Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe

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This Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe is moist, tender, buttery and melt in your mouth. This is a classic Southern dessert recipe is passed down from generation to the generation that will always be a hit. With a lovely texture unlike my Kentucky Butter Cake, Sock It To Me Cake, Butter Pound Cake and Sour Cream Pound Cake, this is a recipe that stands out from all the rest!

Cream cheese pound cake on a white cake stand with berries.

There are some recipes so entrenched in your spirit that they almost become part of the family. You know them inside and out, and no cookbook is necessary to execute their greatness.

For my family, it is definitely the pound cakes that fit snugly into this category. We can mix them together in mere moments in all types of flavor including the classic sour cream pound cake, lemon-flavored, or even a chocolate pound cake.

I learned how to make these down cake recipes from my Big Mama as a young girl. She’d watch me patiently as I sifted large bowls of flour and paused frequently to sneak tastes of the delicious batter. We chatted about my school day or she’d tell me stories to make me laugh until my belly hurt.

The care and meticulous nature in the baking process my Big Mama taught was about than just learning to bake; I was learning about my family’s deep rooted traditions and the fabric of our heritage.

These are the same traditions I hope to pass on to my daughter and to the grandchildren I’ll welcome into my kitchen.

Table of Contents

Why You Will Love This Recipe

You know a recipe is guaranteed to be great when it’s ingredients include what seems to be a pound of butter. Yes, each ingredient is vital in its own way, but butter is what makes the mouth water and the world go ‘round.

I mean, who doesn’t love a cake that is first and foremost all about creamy, lick your lips butter. I’ll be the first to raise my hand and say, I do.

The flavor of this cake is simply irresistible; it’s buttery and simultaneously dense and light in a way that doesn’t seem possible. Perfect for so many different occasions!

It’s easy to make, incredibly delicious and perfect to share with people you love or even strangers you want to impress.

A cream cheese pound cake on a white cake stand with a spatula pulling a slice out.

What Is Pound Cake?

The name “pound cake” derived from the original recipes that contained one pound of every one of its ingredients: sugar, flour, butter and eggs.

In the days when many people couldn’t read, this made it simple to memorize the recipe. I’m sure you can imagine that a cake with four pounds of ingredients makes for one hefty cake.

As time has gone on, the proportions of the recipe were adjusted to make a smaller, lighter cake. Different ingredients are also added these days to create different flavors, though the basics remain much the same recipe to recipe.

Ingredients You Need

To create a super smooth melt in your mouth texture, these are the ingredients that come together perfectly for this homemade pound cake with cream cheese:

Ingredients to make a pound cake with cream cheese on the counter.

Butter: Butter is always a crucial ingredient in pound cakes. In fact, I don’t know many pound cakes that don’t have this at the very start. You begin with room temperature high quality and high fat butter which melts into granulated sugar once mixed on high speed. That, in addition to cream cheese, makes this cake absolutely magical! It is rich and creamy to start and mixes until light and fluffy.

Oil: Vegetable or canola oil contributes an incredible amount of moisture to a pound cake because it remains liquid at room temperature, whereas butter does not. This means that, once baked, this cake contains two sources of buttery, smooth texture.

Cake Flour: I opt for cake flour in this cake versus all purpose flour. If you don’t have any at home, make whip up a batch with this cake flour recipe. It develops less gluten so it doesn’t become as tough when mixed and baked.

Eggs: This cake has a large amount of eggs (SIX!) which act as stabilizers in the cake. The yolks add moistness but the whites dry out the batter so they balance each other out.

Cream Cheese: Tangy, sweet, and smooth, cream cheese makes for a delicious addition to this pound cake. I’m a Philadelphia kind of girl but you can use whatever you’d like! Regardless of what you use, be sure to bring it to room temperature before use.

How to Make Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Making a homemade pound cake with cream cheese isn’t difficult there are some key tips so it comes out perfectly! Here’s an overview of the steps that go into making it. Check the recipe card for detailed instructions.

Add the butter, oil or shortening, and cream cheese to mixer bowl and beat for 2 minutes on high speed.
Add the sugar and beat on high speed for an additional seven minutes until very pale yellow and fluffy. There is no leavening in this cake because we add ample air to this cake by having a very long creaming period.

Softened butter in a mixing bowl with an attachment to stand mixer.

Add the eggs one at a time, mix well after one added and scrape down the sides as needed.
Turn your mixer down to its lowest speed, slowly add the flour into the batter in two increments, and then add the salt. Be careful not to overbeat.

Flour added to the butter and sugar mixture.

Add the vanilla extract, scrape down sides, and mix until just combined and turn off mixer.
Pour the cake batter into a prepared bundt pan, and bake for 1 hour and 15 -20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Adding the vanilla to the batter in the mixing bowl.

Cream cheese pound cake batter poured into a bundt pan.

Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert the cake on a serving plate. Let it cool for at least an hour or until the cake is cool to the touch. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Finished cream cheese pound cake dusted with powdered sugar.

How to Store

Leftovers: If kept in an airtight container or tightly wrapped, pound cakes can be kept for 4-5 days at room temperature. This cake should be kept in a cool environment so if you live in a warmer/humid climate I’d recommend storing the cake in the fridge.

Freezer: Wrap the cake in aluminum foil or plastic wrap then put it in a heavy-duty freezer bag. A frozen pound cake will keep for 4-6 months. When ready to consume, thaw overnight in the fridge.

Variations

Here are some amazing variations and ideas to refresh the traditional cake:

Lemon– Just add the zest of one juicy lemon to the batter, and drizzle a lemon glaze over the top of the baked cake. Perfect for a summer dessert!

Raspberry- Mix in some fresh or frozen raspberries into the batter, or swirl them in before baking. Or, top the finished cake with a raspberry sauce or a raspberry cream cheese frosting. Yum!

Chocolate- For all you chocolate lovers out there, I’ve got a chocolate cream cheese pound cake just for you. Just add some cocoa powder or melted chocolate to the batter for a chocolate twist. Or, top the finished cake with a chocolate ganache or chocolate cream cheese frosting. Delish!

Carrot- If you’re feeling a little more veggie-minded, grate some carrots and mix them into the batter for a carrot cake twist. You could also add some raisins, nuts, or coconut for an extra burst of flavor.

Spiced – For a warm, spicy twist on the classic, just add some ground cinnamon to the batter, and top the finished cake with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting. It’s the perfect fall dessert!

Pumpkin or Sweet Potato- For all you pumpkin spice fans out there, mix in some pureed pumpkin or sweet potato and a pinch of pumpkin pie spice to give the cake a fall twist. So good!

I hope these variations inspire y’all to get creative in the kitchen and bake up a storm!

Expert Tips

Don’t underestimate the importance of the creaming process! This step involves mixing the fat and sugar together. As you cream, the jagged edges of the sugar crystals drag in air, lightening the butter and creating a fluffy mixture. This is what makes for the most tender and moist cake ever!

Room temperature butter and cream cheese are essential! It speeds things up but also ensures that you incorporate enough air during the cream process.

Make sure that you do not over mix once you add your flour to this cake. Because flour has gluten, if you over mix it, the texture will change. As soon as your flour is incorporated into the batter, stop mixing.

Be sure to grease your Bundt pan VERY well. Even the non-stick pans need a little extra love. This homemade cake release is a godsend but you can totally use a spray or butter and a dusting of flour.

Do you taste the cream cheese in this cake?

No, not at all. Don’t be put off by the idea of cream cheese in your cake; it does not add an unappealing cheese flavor. Instead, the cream cheese creates a smooth texture and a slight tang that’ll have you smacking your lips.

Where did pound cake originate?

Pound cake originated in Europe in the early 18th century; since then it’s traveled far and wide, becoming one of the most popular cake variations around the world. In the US, the first known cookbook written by an African-American, Abby Fisher, is called What Mrs. Fisher Knows About Old Southern Cooking. Mrs. Fisher, born a slave, wrote and published a cookbook with two different Pound Cake Recipes. Mrs. Fisher’s recipes stayed true to her Southern roots and helped to create the outline for more recipes to come. Today, Pound Cakes have become a staple for bakers all across the South

A piece of cream cheese pound cake on a plate with fruit, held by a woman with a fork.

More Amazing Cake Recipes

Love this recipe? Well I’ve got plenty more just like it! Check out a few more of GBC’s BEST cake recipes:

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