I grew up in the Piedmont area of South Carolina where cooking was paramount in a woman’s life. Eating great southern cooking was an everyday event, and one never realized what a treat this was! Oh, my! That fried chicken, those fatback flavored collard greens with hoecake cornbread, country fried steak with gravy and homemade biscuits, not to mention the South Carolina barbeque–those were glorious days. As I look back, now, I know how to appreciate the culinary delights which escorted me through my childhood.
But I am digressing from the intent of this piece of writing: How somebody, anybody, even you can bake my mom’s pound cake which will melt like butter, dazzle your taste buds, and ultimately add inches to that spare tire. To complete this extraordinary feat, one must preheat the oven to 325° and assemble just a few little things:
A tube cake pan, a mixer, a pound of butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, small can of evaporated milk, box of cake flour, salt, and almost forgot–two mixing bowls, one large for the cake mixing and one medium for the egg whites. Bourbon or rum?
Now grab hold of that cake pan and spray bottom, sides, and tube with a non-stick vegetable spray, then line the sides and bottom of pan with wax paper – do not line the center tube.
Start mixing-a whole pound of butter and 2 2/3; cups of sugar. Be sure it is well creamed. Then, add 8 egg yolks (separated from the egg whites) to the butter and sugar.
While all that good stuff is creaming together, in separate bowl using clean mixers, beat the egg whites of the 8 eggs until peaks form, then add 8 tablespoons of sugar, beat ’til the sugar is mixed in.
Back to the bake batter: Add to the batter and mix the following:
1 tablespoon vanilla, 8 tablespoons evaporated milk, 3½ cups cake flour added gradually, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Just in case you wish to do so, throw in a shot glass of rum or whiskey. Personally, I like Gentleman Jack. If you add this, reduce the evaporated milk by two tablespoons.
Now for the kicker-fold in the beaten egg whites-do not overmix. This makes the cake rise as it bakes, no need for baking powder.
Well, you have done it! Let the oven do the rest. Bake that delicious cake batter for 1 hour and 25 minutes at 325°, then take it out of the oven and let it cool down about 20 minutes or so. Following the cooldown, turn it upside down onto a cake plate, peel off the wax paper, and voila! You have a masterpiece. Some people like 7-minute icing on it, but I think it’s better just as it is. Good, also, is throwing on a few strawberries and some whipped cream.
I do not know where my mother learned to bake this cake, but she started baking it when I was a small child, and that is over 70 years ago! No doubt it has passed down for generations-but I want to share it. Enjoy!
