prep: 15 minutes
cook: 1 hour 5 minutes
cool: 20 minutes
Linnie Mae is a longtime friend of Chip’s parents, and her lemon vanilla pound cake is something of a legend in Archer City, Texas, the small town she calls home. The first time she made it was to help ease her grief as she mourned the loss of her daughter. The comfort she found in baking began a tradition that Linnie Mae continues today: baking cakes as a simple act of hospitality for a family in need or to lift a neighbor’s spirits. The people of her town seem to know its value—in fact, one year Linnie Mae made two pound cakes for a local charity auction, and they sold for $6,000! The cake itself lives up to the hype—always moist and never too sweet. The most important ingredient, according to Linnie Mae, is the amount of love you bake right in.
Nonstick baking spray
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
6 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoons lemon extract
2 teaspoons butter extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray a standard Bundt pan with nonstick baking spray.
2. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the extracts and mix until smooth.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. On low speed, add the flour in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until fully incorporated.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Bake until golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour 5 minutes. Cool for 20 minutes on a wire rack, then unmold the cake onto the rack.
5. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Makes one 10-cup Bundt cake
TIP: Serve with strawberries and whipped cream, or warm with jelly in the morning.