Honestly, I’ve never really been that into pound cake. Until I tried THIS cream cheese pound cake, that is! Moist, tender, creamy buttery flavor, plus it has the perfect crumb. It truly is one of the best cakes I’ve ever had! Originally published September 13, 2016.
Table of Contents
- What makes this the Best Cream Cheese Pound Cake
- Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe ingredients
- How to make Cream Cheese Pound Cake
- Variations for this Recipe for Cream Cheese Pound Cake
- How to serve this Pound Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese
- Tips for the best cream cheese pound cake
- How to store leftover Cream Cheese Pound Cake
- More cakes you will love!
- Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe
My best friend Sarah has above-average children. Example:
“I just caught Hyrum [6 years old] in the kitchen eating brown sugar out of the jar. When I told him to stop, he said, laughing hysterically, “Dost thou think, because thou art virtuous, there shall be no more cakes and ale?”
This is a DIRECT QUOTE from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. No, I am not making this up. Sarah is one of those wonder woman moms who homeschools her kids, and right now they are learning Shakespeare.
My sister-in-law Sandi and I were discussing Sarah’s unreal conversations with her children when she casually mentioned something about a mattress stabbing. Um, what?
She explained that she’s been having plumbing issues and one of her leaky pipes soaked through a mattress on the bottom floor. The mattress had to be thrown out. Her 3 boys asked if they could stab the mattress. With knives.
“I couldn’t think of a reason why they SHOULDN’T stab a mattress on its way to the trash, so I let them each pick out 2 knives from the kitchen, and let them at it.”
This is when I look at my children and think, “You’re kinda boring” and “Bless you, sweet angels” all at once.
My mother-in-law Kris has been making this cake for years and told me that it is the best pound cake she’s ever had. I didn’t bother making it for a while because I’m not gonna lie, when I think pound cake all I think of is too-dry, too-dense cake. So I wasn’t exactly skipping off to the kitchen. But she mentioned it a couple more times, and Kris’ recipes have never (ever) let me down, so I decided to try it out.
What makes this the Best Cream Cheese Pound Cake
I love this pound cake so much and here’s why I know you will too:
- It’s really, truly moist. No one likes dry cake (least of all me).
- It’s a one-bowl affair. Yes, you can have fancy cake and not spend the evening doing the dishes. Thank goodness.
- It’s a decadent, special occasion dessert. Butter. Sugar. We’re not holding back. Cut yourself a smaller piece if you like but don’t try to make a low fat, low sugar version: this is the good stuff.
- It’s perfect for all seasons. You can serve it with fresh fruit in the summertime and a simple vanilla glaze during the holidays. No matter the meal, it’s so classic that it never seems out of place.
Featured Comment
“This cake was delicious! I needed to make a treat for bookclub and this was perfect. The cake was moist and light and the strawberry sauce complemented it well. It was a hit with all the ladies. Thank you!” -Chatti
Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe ingredients
Here’s a quick roundup of ingredients for your shopping list. Scroll down to the recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions!
For the cake:
- salted butter
- cream cheese
- white sugar
- eggs
- vanilla extract
- butter extract
- cake flour
- Kosher salt
For the glaze:
- butter
- powdered sugar
- milk
- vanilla extract
When I think of pound cake, my mouth automatically gets all dry. Does this happen to anyone else? (Same thing happens when I think of scones. Except these Bacon White Cheddar Scones. Those scones are amazing.) But THIS pound cake is full of cream cheese and butter and guys, it’s amazing. It has tons of flavor thanks to the vanilla and butter extract.
Cake flour is used instead of regular all purpose. It makes the cake more tender and less dense. The cake will still bake up just fine if you use regular flour, it just won’t be quite as awesome. You can make cake flour at home, here’s a tutorial. Personally I would rather buy a box than sift flour 5 times in a row, but that’s just me.
How to make Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Here’s a quick overview of how to make this pound cake. Check out the full instructions below in the recipe card!
Make sure to grease and flour your bundt pan well. Bundt pans make pretty cakes, but only if hot pieces of your cake don’t get torn off.
Start with room temperature cream cheese and butter: soft, not melted. If you, like me, haven’t set your butter and cream cheese on the counter to soften ahead of time (or if your house is cold) you can definitely hit them in the microwave for 20-30 seconds on a low powder setting. Again, take it slow so they’re not getting melted!
Add and beat in the other ingredients in this order:
- sugar
- eggs (one at a time)
- vanilla and butter extracts
- cake flour and salt
Following this order ensures everything gets well combined AND you’re whipping air into the batter each time for a light and fluffy cake.
Grab a spatula to get all your batter into the pan, and don’t worry about smoothing it perfectly on top. No one’s going to see that part anyway.
Mix up your glaze and drizzle on top of the cooled cake. Voila!
Variations for this Recipe for Cream Cheese Pound Cake
This pound cake is perfectly buttery and sweet just the way it is. Here are some simple ways to change it up a little without compromising the ingredient ratio.
- Use a different extract. I love the butter extract in this but you could use coconut, rum, maple, or almond instead. I recommend keeping the vanilla extract – it’s a classic base flavor to layer under other flavors.
- Add some fresh citrus zest. Lemon, lime, or orange zest from 1-2 limes or lemons or 1 orange adds amazing flavor to this cake. Consider adding a glaze in the matching flavor.
- Add a little fresh fruit. If you like, you can add ⅔ – ¾ cup diced fresh fruit to the batter after step 6. I recommend gently pressing the diced fruit with paper towels to make sure that it’s not too juicy (think peaches, mangos, or strawberries). You can also toss it in a couple tablespoons of flour to keep it from sinking to the bottom of the pan. If you’re using small berries, like blueberries or raspberries, no need to dice or press (but do toss with flour).
- Make your own cake flour. If you don’t have cake flour on hand but need to start baking this cake like, yesterday, you can make your own using flour and cornstarch. For every cup of flour the recipe calls for, make a substitute with ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons flour and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. (For your convenience in making this recipe, that means you’ll need 2 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons flour and 6 tablespoons cornstarch.)
How to serve this Pound Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese
I love serving this with the vanilla glaze included in the recipe, but it’s also amazing with Fresh Strawberry Topping. You can also throw fresh berries on top (strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, you name it) with a generous helping of whipped cream (homemade is super easy but canned is just fine too). None of these toppings will take away from the classic buttery flavor in the cake like a chocolate topping might.
Tips for the best cream cheese pound cake
Pound cake can fall for a couple of reasons. One of them is when the cake gets cold–this can happen if you open and close the oven door while it’s baking, or if you pull it out of the oven too soon. Another reason a pound cake can fall is if you’ve over-creamed the batter.
Yes. The difference is in the main ingredient and the resulting texture. Sponge cake is based on eggs, which are whipped until light and fluffy. This makes for a light and fluffy cake. Pound cake is based on butter, which creates a flavorful, dense cake.
Sometimes your cake is gooey, and it’s sad, and you’re mad you spent an hour baking it. Here’s what might have happened (and how you can avoid it in the future:
Your oven was too cold. It doesn’t matter what the display says – many ovens are up to 75 degrees hotter or cooler than they say. Test it and find out for sure!
You moved the pan around or opened the oven door during baking. This can cause cooling problems too, just like a too-low oven temperature.
You added too many wet ingredients (or too few dry ingredients).
If you have over mixed your cake batter, your cake is likely to be dense, tough, and maybe even have gluey streaks in it. Gross. The key to mixing properly is to cream the butter until light and fluffy, then continue the creaming process with the sugar. After that, you only want to mix ingredients in until they’re combined, meaning that you can’t see streaks of any one ingredient.
If you have fresh cake flour, you may not need to sift it. Lumps in your flour? Sift it. If you don’t, you’ll end up over mixing your batter trying to incorporate stubborn pockets of flour.
How to store leftover Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Leftover pound cake can be stored in a covered cake server or well wrapped with plastic wrap on the counter for 2-3 days. It freezes well – just make sure to wrap it very, very well so it doesn’t get freezer burned.
More cakes you will love!
Cranberry Cake with Warm Vanilla Butter Sauce >> this one is great for the holidays! Or the day cranberries show up in grocery stores, which is when I make it every year
The Best Chocolate Cake I’ve Ever Had >> for real though
The Best Homemade White Cake From Scratch >> the perfect base for your favorite frosting
The Best Tres Leches Cake >> the perfect end to any Mexican meal!
Caramel Cake with Caramel Icing >> a Southern classic with caramel in the cake and the frosting
Spice Cake Recipe from Scratch >> bright spicy flavor, super moist cake
Lemon Yogurt Pound Cake from Sugar Dish Me
Samoa Pound Cake from House of Yumm
Blackberry Pound Cake from The Grant Life
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Cream Cheese Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 1 & 1/2 cups salted butter, 3 sticks, softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2 & 2/3 cups white sugar
- 6 eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon butter extract, or flavoring
- 3 cups cake flour, spooned and leveled
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the vanilla glaze:
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 & 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons milk , or water
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Grease a standard size bundt pan well with butter or nonstick spray. Lightly dust with flour, turning it upside down to remove excess. Set aside.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese well, until high and fluffy. Think at least 2-3 minutes.
- Gradually add the sugar with the mixer running. Beat for another couple minutes. This helps beat air into the cake.
- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until just combined each time.
- Stir in the vanilla and butter extract.
- Add the cake flour and the salt. Mix until combined thoroughly.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.
- Bake at 300 for 1 hour and 15 to 30 minutes. (Mine took 1 hour 27 minutes) The top should be golden and a toothpick should come out clean.
- Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then carefully loosen the edges with a knife. Invert onto a cake plate.
- Cool for 1 hour, and then serve.
- To make the vanilla glaze: melt the butter in a medium bowl.
- Add half the powdered sugar and beat well.
- Add milk and vanilla, beat well.
- Add the rest of the powdered sugar and beat.
- Drizzle over the cooled cake.
- I like to serve this with Fresh Strawberry Topping
Think this would work in a mini donut maker!
That’s an amazing idea Pam! If you try it come back and let us know how they turn out, we’d love to hear!
I love to bake and have years of experience but I retired to Mexico a few years ago. I have never seen butter extract anywhere. What can I substitute?
Vanilla extract is a great sub Lea! Especially since you can get that awesome Mexican vanilla :-) Enjoy!
Best pound cake I have ever made. Everyone raved about it.
ooh so fun Tommie! I’m glad you loved it! Thank you so much for coming back to comment and rate the recipe, that’s super kind and helpful!