Buttermilk Pound Cake

I grew up eating lots of frozen Sara Lee pound cake, loving its dense texture and buttery flavor. My mom even made ice cream cakes for our birthdays out of pound cake, so it holds a special place in my heart.

Adding buttermilk to a pound cake batter is a fun little twist: It adds an oh-so-subtle tang and plays well with the copious amounts of eggs, sugar, and butter in the batter. Plus, it makes the texture of the cake extra soft and tender. This beauty of a pound cake is baked in a Bundt pan for an easy-but-impressive look that requires no adornment beyond a fine sprinkle of powdered sugar.

Besides imparting its signature tangy flavor, the acid in buttermilk helps tenderize the gluten to give cake a softer texture. Buttermilk also reacts with baking soda to help cakes rise, but you’ll notice this pound cake doesn’t have any baking soda — it’s omitted because we want a denser texture and don’t need it to rise much.

1. Let the butter, buttermilk, and eggs sit out. You’ll want all of these ingredients at room temperature so the batter mixes evenly and gets the right texture.
2. Butter and flour the pan. To make sure all the nooks and crannies of the Bundt pan are greased and floured, I like to brush them with a paste of melted butter and flour. It’s best to use a fine-bristled pastry brush rather than a silicone brush for even coating.
3. Cream the butter and sugar. Cream the butter first to get it nice and fluffy, then beat in the sugar and eggs.
4. Alternate the dry ingredients with the buttermilk. Beat in the flour and salt in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk mixed with some vanilla. I’m partial to the seeds scraped from a vanilla bean since it really shines through this simple cake, but you can also use vanilla extract or paste.
5. Tap the pan. Pick up the filled Bundt pan and tap it gently against the counter a few times to settle any air bubbles.
6. Bake it low and slow. The dense batter and tall Bundt pan means that you want to bake at a lower temperature (325ºF) to give the cake a chance to cook evenly. Be patient!
7. Be patient with the cooling, too. Let the cake sit in the pan for 30 minutes before flipping it out, then let it cool completely on the rack.

Nope! Buttermilk pound cake can be tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days, no need for refrigeration.

If you find yourself with leftover buttermilk, you can freeze it in ice cube trays or use it in other recipes, such as scones, muffins, waffles, or pancakes. Or go the savory route and mix it into salad dressings (ranch forever!), savory quick breads, or as a coating for fried chicken.

Read more: 30+ Recipes That Use Up a Carton of Buttermilk

I love eating this pound cake as is, but it also makes a wonderful bed for macerated berries and fruit, can be cut up and layered into a trifle, or simply topped with scoops of ice cream if you want to channel my mom’s favorite way to serve pound cake.