“I am a poundcake fanatic,” said James Villas in Saveur. I finally came to that realization while carefully weighing the eggs to be used in the batter. It was important to use exactly 1 pound each of all the key ingredients—butter, sugar, flour, and eggs—“thus the cake’s name.”
True poundcake connoisseurs have other demanding requirements. The ingredients must reach precisely 68 degrees, the sugar and butter must be creamed for a full three minutes, and the flour must be sifted at least three times. “These precautions may seem overwrought to most cooks, but then, most cooks are not poundcake fanatics.” Fortunately, you don’t need to be: I’ve done the math and certify this poundcake to provide “pure gastronomic joy.”
Recipe of the week
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Poundcake
12 oz butter, plus more for the pan (preferably Beurre Lescure) at room temperature
2 tbsp plus 3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp fine salt
1 cup milk, at room temperature
1 tsp pure almond extract
1 tsp pure lemon extract
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs, at room temperature
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously grease a light-colored 10-inch tube pan with butter. Add 2 tbsp flour; turn pan to coat evenly with flour, tap out any excess, and set aside. (Inside of pan should be smoothly and evenly coated with butter and flour, with no clumps or gaps.)
Using a sieve set over a bowl, sift together remaining flour, baking powder, and salt. Repeat 2 more times. In a measuring vessel with a pourable spout, combine milk and the almond, lemon, and vanilla extracts. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle, cream butter at medium-low speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, and beat until satiny smooth, about 3 minutes.
Add 1 egg at a time to butter mixture, beating for 15 seconds before adding another, and scraping down the bowl after each addition. Reduce mixer speed to low and alternately add flour and milk mixtures in 3 batches, beginning and ending with flour. Scrape down sides of the bowl; beat batter until smooth and silky but no more.
Scrape batter into prepared pan and firmly tap on a counter to allow batter
to settle evenly. Bake until light gold and a toothpick inserted in center comes out moist but clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let cake cool in pan on rack for 30 minutes. Invert cake onto rack; cool completely before slicing. Serves 10 to 12.
