But it’s name doesn’t derive from the weight of the completed dessert itself. Pound cakes first originated in Europe. Pound cake first came about during the early 1700s in Britain. The original recipe dates back to the 1700s, but today many variations can be found on this simple cake. There are numerous variations on the traditional pound cake, with certain countries and regions having distinctive styles. Pound cake also called for simple ingredients that most households could afford, a factor that remains a part of its popularity. Rather, it’s a hint at the ingredient list, a relic of a time when recipes were largely passed along orally. That's because it called for a pound of each of … There are plenty of popular variations of the traditional pound cake: Oil can be used instead of butter to produce a more moist cake, sour cream is sometimes added to produce a tangier cake, and additional leaveners are often used to lighten the cake. Although both may measure 10 inches in diameter, each holds a different amount of batter. It may be easier to think of this kind of cake in terms the French use. Pound Cake Tips from the Pros Prep before you start. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. If you are, that's your problem. Cake; Why is Pound Cake Called Pound Cake? Cream butter and sugar well. 4 hours ago | 0 view. Recipes and more delivered to your inbox. © Copyright 2020, Our Top 20 Most Cherished Christmas Cookies, Make-Ahead Breakfast Minis to Save Your Mornings, 15 Classic Sandwiches That Make Lunch Legendary, 14 Nights of Dinner Ideas All Under $2 Per Serving, 15 No-Yeast Breads for Quick and Easy Baking, 10 Easy Christmas Cookies for Once-a-Year Bakers, 10 Chicken Stew Recipes That Make for Comforting Dinners, 10 Leftover Turkey Meals to Freeze for Quick Weeknight Dinners, 16 Mom-Approved Christmas Cookies to Sweeten the Season, 18 Spicy Korean Recipes That Showcase Gochujang Chile Paste, call for a pound each of sugar, eggs, butter and flour, How to Make the Best Butter Cakes and Pound Cakes. ©2020 Verizon Media. The proportions are right there in the name! this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. Rather, it’s a hint at the ingredient list, a relic of a time when recipes were largely passed along orally. Classic Pound Cake Recipe by My Cake School | My Cake School That's it. If you’re fond of pound cake and looking for a new way to serve it, try making stuffed pound cake by filling the cake’s center with a thick, sweet mixture (like this cookies-and-cream cheese). In fact, it weighs about 4 pounds because you use these 4 simple ingredients that weigh a pound … (Tube pans have straight, high sides, while Bundt pans are more shallow and fluted.) Pound cakes are one of the easiest things to bake. Today, the humble pound cake’s construct has evolved to entail plenty of variations on the original concept. Of course, modern pound cakes can be dressed up in ways that the desserts originators likely wouldn’t have dreamed. Part of HuffPost Food & Drink. Most modern recipes for pound cake, however, are a … These can include the addition of flavoring agents (such as vanilla extract or almond extract) or dried fruit (such as currants or dried cranberries), as well as alterations to the original recipe to change the characteristics of the resulting pound cake. Though most popularly called a pound cake it is also known as a 4 quarter cake. The cake itself is extremely dense, since it doesn't rise as much as the American-style butter cake. We also found that some 10-inch tube pans hold 12 cups of batter while others hold 14 or 16 cups. Im using the pound cake recipe which ive used for years and never had a problem. No gift befits the food-obsessed people in your life like a cookbook. Grease and flour a 10 inch tube or bundt pan. Related: How to Make the Best Butter Cakes and Pound Cakes. At that time, the average person was unable to read or write, so recipes that could easily be spread by word of mouth tended to be the most popular. A traditional pound cake calls for one pound of butter, one pound of sugar, one pound of eggs, and one pound of flour. Pound cake is called a pound cake because that was the weight of several of the ingredients. Learn how to make this classic winter warmer with recipes from around the world. post #2 of 4 I thought I remembered you saying you were baking your pound cakes in 3 inch high pans instead of the 2 inch high pans. Why is pound cake called pound cake Pound cake is originally a recipe that calls for a pound of four ingredients: flour, butter, sugar and eggs. That's the beautiful thing about pound cake: it's a blank canvas -- that's pretty much food proof -- for whatever your heart desires. This cake gets its name because of how its ingredients can be measured: a pound of butter, a pound of sugar, a pound of eggs, and a pound of flour. This results in a large, dense cake not often suited to modern American tastes, though the style (if not the size) is still popular in Britain. A pound cake is a "pound cake" because the original recipe, from the early 1700s, called for one pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour. The … It's one of those cakes you can just whip together and impress people with. Pretty simple, huh? Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, then add the flour, a cup at a time, … You don't even need a recipe to make one because the recipe lies within the name. The amount of times people have been told that baking is an exact science is enough to scare anyone from getting creative in the kitchen. It gets the name of pound cake, because of how it’s made. It’s typically made in a bundt cake pan or … Allrecipes is part of the Meredith Food Group. Thanks . But the one on the left shows streaks – areas of dense, sodden cake. If someone asked you how much the average pound cake weighs, would you say a pound? Nope, it’s not because you will gain a pound by eating a slice…and no, not because it weighs a pound. 3 replies . Pound cake is actually called that because it calls for a pound each of butter and sugar, but also a pound each of eggs and flour, for a total of four pounds in all. Pound cake gets its name from the fact that it calls for a pound of flour, a pound of butter (yes! What is the actual weight of a pound cake? Originally, the recipe called for one pound each of flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. Roast beef is a classic main dish for holidays, family get-togethers, and elegant dinners alike. If so, you’ve been understandably tricked by this strangely named dessert staple. One of my fellow King Arthur Flour test bakers, Frank Tegethoff, recently called me into the test kitchen for show & tell. mfeagan Posted 24 Nov 2013 , 12:33am. Pound cake recipes calling for a tube pan won’t always fit in a Bundt pan. Given that one pound of ingredients was called for in those recipes, a true pound cake would weigh about four pounds total. The logic behind pound cake’s name might not be as intuitive in the present day, but the dessert itself will always be popular favorite. A cooking oil(typic… Why is it Called Pound Cake? It's one of those cakes you can just whip together and impress people with. And that's when great baking begins to happen. If that sounds like a lot of cake, you can cut the ingredients in half -- so long as the ratio remains the same, that's all that matters. Add comma separated list of ingredients to exclude from recipe. A traditional British Pound Cake recipe would specify one pound each of flour, butter, eggs (8 eggs), sugar, and several kinds of dried fruit (currants, sultanas, and raisins, with perhaps a lesser quantity of glacé cherries). (These quantities are too great for most modern families, but the cake can be made with half quantities or less.) The pound cake, a delightful dessert typically made in a bundt or loaf pan, is a popular confection, especially in the Southern states. As you can imagine, the richness of that recipe was beyond decadent. You don't even need a recipe to make one because the recipe lies within the name. The French name quatre-quarts, four quarters, comes from the fact that the cake is made from equal weights of its four main ingredients. Why is it called pound cake? The great thing about a pound cake is you don’t even need a recipe. This amount of ingredients made for large cakes, however, so they were usually shared among multiple families. The pound cake, a delightful dessert typically made in a bundt or loaf pan, is a popular confection, especially in the Southern states. However, it tends to be very dense, dry, and surprisingly lacking in flavor. This was a time when many people could not read; thus, the recipe was easy to remember. For instance, baking soda or baking powder may be incorporated to induce leavening during baking, resulting in a less dense pound cake. If so, you’ve been understandably tricked by this strangely named … Over the generations, it has been adjusted a bit here and there with many different variations available. Whether or not it contains any type of flavoring will stir up debate just about as much as questioning whether cornbread does or doesn’t contain sugar. The best recipes, kitchen tips and genius food facts. Heat oven to 350 degrees. ), a pound of sugar and a pound of eggs. Follow. A-Pound cake was so named because originally each ingredient weighed about a pound. A pund cake was originally called that bexause it involved a pound (one pound butter, one pound flour, one pound sugar, ect.) In English it is called "pound cake" for the same reason: originally the recipe included one pound each of flour, sugar, butter and eggs. Traditional pound cake is called such because it uses a pound of each of the ingredients. Pound cake, which originated in Europe in the first half of the 18th century, initially weighed four pounds. allrecipes.com - Tiffany Stevens. Spoiler: It's not because the cake weighs a pound. People have begun adding leavening to make it less dense; orange zest to give it a burst of flavor; chocolate to make it more, well, chocolatey. All Recipes. All rights reserved. And in truth, even 18th Century Britons didn’t necessarily have to make a four-pound cake if they wanted pound cake. Give it a try, you'll see. Pound cake is quite well known in France and is called 'quarte-quarts', or 'four quarters', a quarter referring to a pound. A traditional British Pound Cake recipe would specify one pound each of flour, butter, eggs (8 eggs), sugar, and several kinds of dried fruit (currants, sultanas, and raisins, with perhaps a lesser quantity of glacé cherries). The one on the right has a typical texture: an even, fairly close grain. Report. 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