My Great Aunt's (Previously) Top Secret Southern Pound Cake Recipe

There’s nothing like my Aunt’s pound cake fresh out the oven — that buttery smell wrapping around the whole house, golden crust crisping just right, and a crumb so soft it practically hums “amen.” This isn’t just dessert; it’s family history baked with love and a little attitude. She’s been guarding this recipe like treasure for years, and trust me, one bite and you’ll understand why. Simple ingredients, no shortcuts, and flavor that feels like Sunday dinner, laughter in the kitchen, and somebody yelling “who made this cake?!” Whether you serve it with coffee, fresh fruit, or straight from the pan (no judgment, love), this pound cake is pure comfort — and every slice tastes like home. 💛

1. 8oz cream cheese
2. 6 eggs
3. 3 cups of Swans down cake flour (Listen if you want a more chewy-dense cake you are free to use regular bleached flour cause that's your business beloved )
4. 3.5 sticks of butter (room temperature is very key here ya'll)
5. 3 cups of sugar
6. 1 tbsp of vanilla
7. Cake pan (pound cake or bundt cake pan works best)
8. 1 flat pan(for underneath your cake pan)

Optional Icing Topper

1. 1 cup powder sugar
2. 1/4 stick of melted butter
3. 1/2 a cup of milk
4. 1 tsp vanilla

So listen I'm gonna tell you exactly what my Auntie told me so listen close:

"Take that butter out the fridge about an hour before you start baby. Cause if you don't...that cake gone tell on yah at the end sweetheart"

Literally you can just set it out on your counter about 30 mins- 1 hour before you start gathering ingredients to start if you're taking it out of the fridge. If you attempt to microwave the butter to soften it faster (cause I've been there) the parts of the butter that are liquid will make random dense sections in your cake and ruin that fluffy pound cake taste we're going for.

*Here's an extra tip that I do: Start your oven to preheating at 300 F and put the butter on the stove on a small plate to soften it up and remove before it melts should be no longer than before you need it for this first step!

1. First mix the butter and the cream cheese together till they are smooth and one consistent color. Then add in the sugar till all three are combined and now have a smooth consistency.

Now we need to put in about half a cup of our flour at a time until all of it has been mixed in well

Then we mix in 1 egg at a time and be sure to mix in between each one

Lastly, we want to put our vanilla flavoring in and make sure to mix it really well, so the vanilla is spread evenly throughout our cake

1. Now our oven should have alerted us to reaching 300 F (if you have an older oven you may even need to go up to 325 F but no higher or your cake will be drier than desired)
2. So grease your pan with whatever your preference. It can oil or an extra bit of butter and really get it into the cracks and creases of the pan so it doesn't stick after cooling
3. Pour your batter into your greased pan and then place on top of the flat pan and put them in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until it has beautiful even brown crust on it

Mix the cup of powdered sugar, melted butter, milk and vanilla flavoring until smooth consistency throughout

*Tip: Use more or less of the milk for your personal desired consistency/thickness

1. After your cake is all done take it out and let it cool down for about 10-15 minutes
2. At this point you want to grab your cake pan on both sides and flip your pan over using that flat tray if you can and the cake should just slide right out but if it doesn't just tap gently on the pan on all sides until it pops out
3. Grab your homemade icing and pour on top as much as you desire!
4. Finally, grab a knife and cut you a slice to sit back and ENJOY!