of sugar, while you could reduce it, I don’t recommend it as it would impact the texture of the cake.
- Eggs: If you don’t eat eggs, you can try to swap them with an egg replacer.
- Buttermilk: This is the secret weapon of this recipe. Classic pound cake recipes tend to be on the drier side, but thanks to the use of buttermilk you won’t have to worry about that. If you don’t have any at home you can easily swap with a DIY alternative or try my sour cream pound cake.
- Cake Flour: If you don’t have any cake flour on hand, you could try swapping it with an easy cake flour substitute. Keep in mind the texture of your cake will be slightly different.
- Vanilla essence: It’s the other star of this recipe and is necessary to create a beautiful vanilla flavor.
- Baking Powder: It acts as the leavening agent for a signature dense but not heavy cake.
Size adaptation of your marble pound cake.
I tend to write my recipes for an 11×4-inch loaf cake pan, which also happens to be perfect for a 9×5-inch loaf cake pan. You can easily adapt the recipe to bake bigger/smaller cakes. Simply multiply the grams measurements by:
- 0,5 for an 8×4 inch loaf cake pan.
- 1,6 for a 12-cup bundt cake pan.
If you end up having to divide an egg, mix the white and the yolk of the egg, then add the desired quantity to your cake batter.
Bake the buttermilk pound cake.
- Preheat your oven to 330°F (165°C) and prepare your 9×5-inch loaf cake pan.
- In a mixing bowl, add the sugar and your room-temperature butter. Mix it all at medium to high speed until light and fluffy (around two to three minutes).
- Now, add one egg at a time, mixing at the lowest speed between each addition. Once you add the eggs, you have to be careful not to overmix your batter.
- Combine the cake flour and the baking powder and add half of it to the batter mixing at the lowest speed.
- Then, incorporate the buttermilk and the vanilla extract.
- Finally, add the other half of the flour mixture. Stop mixing as soon as it’s fully incorporated.
- Place your cake batter into your cake pan, and bake it at 330F° (165C°) until a toothpick comes out clean (around 40 minutes).
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes before taking it out from the pan.
Baker’s secrets.
In order to make sure you end up with the best results, here are three baker’s secrets (that are not so secret really):
- I cannot stress enough how using a kitchen scale is a game-changer when baking. I know the cup system is very practical, but once you try weighing your ingredients, you’ll regret not having started sooner both in terms of texture and taste.
- Temperature is also another game changer. Always use room temperature ingredients unless stated otherwise and preheat your oven, you’ll taste the difference.
- Finally, do not overmix your cake batter, once you’ve added the eggs. Honestly, nine times out of ten, when someone has a problem with a cake recipe, it’s because they overmixed their cake batter.
Can you make your buttermilk pound cake ahead?
You can easily make this buttermilk pound cake ahead. You have several options:
- This pound cake can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- You can also store it longer in the fridge for up to a week.
- Finally, you could easily freeze it for up to 3 months.
Whatever option you choose, always make sure to keep your cake in an airtight container, and wrapped with cling film if you’re putting it in the fridge/freezer. Always bring your cake to room temperature before serving it.
What to serve your buttermilk pound cake with?
This vanilla buttermilk pound cake will taste amazing on its own, but you can easily elevate it depending on what you’re serving it with. A few of my favorites are :
- Caramel sauce: for a perfect combination for a fall dessert.
- My lemon curd: for a summery alternative.
- Whipped cream: because honestly, it tastes amazing.
- A scoop of your favorite ice cream: whether you like chocolate, vanilla, or any other ice cream flavor, they’ll fit perfectly with this delicious vanilla pound cake.
Buttermilk Pound Cake
Difficulty: Easy12
servings15
minutes45
minutesHere you’ll find a delicious vanilla buttermilk pound cake that will stay moist for days, with a pillowy and comforting texture, and a delicious vanilla flavor.
Ingredients
- The Vanilla Batter
¾ cup + 2 tbsp (202 g) Room Temperature Unsalted Butter
1¼ cups (253 g) Granulated Sugar
3 (150 g) Eggs
1¾ cups + 1 tbsp (209 g) Cake Flour
1.5 tsp (7 g) Baking Powder
¾ cup + 1 tbsp (197 g) Buttermilk (1)
¾ tsp (10 g) Vanilla Extract
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 330°F (165°C) and prepare your 9×5-inch loaf cake pan.
- In a mixing bowl, add the sugar and your room-temperature butter. Mix it all at medium-high speed until light and fluffy (around two to three minutes).
- Now, add one egg at a time, mixing at the lowest speed between each addition. Once you add the eggs, you have to be careful not to overmix your batter.
- Combine the cake flour and the baking powder and add half of it to the batter mixing at the lowest speed.
- Then, incorporate the buttermilk and the vanilla extract.
- Finally, add the other half of the flour mixture. Stop mixing as soon as it’s fully incorporated.
- Place your cake batter into your cake pan, and bake it at 330F° (165C°) until a toothpick comes out clean (around 45 minutes).
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes before taking it out from the pan.
Notes
- You can replace it with a DIY alternative if you don’t have any on hand.