Pound cake is quite well known in France and is called 'quarte-quarts', or 'four quarters', a quarter referring to a pound. 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. See the two slices of lemon cake above? It's one of those cakes you can just whip together and impress people with. Traditional pound cake is called such because it uses a pound of each of the ingredients. Heat oven to 350 degrees. 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. Oil is used by some to create a more moist pound cake; sour cream is added by others to lend a tang. But with a pound cake recipe -- one that you can cook off the top of your head -- experimentation becomes simple. That's it. Why is it called a pound cake? (In that scenario, such a pound cake would weigh the same as its name). Most modern recipes for pound cake, however, are a … Originally, the creation of the pound cake in the 1700s started with one pound each of sugar, butter, eggs, and flour. This guide to cooking roast beef will help you create a flavorful, moist, and tender roast. They’ve been around since as early as the 1700s, and the term traditionally referred to a cake that weighed four pounds. I wanted to make something a little more tender, fluffy, and flavorful. Though most popularly called a pound cake it is also known as a 4 quarter cake. Pound cake is an American English name for a type of fruit cake known in British English as a Madeira cake. 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. Pound cake first came about during the early 1700s in Britain. Pound Cake Tips from the Pros Prep before you start. 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). Its name originated from the ingredients used in quantities of English pounds. The fact that the cake hinted at even proportions meant that cooks in the 1700 could use a quarter pound of each ingredient and still end up with a pound cake. The … Cream butter and sugar well. For instance, baking soda or baking powder may be incorporated to induce leavening during baking, resulting in a less dense pound cake. A traditional pound cake calls for one pound of butter, one pound of sugar, one pound of eggs, and one pound of flour. But the one on the left shows streaks – areas of dense, sodden cake. The Carribean part of the world that speaks French add Rum to the cake for Christmas eve along with mashed bananas. Part of HuffPost Food & Drink. Pound Cake History Pound Cake History – The name (Pound Cake) comes from the fact that Why is it Called Pound Cake? Rather, it’s a hint at the ingredient list, a relic of a time when recipes were largely passed along orally. Add comma separated list of ingredients to include in recipe. If someone asked you how much the average pound cake weighs, would you say a pound? 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. It's one of those cakes you can just whip together and impress people with. Pound cake recipes calling for a tube pan won’t always fit in a Bundt pan. If so, you’ve been understandably tricked by this strangely named dessert staple. Pound cake also called for simple ingredients that most households could afford, a factor that remains a part of its popularity. It may be easier to think of this kind of cake in terms the French use. ), a pound of sugar and a pound of eggs. (These quantities are too great for most modern families, but the cake can be made with half quantities or less.) No gift befits the food-obsessed people in your life like a cookbook. Add comma separated list of ingredients to exclude from recipe. In fact, it weighs about 4 pounds because you use these 4 simple ingredients that weigh a pound … Give it a try, you'll see. The reason being is that the 4 main ingredients all call for 1 lb each. That's because it called for a pound of each of … of each of the ingredients. Pretty simple, huh? Given that one pound of ingredients was called for in those recipes, a true pound cake would weigh about four pounds total. The pound cake, a delightful dessert typically made in a bundt or loaf pan, is a popular confection, especially in the Southern states. That’s because a classic pound cake consisted of 1 pound of each of the following FOUR ingredients, Butter; This amount of ingredients made for large cakes, however, so they were usually shared among multiple families. That's the beautiful thing about pound cake: it's a blank canvas -- that's pretty much food proof -- for whatever your heart desires. You can also top your cake with a seasonal icing, like pumpkin, or add in buttermilk for a tangy flavor boost. Im using the pound cake recipe which ive used for years and never had a problem. Rather, it’s a hint at the ingredient list, a relic of a time when recipes were largely passed along orally. 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. Pound cakes are one of the easiest things to bake. 4 hours ago | 0 view. If so, you’ve been understandably tricked by this strangely named … Follow. Can’t we be pleased with both? Over the generations, it has been adjusted a bit here and there with many different variations available. 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. 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. The oldest recipes for pound cake call for a pound each of sugar, eggs, butter and flour; two variations of these types of pound cakes can be found in Amelia Simmons’ famous 1796 book, American Cookery. The proportions are right there in the name! If someone asked you how much the average pound cake weighs, would you say a pound? Thanks . So we add sour cream - or nonfat Greek yogurt - to add tang, tenderness, and moisture into the cake. 3 replies . The one on the right has a typical texture: an even, fairly close grain. If you are, that's your problem. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. We also found that some 10-inch tube pans hold 12 cups of batter while others hold 14 or 16 cups. Carefully read through the entire recipe, and prepare any special ingredients, such as chopped fruits or toasted nuts, before starting to mix the batter. However, it tends to be very dense, dry, and surprisingly lacking in flavor. (Tube pans have straight, high sides, while Bundt pans are more shallow and fluted.) Allrecipes is part of the Meredith Food Group. And that's when great baking begins to happen. Pound cake gets its name from the fact that it calls for a pound of flour, a pound of butter (yes! Pound cake is called a pound cake because that was the weight of several of the ingredients. Pound cake gets its name from the fact that it calls for a pound of flour, a pound of butter (yes! Why is Pound Cake Called a Pound Cake? Classic Pound Cake Recipe by My Cake School | My Cake School As you can imagine, the richness of that recipe was beyond decadent. ©2020 Verizon Media. 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. It’s typically made in a bundt cake pan or … 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. ), a pound of sugar and a pound of eggs. It gets the name of pound cake, because of how it’s made. All Recipes. In English it is called "pound cake" for the same reason: originally the recipe included one pound each of flour, sugar, butter and eggs. Today, the humble pound cake’s construct has evolved to entail plenty of variations on the original concept. Although both may measure 10 inches in diameter, each holds a different amount of batter. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, then add the flour, a cup at a time, … The French name quatre-quarts, four quarters, comes from the fact that the cake is made from equal weights of its four main ingredients. Pound cakes first originated in Europe. Originally, the recipe called for one pound each of flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. 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. Recipes and more delivered to your inbox. One of my fellow King Arthur Flour test bakers, Frank Tegethoff, recently called me into the test kitchen for show & tell. 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. All rights reserved. Roast beef is a classic main dish for holidays, family get-togethers, and elegant dinners alike. mfeagan Posted 24 Nov 2013 , 12:33am. 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