Vanilla Lime Pound Cake.

Pound cake is a funny thing.

In all honestly, it’s never really been my thing. I’ve waxed poetic about my love for rich desserts that make my teeth hurt. Pound cake just isn’t one of those desserts.

But a few years ago, I had a client bring me a homemade pound cake. It was the first homemade pound cake I had ever tasted. My mom often bought it when we were younger, but never made it from scratch.

After my first bite, I was hooked. It was so… buttery!

That was years ago, and I vowed I would try my hand at homemade pound cake. Clearly, I don’t stick to my resolutions very well.

Since I can’t seem to do much traditionally, I add some extra vanilla and lots of lime to this poundcake. With a vanilla lime glaze. Limes are for more than just tequila, you know. I didn’t.

Turns out I was doomed from the start.

One by one, the thick, cakey slices started to disappear.

Mr. How Sweet claimed that he wasn’t even going to taste this cake since pound cakes aren’t his thing either. But then he saw my eyes glaze over after each bite. He had to join in on the fun.

And that is how we spent our Sunday afternoon. On the couch in big lumps, swimming in sweatpants and stuffed to the gills with pound cake. Perfect way to start a New Year’s diet, don’t you think?

Vanilla Lime Poundcake

loosely adapted from The Joy of Baking

3 large eggs

3 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons lime zest (about 3-4 medium limes)

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice

contents of one vanilla bean

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup white sugar

1 1/2 sticks butter, softened

Preheat oven to 350.

In a small bowl, combine eggs, vanilla extract, vanilla beans, lime zest and lime juice. Whisk together.

In the bowl of your electric mixed, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix until combined. Add butter and mix until batter starts to come together. Add half of the egg mixture and mix on medium for 30 seconds. Add the remaining egg mixture in two parts, scraping down the sides of the bowl and mixing on medium speed for about 30-45 seconds each.

Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit in the bottom of your loaf pan and butter it. Spray the entire loaf pan with baking spray and lay the parchment paper down, buttered side up. Pour the batter in the loaf pan and bake for 50-55 minutes. If cake gets too brown on top, lightly tent it with foil. Let cool before glazing.

Vanilla Lime Glaze

1/4 cup lime juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon heavy cream

3/4 -1 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon lime zest

Whisk all ingredients together to form a glaze. Add more liquid or sugar to get desired consistency. Pour over cooled pound cake.

Now if only my thighs liked the pound cake as much as I did.

Tagged as: cake, recipes