Cognizant of both my impending milestone of birth and my quest for the perfect poundcake (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/search/label/Poundcake), my friend Susan at work baked for me something I've been too lazy to get around to: an authentic poundcake.
The old-fashioned recipe calls for a bit of salt and vanilla and a pound each of flour, sugar, eggs and butter, just like the olden days. I can describe the result only as a delight. Dense yellow interior, crisp sweet exterior, sliced without crumbling. Fortunately. I was wise enough to share it before I risked eating it all myself.
Thank you so much. Susan. Now, I guess I'll have to go super-old school and make one in a cast iron pan and wood burning oven. ☺ [+/-] Hide/Show Text [+/-] Hide/Show Text
Made the mistake of walking by the poundcake (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/search/label/Poundcake) table at Whole Foods today. Not only were they on sale, but they brought out the seasonal pumpkin poundcake. I couldn't resist. And I really should have.
Tuesday morning, Tanya and I hopped over to Harris Teeter (or as we call it, Harry Teets (http://www.harristeeter.com/)) so she could get St. Pat's Day cupcakes for work. While there I spotted poundcake (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/search/label/Poundcake). Try as I might, I could not resist its siren call, so we left with cakes, cup and pound.
I must say Harry Teets makes a smooth poundcake. A bit dry around the edges, but the center was dense yet fluffy, moist and buttery. Certainly one of the best I've ever gotten from a supermarket bakery. I was ready to give it a simple write-up after work, but then I ate one of the extra cupcakes Tanya brought home. Horror of horrors! The cakes were the same!
What trickery be this, 'o bakers of Harry Teets? Was my poundcake simply normal cake in block form, or were the cupcakes poundcake in heavily frosted cup shapes? Why must you torture me with this riddle baked in an enigma iced with a puzzle? So distraught was I that needed to wait an entire day before eating a second cupcake, and I'm not sure when I polished off the poundcake.
For this sorcerous feat that caused me to be uncharacteristically incoherent and uncoordinated on St. Patrick's Day, I vow to never again eat what is claimed to be two different types of cake from Harry Teets on the same day.
Finally cut into that cream cheese poundcake (http://sumocats.blogspot.com/2008/11/possibly-perfect-poundcake.html) Tanya brought home from the Dutch market. Is it perfect? Hmm...
Well, the texture is quite silken. Good balance between being dense and airy. Bit on the dry side but not greasy. I expected the top to be cream cheesy, but it was crunchy and sweet instead. Quite a delight reminiscent of Crunchy Feet (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/2006/04/love-that-poundcake-from-cakelove.html). Not sure I'd go so far as to call it "perfect," but it's really darn good. [+/-] Hide/Show Text [+/-] Hide/Show Text
Been too long since my last poundcake (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/search/label/Poundcake) review, which is a darn shame since that means it's been that long since I ate blog-worthy poundcake.
This one is a locally-baked contender, which I picked up at the farmer's market, from Valentine's Country Bakery. It is a wonderfully dense cake that strikes the right balance of dryness and buttery moistness. It slices into firm pieces with none of the cornbread-like texture that I despise. Evenly brown perimeter. Overall, very worthy of being called a poundcake. [+/-] Hide/Show Text [+/-] Hide/Show Text
My plans to bake an authentic poundcake (http://sumocat.blogspot.com/search?q=poundcake) (with a pound of each ingredient) are still pending, but I whipped up a batch from a mix for today's Clean-up Day lunch. Customized it a bit with cinnamon and substituted soy milk. Turned out to be quite a hit, possibly helped by the lack of other desserts, but a hit nonetheless.
[photo] Actually, it looks closer to an eighth, but where's the poetry with that title? Anyway, a very thoughtful co-worker brought in a poundcake (Quarter Poundcake) to celebrate someone's birthday after reading on his blog that he liked poundcake. Normally, this photo would be of an empty pan, but there were also brownies, a birthday cake and a coinciding spring luncheon. Still, I'm not one to let poundcake go to waste, so say "good-bye" to this quarter-pounder.
