Paula Deen Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake

Paula Deen Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake takes 3 hours 35 minutes and sour cream, almond extract and butter to make a tender dessert with thick almond frosting. It's an easy Southern pound cake recipe for Easter brunch, church suppers or Sunday dinner, and it's make-ahead friendly.

Add the flour mixture and the eggs alternately, beating after each egg goes in, so the batter stays smooth and holds together. Dump everything in at once and the cake bakes up dense and uneven instead of soft and fine.

Paula pairs the sour cream with a touch of orange extract next to the almond, so the cake tastes rich and a little bright. The frosting is thick almond buttercream you can make ahead, then bring to room temperature before spreading it on a fully cooled cake.

Paula Deen Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake

0.0 from 0 votes

Course: DessertCuisine: American, SouthernDifficulty: Medium

Servings

16

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

1

hour 

20

minutes

Calories

520

kcal

A sour cream batter bakes slowly in a tube pan until the crumb turns tender and the top turns golden. Once it cools completely, a thick almond buttercream goes over the top.

Ingredients

• 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
  

• 6 eggs
  

• 1 cup Sour cream
  

• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  

• 3 cup granulated sugar
  

• 3 cups plus more for pan all purpose flour
  

• 3 1/2 sticks (1/2 lb plus 3/4 cup) divided, 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) softened, plus more for pan Butter
  

• 3 cups (up to 4 cups) confectioner's sugar
  

• 2 teaspoons divided almond extract
  

Directions

• Prep the pan: Preheat the oven to 325°F, then butter and flour a tube pan. Set it aside while you make the batter.
• Cream the batter base: Cream 2 sticks butter and 3 cups granulated sugar together in a mixer bowl, then add 1 cup sour cream. Beat until the mixture is smooth.
• Add flour and eggs: Sift 3 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda together. Add this to the creamed mixture alternately with the 6 eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
• Flavor the batter: Stir in 1/2 teaspoon almond extract and 1/2 teaspoon orange extract until combined. Then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake the cake: Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Once it comes out, let it cool in the pan for about 10 minutes.
• Cool completely: Unmold the cake onto a wire rack. Let it cool completely before you frost it.
• Make the frosting: Cream 1 1/2 sticks butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Slowly beat in 3 cups confectioner's sugar, up to 4 cups if you like it sweeter, for about 2 minutes until smooth and creamy.
• Frost and serve: Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract to blend. Spread the frosting over the fully cooled cake.

Tools for this recipe

• KitchenAid Artisan 5-quart stand mixer, Checkered Chef cooling racks, ThermoPro digital kitchen timer, Nielsen-Massey pure almond extract. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

FAQs

Can I make the almond buttercream ahead of time?

Yes, store it covered in the refrigerator until you need it. Bring it back to room temperature just before frosting so it spreads smoothly.

Can I leave out the orange extract?

You can, and the cake will taste more purely of almond. The small amount of orange just adds a faint brightness that balances the butter and sugar.

How do I keep the cake from sticking to the tube pan?

Butter the pan well and then dust it with flour, getting into every groove and around the center tube. Letting the cake rest in the pan for about 10 minutes before unmolding also helps it release cleanly.

Do I have to use a tube pan?

A tube pan gives the cake its shape and helps the center bake evenly. The bake time is for that pan, so another pan would need a different time that I can't promise.

What is the most common mistake with this pound cake?

Frosting the cake before it is fully cooled is the big one, since the buttercream melts and slides right off. Beating in the eggs one at a time is a close second, because dumping them in all at once leaves the crumb dense.