Recipe: Lemon Pound Cake

I love hosting dinner parties and celebrations. Since I hosted Easter this year, I got to choose the menu! When it comes to dessert, I prefer something light, appropriate, and delicious. Our family loves lemon, so I landed on a recipe for Lemon Pound Cake published in the spring catalog from Penzey's, my favorite spice store. The flavor was rich but not overwhelming, it cut beautifully, and had a great texture! This dessert would be fitting for any spring or summer occasion.

Lemon Pound Cake Recipe
Cake:

2 C flour (I used cake flour)

1 tsp baking powder

2 sticks (1/2 lb.) butter, softened

1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)

2 C granulated sugar

1/4 C finely grated lemon peel

6 large eggs

11/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/4 C whole milk

1/4 C fresh lemon juice

Glaze:

1 C + 1 T powdered sugar

2 T  fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Move a rack to the middle of the oven. Preheat oven to 325°. Grease and flour a 2-quart plain or fluted tube pan and set aside. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt (if using) in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar and lemon peel at medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the VANILLA and beat well. Reduce the mixing speed to low. In 3 batches beginning and ending with the flour mixture, add the flour alternately with milk and lemon juice and beat just until combined. Spoon the batter into the pan and smooth the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and springs back when touched and/or a toothpick inserted in several places comes out clean, about 45-55 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes and then remove from pan onto a rack to cool completely. To prepare the glaze, stir the powdered sugar into the lemon juice and keep stirring until smooth and thick. When the cake is completely cool, set the rack over a baking sheet or waxed paper. Drizzle the glaze over the cake, letting it drip down the sides. 

A few of my side notes:

• If you don't want to buy an entire bag of cake flour, make your own like I did! 
• Make sure you use fresh lemons. I had a couple that I had purchased almost two weeks ago and started using them first, and the peel didn't grate well at all. I changed to a freshly purchased lemon and it grated like a dream!
• I used salted butter and omitted the salt in the recipe.
• I made a fresh whipped cream to accompany, and it was the perfect touch!
• I garnished with fanned strawberries, but raspberries, blueberries, or even blackberry would be tasty.

original recipe found here