Traditionally pound cake is made with pound of flour, sugar, butter and eggs and that is why it is called Pound cake. Simple logic in preparing pound cake is to maintain the ratios of ingredients. All ingredients should be measured by weight and not by volume. You can change the quantity according to your requirements but remember to maintain the ratio 1:1:1:1.

Back in the age, when there were no electric ovens, my grand mother used to make the cake in sand oven. They keep sand in a plate and place the cake pan on top of the sand plate. This sand plate is used to make an environment like oven. My mother still uses the same sand oven.

Yields: 20 servings

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour / Maida -1lb
• Sugar -1lb
• Unsalted Butter – 1lb ( 4 sticks)
• Large Eggs – 1lb ( around 9)
• Baking powder – 1 tsp
• Baking soda – 1/4 tsp
• Vanilla / Almond essence – 1 tsp

Method:

1. Soften the butter. It took me 3 hrs to soften at room temperature (depending upon the room temperature and weather). Don’t melt it in microwave since it affects the texture.Its important to have all the ingredients at room temperature.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
3. Grease your desired pans with oil/butter and dust with flour and keep it ready
4. Mix all the dry ingredients (Flour, baking powder and baking soda) in a bowl and keep a side.
5. Now in a different big bowl, beat eggs and then add sugar (I powdered the sugar before using. You may skip this process and add normal sugar.)
6. Now add butter, vanilla and beat until batter is soft and creamy .
7. Take the bowl with the dry ingredients and Sieve it little by little using a sifter to the batter and mix until there are no lumps in the batter.
8. Consistency should be like thick creamy batter.
9. Fill cake batter into the greased pan you prepared above, up to 2/3’rd full.
10. Place the pans in the pre-heated oven. check after 40 minutes. It takes 1 hour to bake 2 cakes at a time. When you insert a knife or toothpick, it should come out clean. It is only then the rich, dense and delicious cake is ready.
11. Remove from oven and let it cool down to room temperature.
12. Cake can be stored at room temperature for a week

Tips from me and from other sources:

• If your making large quantity( more than 1lb), bake in small ( 8″ or 9″) pans rather than using whole batter in a big tray.
• Fill cake pans no more than 1/2 to 2/3 full to allow for even baking and rising.
• Once you’ve poured the batter in the pan, wobble the pan sideways a bit so the batter reaches up along each side. As the cake bakes the middle and edges will meet and rise more evenly.
• Preheat the oven first before starting to bake, make sure the rack is in the center of the oven and place pan in the center of the rack. If you’re baking more than one pan at a time, keep them at least 2″ away from the walls of the oven and from each other.
• Cool the cakes in the pans completely before trying to remove them. Gently insert a knife between the outside of the cake and the inside of the pan. Run it along the pan to loosen things up before turning over.
• Butter that is melted, or too warm or soft becomes oily and will not retain as much air, producing a cake that doesn’t rise as high and has a dense, heavier texture.
• The eggs should be at room temperature to properly act as an emulsifier. If the eggs are cold, the previously creamed butter and sugar will tend to break apart or curdle.
• Remove the eggs for your recipe from the refrigerator and let it sit on your counter for 20 to 30 minutes to warm to room temperature. To speed up the time, place the eggs in a bowl of warm water for 10 to 15 minutes. Check more baking and making tips here.

Note: Not recommended for weight loss or weight management