Having my followers name me “The Queen of Pound Cakes” is one of my greatest honors, which is why I only share the best with y’all like my big mama’s Cream Cheese pound cake recipe. Passed down from generation to generation, this moist and buttery cake melts in your mouth. The cream cheese gives it a different flavor profile from a classic pound cake making it so unique. This cake is legit pure nostalgia and deliciousness, all wrapped up in one epic treat.
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Cream cheese pound cake ingredients
- Butter: I like to use a European high fat unsalted butter here. If you only have salted, just leave the salt out in the recipe. Make sure it’s room temp.
- Cream Cheese: Go with full fat. Make sure it is softened too.
- Oil: This gives extra insurance so the cake doesn’t dry out. Grab a neutral one like vegetable or canola so it doesn’t distract from the flavor.
- Granulated Sugar: For sweetness and lift during the creaming period.
- Eggs: These are the stabilizers in our cake. Make sure they are room temp.
- Cake Flour: This is gonna give us a softer more tender crumb versus using all-purpose. If you don’t have any, you can make your own cake flour with all-purpose flour and cornstarch y’all.
- Vanilla: You can also replace the extract with vanilla bean paste for more intensity.
How to make cream cheese pound cake
Mix Butter and Sugar
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Step 1: Add the butter, oil or shortening, and cream cheese to a mixer bowl and beat for 2 minutes on high speed.
Step 2: 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.
Finish Mixing and Bake
Step 3: Add the eggs one at a time, mix well after each is added and scrape down the sides as needed.
Step 4: 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.
Step 5: Add the vanilla extract, scrape down sides, and mix until just combined and turn off mixer.
Step 6: Pour the cake batter into a prepared bundt pan.
Step 7: Bake for 1 hour and 15 -20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool then sprinkle with powdered sugar on top.
Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or shortening
- 8 ounces cream cheese room temp, one brick
- 2 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 3 cups sifted cake flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- powdered sugar for garnish
Instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 325°F then liberally spray a 12-cup bundt pan with non-stick baking spray or grease with butter or shortening and then flour.
- In your mixer bowl, add butter, oil or shortening, and cream cheese and beat for 2 minutes on high speed. Slowly add in sugar 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.
- Next, add eggs, one at a time, combining well after each addition and scraping down the sides as needed.
- Turn your mixer down to its lowest speed, and slowly add flour into batter in two increments then add salt. Be careful not to over beat.
- Lastly, add in vanilla extract, scrape down sides and mix until just combined and turn off mixer.
- Pour cake batter into 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.
- Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert cake on serving plate for at least an hour or until the cake is cool to the touch.
- Dust with powdered sugar and serve.
Video
Notes
How to store cream cheese pound cake
Once cooled, either tightly wrap in plastic wrap so no air gets in or add to a cake container.How long will it last in the fridge?
I don’t recommend placing this cake in the fridge since it will dry it out. Store at room temp so that texture stays on point. It will last for up to 4-5 days.Can I freeze ?
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 and serve it up!Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Don’t skimp on the creaming! This is what makes for the most tender and moist cake ever! Don’t speed it up. Be patient and let those sugar crystals totally melt into that butter making it light and fluffy.
- Room Temp Ingredients: In order to make that batter as smooth and perfectly combined as possible, make sure you pull out the room temp butter and eggs y’all.
- Make over mix boos!: Once you add your flour to this cake, slow down that mixer and stop as soon as the flour as incorporated. If you keep on going, the gluten will overactive and create a dense cake.
- Grease it Up!: Even non-stick baking pans need a little extra love y’all. This homemade cake release is a Godsend but you can totally use a spray or go old school with shortening then flour in the pan like my big mama did.
Recipe Variations
- Lemon It Up: Turn this into a lemon pound cake by adding the zest of one juicy lemon to the batter and drizzling a lemon glaze over the top of the baked cake. Citrus goals boo!
- Berry Textures: Fold some fresh or frozen berries like blueberries or raspberries into the batter before baking. That’s so good y’all!
- Chocolate Vibes: Add some cocoa powder or melted chocolate to the batter for a chocolate twist.
- Spice it Up Boos: Toss some warm spices into the batter like some ground cinnamon or nutmeg. It makes that batter super cozy.
- Fall Twist: For all you pumpkin spice boos, mix in some pureed pumpkin or sweet potato and a pinch of pumpkin pie spice to give this cream cheese pound cake recipe the ultimate fall vibes.
Recipe help
Naw boos, it doesn’t. Don’t be put off by the idea of cream cheese in your cake. It gives such a smooth texture and slight tang that really makes this cake irresistible y’all.
Honestly boos, I recommend cake flour for a finer more tender crumb. It can be used but just know that the texture won’t be exactly the same.
Most old school pound cakes don’t have leavenings so you gotta rely on your creaming period. That means you cannot skimp on your butter and sugar mixing time because this is a period that incorporates more air into your cake boos.
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I made this recipe due to it being highly recommended on another site. Mixing went well and it rose beautifully. The taste in is where things are a little iffy for me. This calls back to a classic storebought Sara Lee pound cake in texture and taste but it was way too sweet for me. Between the unsalted butter and only a half teaspoon of salt as replacement it wasn’t enough to offset the almost melted ice cream flavor of this cake. Next time I’m definitely either using salted butter or upping the salt to a teaspoon and a half. I do enjoy the base of this recipe however and will be coming back to it again in the future.
I followed this recipe to a T, except I used 400g of castor sugar in this recipe. I think it’s still a bit too sweet for me served at room temperature, so I tried putting the cale slices in the fridge and some in the freezer. Both frozen and cool cake slices taste good, the coldness cut down the sweet taste. I prefer the texture of frozen cake slices tho, remind me of those Sally cake they sell in the supermarket. If I didn’t cut back the sugar I wouldn’t be able to swallow it cuz it’s just tooo sweet for me.
Help! What am I doing wrong? I set my oven at the appropriate temp, grease and flour my pan properly and my cake gets wayyy too dark on the outside. What am I doing wrong?
Paige- check the pan u are using. I’ve read somewhere that the darker the pan,the darker the cake or bread.
Do you think I could mix in some mini chocolate chips dusted with flour?
Absolutely!
Is it possible to make this with gluten free flour, Bob red mill 1to1? My daughter is gluten free?
I have successfully used the cup for cup gluten free flours in my baking.
I would like to make cupcakes instead for a COVID safe party everyone would have individual servings. Howong would they be baked?
You would definitely need to play this by ear since I haven’t baked these as cupcakes. But I would start checking around the 17 minute mark to see if they are done.
If you have an instant read thermometer a cupcake is done when it reaches 200 – 205 degrees farenheight. It’s how I check all my cakes and muffins.
Best pound cake I have ever baked. My two year old grandson who eats NOTHING had three slices. The only thing I did differently is the same thing I have done to all my pound cake recipes for years – add a little instant pudding. This will be my go to pound cake recipe for years to come
Hello!! This cake was super amazing! I wanted to know if you thought it would be an okay idea to replace a little of the flour with cocoa powder or add some additional liquid so that i could make a chocolate version of this? I know there’s already a chocolate pound cake recipe out there, but not with this texture!
This recipe is the bomb!!! Will be making it again!
OMG this is sooo good! It was not heavy like some cakes can be. Anybody reading this has to at least try this recipe because you won’t try another. I gave some to daughter and at first bite she said she said this was better than her recipe. She also is an avid cook and has won baking contests before so a genuine compliment. Another cudos to Jocelyn she was very explanatory in combining ingredients and length of time in mixing. If this is an example of grandbaby recipes, I definitely have to try more.
The Cream Cheese Pound Cake Recipe was absolutely great. It is the best pound cake that I have ever had. It’s moist and tasty.