By Eric Kim
- Total Time
- 1½ hours
- Rating
- 4(521)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Reminiscent of Sara Lee’s loaves in the freezer aisle, this tender, buttery treat is like a pound cake in sheet cake form. For a Barbie-pink dream house finish, prepare this with the optional toppings: raspberry preserves, gently salted whipped cream and a snowy, psychedelic blanket of freeze-dried raspberries. Any toppings should be added right before serving, but if it’s simplicity you’re after, then you can skip them and dust the cake with confectioners’ sugar or nothing at all. The cake, undressed, will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 to 4 days or well-wrapped in the freezer for up to a month.
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Ingredients
Yield:One 9-by-13-inch cake
- 2½cups/320 grams all-purpose flour
- 1teaspoon baking powder
- 1½cups/345 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 8ounces/226 grams cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3cups/600 grams granulated sugar
- 1tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1¼teaspoons fine sea salt
- 5large eggs, at room temperature
- 1cup/305 grams raspberry preserves (see Tip)
- 2cups/473 milliliters cold heavy whipping cream
- 2tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1½cups/34 grams freeze-dried raspberries
For the Cake
For the Assembly (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Preparation
Step
1
Prepare the cake: Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 325 degrees.
Step
2
In a medium bowl, add the flour and baking powder. Whisk to combine and to break up any lumps.
Step
3
Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Use the empty butter wrappers to generously grease a 9-by-13-inch baking pan; line the bottom and long sides with parchment. Add the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and salt to the bowl with the butter and mix on medium-low speed to combine. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy, almost white and the sugar is mostly dissolved, 5 to 7 minutes. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, mixing until smooth after each addition. Use a flexible spatula to scrape the bowl, then beat over medium speed for another minute.
Step
4
With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients and mix until most of the flour streaks have disappeared. Using the spatula, scrape the bowl and gently stir until you eliminate the flour streaks. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, then smooth out the top.
Step
5
Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, until golden brown and a skewer or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 60 to 65 minutes. When you gently press on the center of the cake with your fingertip, you shouldn’t leave a dent. Let cool completely in the pan. (The cooled cake can be covered and kept at room temperature for up to 3 or 4 days.)
Step
6
If you’re preparing the optional toppings, assemble the cake: Spread the preserves evenly over the cooled cake.
Step
7
In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the heavy whipping cream, sugar and salt over medium-high until billowy soft peaks form. When you lift the whisk out of the bowl and turn it upside-down, a peak of cream should flop over slightly like a Santa hat. Evenly spread the whipped cream over the jam-topped cake.
Step
8
Add the freeze-dried raspberries to a fine-mesh sieve and hold it over the cake. Using your fingers, pass them through until most of the magenta powder rests atop the frosting like fresh snow and most of the seeds are left behind in the sieve. The entire surface of the whipped cream should be covered in pink dust. Discard the raspberry seeds. Serve immediately.
Tip
- Look for a brand of raspberry preserves with minimal ingredients: They should consist of only raspberries, sugar, pectin and some kind of citrus. That will taste more tart and less artificial than one with, say, high-fructose corn syrup and other fruit juices that muddy the natural raspberry flavor. If your preserves taste especially sweet, you can stir in up to 3 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice for added tartness.
Ratings
4
out of 5
521
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Cooking Notes
Lisa
Made this cake for dinner with friends tonight. It was fabulous...moist, light, and delicious. I skipped the freeze-dried berries and just used fresh on top the whipped cream. I will definitely make this again.
AW
Is a stand mixer a MUST for this recipe? Or will hand mixing properly suffice….
John Golden
I halved the recipe and made it in an 8x8 pan. It was done in 45 minutes. And an absolutely delicious cake by itself. I will try this in a Bundt pan next time. The toppings are delicious though not really necessary unless to serve as a showstopper dessert at a dinner party. I dressed the cake however with all the toppings and since it’s just two of us I refrigerated it because of whipped cream. Great cake.
Lisa
Will this work in a bundt pan?
Didi
Great recipe. The cake itself is really a perfect pound cake, and the preserves/whipped cream/freeze-dried dust combo is fantastic. I could only find freeze-dried strawberries but I don’t think anyone noticed the difference. “Dusting” the cake was actually kind of fun. It never would have occurred to me to decorate it that way, but so much tastier and prettier than sprinkles or sugar. Everyone thought it was a Santa cake…mission accomplished!
witloof
Commercial jams are always too sweet for me, so when I open a jar I mix in about half a teaspoon of citric acid, which doesn't dilute the texture.
David B.
I have no notes to add, except to recommend this cake as A) hella good and B) hella easy, a twofer worth celebrating. The fact that it didn't require a bundt pan was the freeze-dried cherry on top!
Cheryl
Followed recipe to a T, and honestly, is great without any of the toppings. If you need a quick pound-style cake to have on the table to slice off of, this is perfect.
LSH
Delish! Thanks, Eric! I love your work. I didn’t have whipped cream so I served the cake with fresh strawberries and raspberries and made a sauce with raspberry preserves, fresh lemon zest and a bit of lemon juice. The zest, raspberry and lemon combo was a bright, vibrant contrast to the mellow, rich yet light cake.
jackie
Best pound cake I’ve ever had. Halved the recipe, used a hand mixer and, per other readers, baked for 45 minutes. Also added a touch of almond extract. Served plain- the family LOVED it. I’ll make a full recipe next time!
Bern
3 cups of sugar isn't unusual in a pound cake recipe. Often the recipe calls for 3 cups of flour, 3 cups of butter and 3 cups of sugar. This recipe calls for only 2 and 1/2 cups of flour, so it might be slighter sweeter than some.
pgoat
For the past year, I have been looking for a pound cake recipe that tastes like the frozen Sara Lee cake. I have made over a dozen different recipes with no luck, and finally hit the jackpot with this one. I left it plain, without the toppings, and it was perfect.
Jason
Extra moist, buttery and delicious. I made this the same day as a traditional pound cake recipe and this one was noticeably more gooey, rich, and moist than regular pound cake. I was very impressed. In a 9x13 glass pan it was done 5 minutes before the hour was up so I would start checking it 10 min early. Also it puffed much higher on the edges and settled in the center in that pan. Not sure why. But once covered in whipped cream and jam won’t matter.
John Golden
I looked at all the supermarkets for freeze-dried raspberries. None were found. lo and behold target has them
phillip tang
I made this entire recipe in a 8x10 pan (because that was all I had) and it still worked out great ! Baked for an additional 20 minutes but it was still dense and moist
Sam S.
I have an electric hand mixer. Should I invest in a stand mixer for this?
FriendlyFoodie
I wish I could share a picture of the beautiful Bundt cake I made with this recipe! I couldn’t find freeze dried raspberries so I served with the preserves, whipped cream, and some macerated berries.
JSH
Could I make this gluten free? Please help, so everyone in my family could enjoy it!
Barbara
When you half the recipe how many eggs do you use?
Jasper
I made this and it was a big success and tasted great. (Really filled the mixing bowl of my 5 quart mixer.)I used what I had at home, so it was blueberry jam and dried blueberries.I did not see instructions for removing the cooled cake from the pan. I loosened the short sides, flipped it onto a serving dish and removed the paper. The bottom was a nice flat top.Shared the recipe as someone asked for it. I will definitely make it again.
Francesca
Replaced the whipped cream with buttercream because my seven year old prefers it. This is a very sweet but fantastic cake, and it requires very little effort. Worth sourcing dried raspberries for the tang. As others have said, this is more than the sum of its parts, but also as others have said: The pound cake alone is fabulous. Thank you!
RS
Philly fluff. Make it a loaf. Jewish bakeries (most long gone sadly) at least on Li
Abbie
Anyone make this in a loaf pan? Please let me know the baking time. Same for the person who made it in a bundt pan, how long did you bake it? TY everyone.
Is it just me?
Plain Pound Cake...loaf pan...sliced..toasted...buttered. Pure serenity.
Christine
This was delicious! Just wanted to add for the few people who mentioned having a hard time finding freeze dried raspberries: I can, weirdly, always find them at Target.
Ruth
Made as written for an Oscar party and wow, this cake was a hit! Did the jam, whipped cream and raspberry powder. I’ll definitely make this again - probably cutting the sugar as per other comments and adding some lemon zest just for kicks. Really, really delicious. Thank you Eric.
Beth
Wow, this is everyone’s favorite cake at our house now. The corners are the best pieces, caramelized and sugary crisp. I don’t think it needs anything at all on top, though I did jam and whipped cream this time. It would be gorgeous with in-season strawberries. Honestly, one of the best desserts I’ve ever eaten, let alone baked myself.
Cameron
This is a delicious cake, but this is not a pound cake. It is far too fluffy, delicate, and well balanced. I will definitely be making this again, but I will not be calling it a pound cake.
jen
Skipped the topping and added 2 C frozen cranberries instead. Perfect with my coffee in the morning.
Marissa
Made this for a second time and added the zest of 1 lemon and 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Then I made a glaze of lemon juice and powdered sugar. This recipe is phenomenal and needs little effort for the reward. I’ll make it again and again
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