Elvis Presley's Pound Cake

Though I have made pound cakes many times, especially in my early times of baking, this cake requires the most unusual preparation. For starters you do not preheat the oven: the oven should be cold when you place your cake into it. The flour and salt should be sifted 3 (!) times. Which leads me to another unusual thing about this cake: you put no baking powder or baking soda into the batter. Oh, and the butter and sugar takes an enormous long time to beat: 5 to 8 minutes. Pretty odd, huh? Well the flavor of the cake more than made up for the weird instructions because the cake tasted A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! This cake goes into my family's 'cake hall of fame'. Rating: 5+ out of 5.

Elvis Presley's Favorite Whipping Cream Pound Cake recipe:

Ingredients:
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups sifted cake flour (I used AP flour with cornstarch)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 3 cups sugar (I used 2 cups)
- 7 large eggs, at room temperature for 30 minutes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 cup heavy cream

Instructions:
- Put oven rack in middle position, but do not preheat the oven. Generously butter cake pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess flour.
- Sift together sifted flour and salt into a bowl. Repeat sifting into another bowl (flour will have been sifted 3 times total).
- Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or 6 to 8 minutes with a handheld mixer. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low and add half of flour, then all of cream, then remaining flour, mixing well after each addition. (I added the flour in 3 additions, alternating with the cream) Scrape down side of bowl, then beat at medium-high speed 5 minutes. Batter will become creamier and satiny.
- Spoon batter into pan and rap pan against work surface once or twice to eliminate air bubbles. Place pan in cold oven and turn oven temperature to 350°F. Bake until golden and a wooden pick or skewer inserted in middle of cake comes out with a few crumbs adhering, 1 to 1 ¼ hours. (mine needed 1 ½ hours) Cool cake in pan on a rack 30 minutes. Run a thin knife around inner and outer edges of cake, then invert rack over pan and invert cake onto rack to cool completely.

White Chocolate Glaze recipe: my own

Instructions:
- 9 ounces best-quality white chocolate, chopped into small pieces
- ⅓ cup heavy cream

Ingredients:
- Put the chopped white chocolate into a small bowl and set aside. Bring the heavy cream to a boil, then pour over the white chocolate and leave to stand for 30 seconds. Stir the white chocolate and cream together - by now the white chocolate should have melted and you get a shiny, drizzly glaze. Use immediately.


Thank god the cake did not rise much! The Bundt cake tin was almost filled up till the edge.


Le chocolat blanc.


Beautifully melted, along with heavy cream: yum!


Et voila! Un délicieux gâteau.


I think Elvis would approve!

Comments

natalie said…
this looks amazing and I can t believe it s without baking powder. That glaze looks so good!
Renata said…
I'm certainly making it! Looks really great!
Lucie said…
Sifting the flour three times seems a little daunting, but the results look impressive--the cake looks great!

It almost looks like an angel food cake from the outside, how's the inside? Light and airy or dense and moist?
Unknown said…
I must confess I am ignorant off hand what a pound cake actually is but if it features white chocolate sauce then I'm in!!
Catherine said…
it looks so good!!!Catherine
Paris Pastry said…
@Lucie: No not like an angel food cake at all - quite the opposite! Very heavy and not moist.
Looks great, love the drizzling white chocolate
Natalie said…
I made this cake for my birthday and it was amazziinng! although I bought the white chocolate chips and they didn't melt down very well so I ended up making a maple glaze which was very good.
Paris Pastry said…
Glad you liked it Natalie! It's true chocolate chips don't melt as good as real chocolate.
Anonymous said…
Hello! What size of pan do you use?
Paris Pastry said…
I believe it's a 8 or 9-inch Bunt pan size! :)

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