Spring has arrived for many of us, even if I did see my
friends in Flagstaff, AZ receiving snow and below freezing temperatures on May
1st! UGH! Today I wanted to share with you a recipe for a delicious key
lime pound cake that is sure to chase the winter doldrums and put you in the
mood for a tropical holiday!
This pound cake is sweet, but not too sweet, it is tangy and
refreshing and perfect! I am a pound
cake fan! An aficionado, if you
will. We love it plain and with
flavor. My grandmother made a five
flavor pound cake that was to die for!
This one is a close second! This
key lime pound cake is just delicious.
A few weeks ago, a friend from church tagged me in a post on Facebook
for a recipe for a key lime pound cake with a cream cheese frosting. She told me how good that it looked and
suggested that I be the one to make it for an upcoming potluck supper at
church. So how could I refuse? She would love it and so would everyone
else. However I did not use the recipe
from the post. I used my own pound
cake recipe and I boosted the flavor by making this a key lime pound cake.
Like all good pound cakes this one starts with an entire
pound of butter! Yes, an entire
pound. Remember, this makes a large
cake or two standard size loaves of pound cake, so this is going to serve a lot
of people. In all, this should serve
between 24 and 30. You don’t need a
large slice to be satisfied. This is
rich and buttery and delicious. Be sure
to use good quality butter and not margarine which is nothing more than whipped
oil and will give you a very disappointing, substandard outcome. So use the butter you will be glad you
did. I prefer to use locally produced
roll butter if I can find it, but I also love Cabot Cooperative Creamery
butter. That is the one that I
regularly reach for in the grocer's case.
Eggs, flour, milk and sugar round out the basics and then
the flavorizers to boost this cake and make it an amazing tropical, treat
reminiscent of a vacation in the keys and a reminder of what Papa himself,
Earnest Hemingway may have once enjoyed on a balmy, breezy afternoon on the
veranda while writing one of his classic novels. A bit much? Maybe, but
who cares? Key limes are very small and
sometimes hard to come by so I usually use Nellie and Joe's Famous Key West
Lime Juice. Since you need a half a cup
for the cake and over a quarter cup for the glaze, that is a lot of tiny little
limes to squeeze. So use the juice in
the bottle. It is really good
quality. I have it on hand all the
time. However, you will still need to
use fresh limes to grate 4 tablespoons of zest for the cake and an additional
two for the topping. So about six limes
will give you that amount. You can use
the limes for other things like your tea or your gin an tonic if you are so
inclined. They won't go to waste! I have also used vanilla extract as well as
lime extract and lime crystals. If do
not have or cannot find the latter two items, don't sweat it, your cake will be
delicious with or without. The extract
and the True Lime powder simply boost the lime flavor and tang of this cake and
take it over the top!
I have used a mixer to make the batter, you should be sure
to take the time to cream the butter and the sugar until they have become
nearly white in color and light and fluffy.
Then add the eggs one at a time and the flavorings and then alternately
the flour and milk. You always want to
end with the flour. Be careful not to
over mix and not to whip any additional air into the batter once the flour and
milk have been added. You want your
pound cake to be dense not full of air.
This cake goes in for a long slow bake. I have used a tube pan. You can use that or a bundt pan or two
standard loaf pans 9 x 5 inches. The
tube or bundt pan bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 40 minutes while the
loaves take just 1 hour and 15 minutes.
You will want to do the toothpick test to be sure that they are done
properly. Remember, no moisture on the
pick or it goes back to finish for a few minutes longer. Remove the cake and allow it to cool in the
pan for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.
When cooled, simply make up your glaze, drizzle on top and
sprinkle with the remaining lime zest.
Voila! A beautiful tropical
treat perfect for any summer gathering or celebration!
This is delicious on it's own but dare I say, topped with a
dollop of homemade whipped cream will really take this memorable cake over the
top! I promise people will be asking
for the recipe!
I hope that you will give this key lime pound cake a try
some time soon and I hope you love it!
Happy Eating!
Key Lime Pound Cake
Ingredients
4
sticks (1 pound) real butter, softened
Do not use margarine!!
3 cups
granulated sugar
6 eggs
at room temperature
2
teaspoons vanilla extract
1
teaspoon lime extract (optional)
4 cups
all purpose flour (not self rising)
1/2
cup key lime juice
4
tablespoons fresh lime zest
|
1
teaspoon lime juice crystals (optional)
1/4
cup milk
1/4
cup heavy cream
Glaze
2 cups
confectioners (powdered) sugar
5
tablespoons key lime juice
2
tablespoons fresh lime zest for topping
|
Step by Step
Instructions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Beat butter with mixer until light and fluffy.
Add sugar to butter and cream together until
light and fluffy, at least three to five minutes.
Using the mixer on low speed, add eggs one at a
time waiting 30 seconds between each addition to make sure the eggs are well
incorporated.
Add extracts, lime juice, lime zest and lime
juice crystals if using. Stir to
combine.
Add flour and milk in three additions. Alternating between 1/3 flour and then 1/2
milk, then another 1/3 of the flour, the remaining 1/2 of the milk and ending
with the rest of the flour. Blend just
until well combined.
The cake can be made in a large 10 cup Bundt pan
or 10 cup tube or Angel Food cake pan or in 2 standard 9 x 5 loaf pans. Spray the pans well and if desired, line
with parchment paper to ensure good release.
Make sure to spray the parchment paper as well.
Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes for the loaves or
1 hour and 40 minutes for the Bundt or Tube pan. The cake is done when a toothpick or skewer inserted in the
center comes out clean and free of any visible moisture.
Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 10
minutes then remove from pan and place on a rack to cool completely.
Mix powdered sugar and lime juice together to
create a glaze that will drizzle nicely off the spoon. Spoon over the cake evenly and allow to drip
down the sides of the cake.
Sprinkle lime zest over the glazed cake.
Allow glaze to set completely before cutting the
cake.
