TWD-Perfection Pound Cake

This week's TWD was chosen by Laurie, Perfection Pound cake. Again, this will be a make again recipe. It is very easy to put together, it only took me about - minutes to get it all together. It is a very thick better, but very tasty! I also tried it with some red current jam that I received from my friend Molly over at Batter Splattered. The tartness from the jam, along with the buttery sweetness of this pound cake is wonderful!

Don't forget to check out Laurie and Michelle to see how their pound cake turned out, as well as our newest partner in crime, Jaime. I am so glad to have her join us!!

Perfection Pound Cake

by: Dorie Greenspan

2 Cups all-purpose flour or 2 1/4 Cups cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted butter, at room temp

1 Cup sugar

4 large eggs, at room temp

1 tsp vanilla

Center a rack in the oven and preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9X5 inch loaf pan or an 8 1/2X4 1/2 inch loaf pan. Put the pan on an insulated baking sheet or on two regular baking sheets stacked one on top of the other.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar on high speed until pale and fluffy, a full 5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and beater and reduce the mixer speed to medium. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1-2 minutes after each egg goes in. As you're working, scrape down the bowl and the beater often. Mix in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, mixing only until it is incorporated-don't over mix. In fact, you might want to fold in the last of the flour, or even all of it, by hand with a rubber spatula. Scrape the batter into the buttered pan and smooth the top.

Put the cake into the oven to bake, and check on it after about 45 minutes. If it's browning too quickly, cover it loosely with a foil tent. If you're using a 9X5 pan, you'll need to bake the cake for 70-75 minutes; the smaller pan needs about 90 minutes. The cake is properly baked when a thin knife inserted keep into the center comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven, transfer the pan to a rack and let rest for 30 minutes.

Run a blunt knife between the cake and the sides of the pan and turn the cake out, then turn it right side up on the rack and cool to room temperature.