Secret Recipe Club: Cake Show Pound Cake

.  Woop, woop!  It's SRC time again!

It's funny how a month seems so long yet I feel like SRC posts come around so quickly.  But I love it!  And I'm even more eager for this months reveal since I was sadly orphaned last month [i.e., the person assigned to me didn't post...sad day!].  Here's hoping it doesn't happen again.

Fortunately, Eliot's Eats won't have that problem.  Yep, that was my assigned blog for the month and what an interesting one at that!  The blog is run by Debra and her husband, and of course, their cat Eliot, which you can guess who the blog is named after.  From what I read, Debra and her hubby are strong advocates of eating locally grown foods as well as growing their own and much of their blog is about that adventure.  Props to them for taking such an adamant stance, I think we can all learn from them!

Browsing through their long list of recipes was rather fun, Debra and her husband have an array of dishes and themes, including a soup challenge I found rather intriguing!  So if anyone is looking for some fabulous soup ideas, click on over to their blog and there you go!  Some of my favorites include Yukon Gold Baked Potato Soup, Cheesy Chicken Tortilla Soup, and Dilled Potato Soup.

But when it came to picking out a sweet, I knew almost immediately what I needed to make.  Mmhmm, Cake Show Pound Cake [from Debra's very own mother].  C'mon, if something is Cake Show worthy, it has to be outrageous, right?  You got it.  And Pound Cake is one of those desserts I have yet ventured to try, so why not!

And folks, this deserved to win two blue ribbons in that cake show.  Now, I don't have much to compare this particular pound cake to besides Sara Lee Pound Cakes [I know, I must be sheltered], but I do think I can point out quality when I taste it.  This Pound Cake is dense and rich, but in a subtly rich kind of way.  The cake itself carries only a hint of sweetness, with a slightly crunchy topping, and that signature dark rim around the light yellow interior.  Truly a classic.  I recommend serving the cake with a healthy topping of whipped cream and some fresh-cut fruit would be delectable as well.  Nom, nom, nom!

To Debra and the hubs, thanks for this wonderful recipe!  It was a cinch to make and produced such quality loaves, I know this will be in my baking repertoire from here on out.  To Eliots Eats!  .

My Notes:

• After tasting the pound cake, I kind of wished there was a tad more almond flavor.  So, to resolve this slight issue, I made an Almond Whipped Cream, which turned out too-good-to-be-true and I will be making several times over.  It was that good.
• Instead of using loaf pans, you can also use an angel food pan, still baking for the 2 hours listed.

From Eliots Eats

Ingredients:

1 lb. unsalted butter

3 c. sugar

6 eggs

4 c. flour

3/4 c. milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 300F.  Spray two 9x5-inch loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. 
3. Add flour alternately with milk, vanilla extract and almond extract.  Beat one minute at high speed.  Divide batter evenly into pans.  Bake 2 hours.  Let cakes cool in pans before inverting.

Yield: 2 loaves