So I was in Sam's Club one day when they had all the free samples (we love free samples, there's usually enough that I dont' have to feed the kids lunch =) ). One of the sample was strawberry shortcake. I hadn't had it in forever so of course I helped myself to a piece, and I think the piece of at least one of my kids. (the food you eat that comes from your kids' plates doesn't have calories, right? ) Once I had a taste, I got a hankering for some but I didn't want to fork over money for such a small loaf. So I figured, I make all sorts of breads, quick breads, and cakes, why not pound cake? I searched through the recipes at my favorite recipe site, http://www.allrecipes.com/. There were a few so after reading the reviews, I found the base for one and them started tweaking it to fit my tastes. It was an instant hit! Everyone in my family loves it and everyone who tastes it wants the recipe. This is such a simple recipe, but the thing that gives it that extra pizazz or whatever it is, is the almond extract. If you've never baked with it, you should start! It is my new favorite and I use it in place of vanilla, or along side it.
Pound Cake
2 cups butter or margarine
3 cups white sugar
6 eggs
4 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup milk
2 tsp almond extract
Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease 3 - 8x4 inch loaf pans. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the flour alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter evenly into prepared loaf pans. Bake in the preheated oven for 70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. After removing them from the oven, immediately loosen cake edges with a knife. Allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from the pans.
Strawberry Glaze
1-2 cartons strawberries- depending on how much you want
1/4 c. white sugar
Directions
1. Slice the strawberries. Put in medium saucepan over low-medium heat. Stir occasionally. When the strawberries begin to liquefy, add sugar. You may use more or less, to taste. Continue letting the strawberries cook until it is mostly liquid. Remove from heat when it has reached the consistency you would like, depending on how many chunks of strawberry you want. Add a few tablespoons of cornstarch to thicken the sauce, if you like it thicker, let the sauce cool before serving.
I usually cute the cake recipe in half and bake it in 2 pans to make smaller cakes, but I may have to start making the whole thing since the 2 loaves I made last night didn't make it to today, hence the reason there is no picture right now. I didn't think It would be good to post a picture of crumbs and drippings. =)
