Pound cake's "perfect plainness" is amazing on its own, but this special syrup elevates it even more

Bibi Hutchings, a lifelong Southerner, lives along a quiet coastal Alabama bay with her cat, Zulu, and husband, Tom. She writes about the magical way food evokes memories, instantly bringing you back to the people, places and experiences of your life. Her stories take you all around the South and are accompanied with tried-and-true recipes that are destined to become a part of your memory-making as you share them with your friends and family.

A pound cake is a pound cake because of its original pound-proportions: A pound of flour, a pound of butter, a pound of sugar, and a pound of eggs (or, perhaps simpler, a dozen) — no leavening ingredients, like baking soda or powder, and no liquids.

A bit of extract, zest, or flavoring was within bounds, but nothing more if you opted to stick with tradition.

Over the years, pound cakes lost some of their heft as bakers lightened them up. “Pound" measurements were reduced to make room for additional liquids and flavor combinations and leavening agents further lightened and reduced work time in the kitchen. The resulting recipes gave way to what might be the most beloved Southern cake I know. It is for every season and every occasion.

My mother loved few things more than plain vanilla pound cake and I can think of nothing better to sop up the sweet juices of fruit compotes or to serve alongside freshly grilled peaches in the summer. Sliced and toasted, pound cake is also hard to beat for breakfast; its perfect plainness as satisfying as a good biscuit.

What I am sharing with you today is a family recipe from a new friend of mine who recently retired and moved down to my neck of the woods. I can attest that this recipe consistently yields a deliciously soft and tender cake with a tight crumb and a crusty top, which is everything I want in a pound cake.

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I love it best served cold from the refrigerator the day after it is made, but so far I have not been able to resist a first slice still warm from the oven, barely ready to cut. It is the best lemon dessert I have had in years, and I have been utterly charmed and smitten with it since she shared it with me earlier in the spring.

At the heart of my infatuation is the Meyer lemon simple syrup. I want to drink this stuff: It is ambrosial!

Made from fresh squeezed juice and sugar, half is poured over the cake when it first comes out of the oven and the rest brushed or spooned on once you turn it out of the pan. The first time I made this divine nectar, I tasted it for sweetness as soon as the sugar had dissolved and never got out of it from that point forward. I am surprised I had enough left for the cake.

The Meyer lemons I had were small and I underestimated what I would need, which is rare for me. I barely managed to squeeze enough juice out to make what was called for in the recipe. Had I had more of those little Meyer lemons, I would have made syrup to pour into and onto everything from drinks to dressings to ice cream.

The lesson here: Make sure you have plenty on hand. It is nothing short of amazing and is my latest addiction.

Yields

10-12 servings

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

1 hour 15 minutes

Ingredients

For cake:

3 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup solid shortening (I substitute coconut oil)

1 stick butter, softened

2 cups sugar

Pinch of salt

4 eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon lemon extract

1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

For syrup:

6 to 7 large Meyer lemons, enough for 3/4 cup fresh juice

Rind of 3 Meyer lemons

1 cup sugar is about perfect, but start with less and add to taste

Directions

1. In a small bowl, whisk flour and baking soda together and set aside.
2. Oil and flour a 10” tube pan and set aside. Preheat oven to 325 fahrenheit.
3. In a large bowl, beat shortening or coconut oil, butter, sugar and a pinch of salt until light and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add lemon extract with the last egg.
4. Alternate between adding flour and buttermilk, starting with the flour, and continue to beat well with each addition.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 1 hour and 15-20 minutes.
6. While the cake is in the oven, make the syrup: In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients over medium-low heat. As soon as it simmers, reduce to lowest heat until all the sugar has dissolved.
7. Remove syrup from heat (and try to stay out of it so you have enough for the cake.)
8. Assemble: Once the top of the pound cake is golden, the edges have pulled away from the pan, and the domed top has cracked, it is ready.
9. Remove from the oven and place on a rack to cool, but leave the cake in the pan. Using skewers, poke holes all around and pour or spoon about 1/2-2/3 of syrup over the top.
10. After 15 minutes, turn cake out and onto rack. The bottom will now be the top. Brush remaining syrup over and allow to finish cooling.
11. Once cooled, move it to a plate, cover lightly with wax paper and refrigerate. It is not necessary to serve this cake cold, but I like it best that way, especially in the summer.
12. To serve, simply slice and present on a plate. This cake needs nothing! But of course, a scoop of vanilla ice cream never hurts.

Cook's Notes

Buttermilk: There is no substitute for real, cultured buttermilk, but if you do not have any, you can use these handy substitutions:

-Replace with full fat plain yogurt.

-Replace with sour cream thinned with a little milk

-Add 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice to every 1 cup of full fat milk. Stir and allow to sit before using.

Coconut Oil as a Shortening Substitute: If you choose this option, make sure your coconut oil is in its solid form when you start, which means it must be no warmer than around 75F. Place in the refrigerator a few minutes to firm it up if necessary.

Gluten-free options: I have made this pound cake using roughly 2/3 whole sorghum flour and 1/3 King Arthur 1:1 Gluten Free Baking Mix with complete success. I double the soda called for in the recipe and leave it in the pan for 20 minutes (instead of 15) before turning it out.notes