Last Saturday served as a perfect example of why I dread the coming winter. It was a frigid day filled with misty rain and capped by a gloomy, gray sky. The slick streets were inundated with horrible Charlotte traffic. Depressed by the lack of sunlight for taking photos, I was nevertheless trekking to the store and to my parents’ house to gather materials for a cake. If you’d caught a glimpse of me, you might’ve mistaken me for a little black raincloud; in fact, all I needed was to take Winnie’s cue and strap a balloon around myself for the illusion to be complete. I scowled about the drivers who neglected to use their turn signals, griped to myself about the parking situation at the store, stepped in a billion ice-cold puddles, and bought a plate for my cake only to find it was “not for food use.” Humpf harrumpf humpflumpf! Finally, I grumpily turned into my parents’ neighborhood to borrow a tube pan from my mom.
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When I finally arrived at my parents’ house, I was thrilled to see the warm, orange glow of the kitchen cut through the side windows into the gray morning light. Finally, some relief and refuge from the weather and from my mood. Indeed, I walked in the door and what should greet me but the smell of freshly made pumpkin pancakes oozing with butter, syrup, sugar-free caramel sauce, and whipped cream. And don’t forget the sizzle of turkey sausages on the side! My mom was standing there channeling June Cleaver (who am I kidding? June has nothing on her) flipping delicious Low-Carb Pumpkin Pancakes while my dad read the paper and anticipated his plateful. Shame on me for wallowing in my mood! My faithful God had arranged such a sweet homecoming for me despite my scowl.
Flipping some delicious Low-Carb Pumpkin Pancakes. If you look closely, you can see my mom’s Mii Cupcakes in the background!
Low-Carb Pumpkin Pancakes served with butter, syrup, sugar-free caramel, and sugar-free whipped cream. Side of turkey sausage.
Dad enjoying his breakfast.
Food plays such a prominent role in my family, and certain dishes in my mind are associated with comforting or joyful memories. The smorgasbord of silly appetizers at our New Year’s Eve game night, the cinnamon rolls and egg casserole on Christmas morning, Dad’s amazing pork butt and slaw, the chicken and dumplings we always clamored for, monkey bread! Milk toast! Sausages, peppers and onions! I could go on and on. It’s no wonder that walking into a comforting kitchen filled with delicious scents and a welcoming plate of breakfast truly felt like coming home — not just coming to borrow a tube pan. My spirits were lifted, and as I drove home, I was prepared for a day of baking another lovely family memory: the richest, most dense and moist pound cake you’ve ever tasted. It’s iced with a simple caramel frosting and served alongside some Southern fried apples.
The best pound cake ever in the history of the universe, hands down. I’m not even worried about overselling it.
Let me see if I can explain how amazing this cake is. The cream cheese imparts a richness to the already buttery batter, and results in a very dense, smooth cake. Cutting into the cake is like slicing into butter, and it’s lovely served slightly chilled. My usual complaint with pound cakes is that they’re dry even with a glaze, but this one stays perfectly moist throughout its entire baking time. The frosting has a sultry caramel flavor without the fuss of normal caramel making, and is the perfect complement to the buttery cake. As for the apples, those were my addition! What with the nice fall days we’ve been having (well, except for the miserable weather from last week), warm Southern spiced apples sounded like a delicious accompaniment to a cool cake. And maybe there was a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream in there somewhere too!
This is absolutely one of those must-bake recipes. One bite and you’ll be daydreaming all day about slicing yourself off another piece! And what a lovely dessert to share with family. I drove back to my parents’ house on Sunday to drop some off for them, and my dad sent me an email from work the next day saying he was enjoying a slice. I hope once you taste your first forkful, this cake will become part of your family’s own food memories.
Cream Cheese Pound Cake with Easy Caramel Frosting
Recipe By: Southern Living
Yields: 12Cream Cheese Pound Cake Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon saltCaramel Frosting Ingredients:
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butterDirections:
Make the pound cake: beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed of an electric mixer 2 minutes or until creamy. Gradually add sugar and beat 5-7 minutes until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and beat only until yellow disappears. Stir in vanilla.Combine flour and salt and add to creamed mixture beating on low speed of electric mixture just until blended after each addition. Pour into greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. Fill a 2-cup ovenproof measuring cup with water and place in oven with cake (keeps it moist!). Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour and 45 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean (check in several areas of the cake to be sure it’s completely done). Let cool on wire rack for 10 minutes then remove from pan (invert onto a plate and then invert onto another so that it’s upright) and let cool completely. When cool, spread caramel frosting over the sides.
Make the caramel frosting: melt butter in a heavy saucepan. Add brown sugar; cook over low heat, stirring constantly, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves (do not boil). Remove from heat.
Stir in whipping cream. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat at high speed of an electric mixture until spreading consistency (do not overbeat, or your frosting will develop a play-doughy, “crunchy” consistency. It’ll still taste good, but won’t look very nice or be easy to spread). Spread immediately on top and sides of cake.
Care for some Southern Fried Apples with your cake?
Southern Fried Apples
Recipe by: Diana Rattray (slightly adapted and halved)
Yields: about 4 cups of fried applesIngredients:
4 medium Granny Smith apples, cored, peeled, chopped
1/8 cup butter
1/4 – 1/2 cup brown sugar (to taste)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch nutmeg (about half of 1/8 teaspoon)Preparation:
Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium-low heat. Add apples, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Sauté 15 to 20 minutes, or until apples are tender.Julie’s Note: I made double this and had way too many apples. Three or four tender spiced apple slices are perfect to accompany a single slice of cake, so you don’t need many. You can keep these refrigerated in an airtight container and just warm them up in the microwave before serving with cold cake (and ice cream or whipped cream, if desired). Finally, plenty of websites told me not to bother peeling my apples, so I didn’t, but I wished I had. Even though the peel got tender, it was still a different texture than the apple flesh and wasn’t “a-peel-ing.” Ha ha!
Enjoy!
Share this post with friends!
Barbara
October 3, 2009 at 11:27 pm (15 years ago)Wish I had a slice right now! It looks really moist and delicious!
Julie
October 3, 2009 at 11:35 pm (15 years ago)Thanks, Barbara! I’m wishing I still had a slice too! 😀
Angela
October 4, 2009 at 1:34 am (15 years ago)Oooh, that sounds so delicious! And I have everything I need to make one right now… I can’t wait to try a bite! xxx
Julie
October 4, 2009 at 7:28 am (15 years ago)Wonderful!! Let me know what you think, Angela!
Kim
October 4, 2009 at 3:02 am (15 years ago)Hey Julie, this sounds wonderful, and the rainy cool weather here has me in the baking mood! Your creations are always so beautiful and sound wonderful…but I’m just not adventurous enough to try them! This one however, I will definitely try! I love your blogs, you’re a great writer! Give my love to your mom and dad, hopefully we’ll get to see you all next time we come state-side!
Julie
October 4, 2009 at 7:28 am (15 years ago)Aw, thank you, Kim! I do hope you’ll try it — so yummy!
Vivian
October 4, 2009 at 10:48 pm (15 years ago)This is my favorite cake, Julie! So glad you decided to try it and so glad you came just in time for pancakes. You should come more often! 🙂 The cake was delicious!
Julie
October 4, 2009 at 10:49 pm (15 years ago)Thanks for the recipe and the pancakes, Mom! Love you!
Lorraine @NotQuiteNigella
October 6, 2009 at 8:10 pm (15 years ago)Ooh that is making me drool-you can tell from the slice photo how good that is! And isn’t there something about a warm ktichen with lovely aromas that just beckons especially in the cold!
Julie
October 6, 2009 at 11:01 pm (15 years ago)Thank you, Lorraine! 🙂
Megan
October 7, 2009 at 2:24 pm (15 years ago)Yay! I have all those ingredients at home! And I am on an apple baking kick… and I know the boyfriend will love that cake! Sooo making this! Thank you for the recipe.
I don’t have Granny Smiths, but I have plenty of other apples from apple picking, which I’m sure will work.
Any thoughts on mixing small pieces of the fried apples into the cake batter… or layering them in the middle?
Julie
October 7, 2009 at 3:44 pm (15 years ago)Yay! Hope you love it, Meagan! 🙂
Regarding mixing the apple into the batter or layering it . . . I’m sure it would be delicious, but (maybe I’m a little superstitious) I’d be scared to do anything to alter the essential flavor of the cake. It’s just SO GOOD. HA. Maybe you’re braver than me. If you do try it, let me know how it turns out!
Megan
October 8, 2009 at 9:46 am (15 years ago)Maybe I’ll just keep them on the side then. The cake looks and sounds absolutely delicious as is!
Laura
October 9, 2009 at 10:47 pm (15 years ago)I’ll expect a sample of these pumpkin pancakes upon my arrival at Charlotte Douglas…
Casey
October 12, 2009 at 7:24 pm (15 years ago)Oh my. The cake recipe notwithstanding, I want to eat with your family! But the cake. Oh, the cake. You really have painted a vivid, delicious picture. I have a tube pan, so that hurdle is cleared. I’m not even going to wait for it to get cold and dreary here to try this. Thank you!
Best,
Casey
Editor
http://www.tastestopping.wordpress.com
Julie
October 12, 2009 at 8:01 pm (15 years ago)Thanks, Casey! Isn’t my family great? So much food, so little time! 😀
Hope you love it — such a delicious treat!
Tabaqui
January 5, 2010 at 7:53 pm (15 years ago)This sounds like a very lovely poundcake. I’ve never had one that was frosted before.
One question – I don’t own a tube pan, could I make it in a square pan or loaf pan?
Julie
January 5, 2010 at 8:06 pm (15 years ago)Thanks, Tabaqui! I’ve never tried, but I bet you could fiddle with the pan size! This website may be helpful: http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Cake-Pan-Size-Conversions/Detail.aspx
ingrid
January 14, 2010 at 2:29 pm (15 years ago)Hi, I’m over from Megan’s! Your pound cake sounds insanely good and can’t wait to give it a try. I haven’t even tasted this but could easily go on and on about how yummy it is going to be. The frosting, the apples, the ice cream….yes, there will be some too! 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
~ingrid
Julie
January 14, 2010 at 2:38 pm (15 years ago)Thanks, Ingrid!! Hope you love it! 🙂
Crystal
May 23, 2010 at 7:36 am (14 years ago)I made this cake and it was delicious the only difficulty I had was it was not as moist and my pans bubbled over..I used self rising flour..should I have used all purpose flour? PS We had a dessert dinner theatre lst night and there was not even one slice left!!
Julie
May 23, 2010 at 9:24 am (14 years ago)Crystal, I’m so shocked to hear that your cake was dry! This is one of the most moist pound cakes I’ve had — typically the inside crumb almost feels wet b/c of the cream cheese addition. I do think self-rising flour may be the culprit, in that it has leavening added which may have altered the texture. Glad to hear you did enjoy it anyway!
smalltable
June 15, 2010 at 11:58 am (14 years ago)Good Lord, is this called pound cake because anyone who makes it will gain ten? 😉 I made this last night and immediately popped half into the freezer to eat in, like, a year. That is a lot of butter.
Which is why, obviously, this is SUPER DELICIOUS. I served mine with fresh local strawberries instead of the apples. And I made it in a bundt pan and drizzled the frosting, so it’s very pretty. All in all: tremendously wonderful.
Julie
June 15, 2010 at 1:13 pm (14 years ago)So glad you enjoyed it! This definitely is more of an (ahem) annual treat 🙂
Gwen
October 20, 2010 at 9:17 pm (14 years ago)Hi I tried your recipe once and absolutely loved it. Strangely I only had to bake it for 1 hour 15 min and found that it was already totally cooked through. I’m going to be making this again, but this time for a party – I was wondering, how well does this cake hold up outside the refrigerator (considering how it contains cream cheese)?
Thanks for posting this awesome recipe!
Julie @ Willow Bird Baking
October 20, 2010 at 9:32 pm (14 years ago)Hi Gwen! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! This is one of our family favorites.
Because the cream cheese is baked into the cake, I think this would be fine at room temperature for days.
Molly
January 5, 2011 at 10:47 pm (14 years ago)That looks so delicious! And the caramel frosting sounds easy, which is nice because anything caramel-related usually intimidates me.
Leigh
April 6, 2011 at 10:04 pm (14 years ago)I am wondering about the proper “creaming” technique. My family likes the flavor of pound cake but not the texture. A little too dense apparently. What is the best approach? This recipe looks great! L.
Julie @ Willow Bird Baking
April 8, 2011 at 10:31 pm (14 years ago)Hi Leigh! This pound cake IS quite dense, but the flavor is outta this world! In terms of creaming, I always go for at least 2-3 minutes of creaming, until there isn’t any sugar that’s not “dissolved” into the butter. I look for a pale, fluffy, homogenous yellow “creamlike” mixture. Hope that’s helpful!