I can’t lie to y’all. My Big Mama’s sour cream pound cake was about as famous as a cake could be in Winona, MS. She figured out that the right amount of sour cream would keep it moist and tender while letting the butter and richness shine. It also had the type of tight crumb that pound cakes envy. Barely any air pockets boos. Just like my family’s classic pound cake, it’s a hit! Watch my tutorial video below so you can learn how to make it just like she did.
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Video Tutorial
How to Make Sour Cream Pound Cake
These step-by-step photos show how to make a pound cake with sour cream, but be sure to check the recipe card below for the full ingredient list and detailed instructions. Skip to the → Best Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
1. Cream the butter and sugar
Add the butter and sugar to your stand mixer bowl and beat on high speed until pale and fluffy.
2. Add the eggs one at a time
Mix well after each egg, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
3. Mix in the dry ingredients
Turn the mixer to its lowest speed and add the flour in two increments, followed by the salt and optional baking soda.
4. Finish the sour cream cake batter
Add the sour cream and vanilla, then scrape down the bowl and mix just until everything comes together.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan
Transfer the batter to your greased 12-cup pan and smooth the top into an even layer.
6. Bake and cool your sour cream Bundt cake
Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan, then invert and let the cake cool completely.
PRO TIP: Start checking your cake at the 1 hour and 10 minute mark. Your tester should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no wet batter. Don’t keep baking it just because the crust isn’t super dark.
Full Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 3 cups cake flour sifted
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp baking soda (optional!) I don't usually add this since I think pound cakes don't need it so this optional.
- 1 cup sour cream room temperature
- 2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Start by preheating your oven to 325 F then liberally spray a 12 cup bundt pan with non-stick baking spray.
- In your stand mixer bowl, add butter and sugar and mix for 3-4 minutes on high speed until very pale yellow and fluffy.
- Next add eggs, one at a time, combining well after each addition and scraping down the sides of your bowl as needed.
- Turn your mixer down to its lowest speed, and slowly add flour into batter in two increments then add salt and baking soda. Be careful not to overbeat.
- Lastly add in sour cream and 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 15-25 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 touch.
Notes
How to Store
- Room Temp: Once the cake is completely cool, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or store it in an airtight cake container. It will stay fresh at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: Wrap the whole cake or individual slices tightly in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw while still wrapped at room temp.
Nutrition
Recipe Tips
- Get every nook of that pan! Coat the center tube and all those Bundt pan grooves well. My homemade cake release is the truth, but baking spray with flour will also get your cake out clean.
- Go with high-fat butter. European-style butter has less water and more fat, so it gives this cake an even richer flava. I prefer unsalted, but salted works too. Just leave the added salt out.
- Keep the mixer low and stop as soon as the dry ingredients disappear. Too much mixing will make the crumb tough.
- Measure the sour cream. Big Mama figured out the sweet spot with one level cup. It gives the cake moisture and tang without weighing the batter down.
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Serving Ideas
- Keep It Classic: Dust the cooled cake with powdered sugar and serve it with fresh berries or a dollop of whipped cream. It truly doesn’t need much else.
- Go All Out: Warm up a slice and add vanilla ice cream, strawberry ice cream, strawberry sauce, caramel sauce, or chocolate ganache. Pick your fave and get into it boos!
Recipe Help
Your eggs were probably too cold or added too quickly. Scrape down the bowl and keep going. The batter should smooth back out once you add the flour.
You baked it a lil too long or added too much flour. Start checking the cake at 1 hour and 10 minutes, and spoon and level your flour if you aren’t weighing it. Also, stop mixing as soon as the flour disappears.
Yep! Pound cake batter is thick, so the outside sets while the center is still rising and creates that crack. It will end up on the bottom once you flip the cake anyway, so don’t sweat it boo.
The center was probably underbaked, or the oven door was opened too early. Keep the door closed for at least the first hour, then test the thickest part of the cake before pulling it out.
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Can i make this in 2 9′ cake pans? If so, how should i change cooking time? Thanks in advance!
It might be more like 3 9 inch pans because this cake makes a lot of batter. You will also shorten your baking time a lot.
I would love to make this cake. I don’t want to use 3 cups of sugar what can I put in its place? Will 1/4 cup work
No that will totally change the chemistry of the cake unfortunately. If you want, you can cut the entire recipe in half which would bring you to 1 1/2 cups of sugar and you could use just a cup and it should still be fine but I would definitely not go down to that amount. Also you can use a sugar replacer like Swerve.
I MADE THIS CAKE 3 TIMES. THE FIRST WAS WOW, GREAT. DID IT AGAIN, IT HAD A LAYER OF UNBAKED DOUGH. UGH! OK I DID SOMETHING WRONG, DID A THIRD TIME, UGH, UGH, THE SAME LAYER OF DOUGH. KNOWING I FOLLOWED RECIPE TO THE LETTER, I HAD MY OVEN TESTED MAYBE THERMO PROBLEM, NOPE. WHAT HAPPENED, I NOTED ON THE SOUR CREAM CAKE PICTURE THE SAME LINE OF DOUGH. WHERE DID I GO WRONG. CAKE ONE WAS DEELISH, HOORAY, GREAT!
This happened to me when I didn’t allow all of my ingredients to come to room temperature. The first time I know I did but I feel like the second time I didn’t let the eggs get to room temperature like I did the butter and sour cream.
If I only have salted butter, do I still add the salt and baking soda?
You can omit the salt but still keep the baking soda.
Hello,
I don’t have cake flour on hand. Can I use regular flour?
You can make your own cake flour using this recipe: https://grandbaby-cakes.com/how-to-make-cake-flour/
This cake was AMAZING! I will be using this recipe again, and again, and again! This was my first time using cake flour but it won’t be my last. I added 1 tbsp of lemon extract but kept everything the same in instructions. FANTASTIC!
Ok I made the pound cake. The first time it came out perfect. I did it the second time and it came out big and over the cake pan can you tell me why? But it was good didn’t last no more then one day at my house.
Very good, everyone enjoyed it.
I have made this cake three times. I shared with family and friends and they love it.
Thanks for this great recipe for Covid-19 lockdown baking!!!!
Strawberries are ripening on nearby farms!
Been making this recipe for forty five years. None better and I’ve tried many.