A buttery, buttermilk vanilla pound cake baked in a loaf pan. It is moist and dense with a deliciously crisp and golden exterior. Serve it plain or with fruit and whipped cream.
Pound Cake in a Loaf Pan
This recipe yields a 9×5 inch pound cake. There is just enough batter for one loaf and it can easily be doubled.
To ensure that the loaf does not stick to the pan, you must line it with parchment paper or spray it with nonstick cooking spray. This is not optional!
Pound Cake Recipe with Buttermilk and Butter
This buttery, buttermilk pound cake is to die for! I love, love, love the way it turned out. It far exceeded my expectations. It is, hands down, one of the best cakes I have ever made.
It’s dense and moist with a deliciously crisp exterior (which is my favorite part). And it is very flavorful due to not only the butter and the buttermilk, but the salt as well so do not leave it out or reduce it!
It is sweet enough to eat plain but not too sweet to be eaten with fruits or a dollop of whipped cream.
It has a very light colored center and is beautiful golden brown on the outside. Honestly, I could stare at this loaf all day.
Scratch that. I can’t, because it didn’t even last a day in my house.
What is the difference between a Cake and Pound Cake? What is Pound Cake made out of?
Traditionally, a pound cake is rich, heavy, and dense and made with a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs, and flour. And vanilla, almond, or lemon is added for flavor. There is usually no leavening agent because the cake is able to rise from creaming the butter and sugar together and from all of the beaten eggs as well.
Obviously this is not a traditional pound cake recipe because that would be way too much for a loaf pan, but it still calls for the same ingredients and it’s just as delicious. The only extra ingredients it has are salt, a little bit of baking powder, and the buttermilk of course.
This is an easy pound cake recipe that is very beginner-friendly (only one bowl needed). So if you feel intimidated making a pound cake from scratch, you’re in the right place! Test the waters with this cake before moving on to making a huge, traditional one.
How do you make Homemade Pound Cake?
Step 1. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Step 2. Beat in the eggs and flavoring.
Step 3. Add the flour and mix until combined.
Step 4. Transfer the batter to the baking pan.
Step 5. Bake.
My recipe approaches things a little differently because it has extra ingredients.
First, the salt and baking powder are creamed with the butter and sugar. Then, the eggs are added and beaten in. Next, the buttermilk and vanilla extract are stirred in until incorporated. And the flour is gently mixed in until it is fully combined with the rest of the ingredients. Lastly, all that’s left to do is spoon the batter into the baking pan and bake. Simple.
I hope you enjoy this pound cake loaf as much as I do. Happy baking!
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Loaf Pan Buttermilk Pound Cake
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Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- To a large bowl add the butter, sugar, salt, and baking powder.
- Using a whisk or electric mixer, beat until fluffy and doubled in size, about 3 minutes.
- Beat in the eggs - make sure they are fully incorporated.
- Stir in the buttermilk and vanilla extract. (The butter will curdle. This is completely normal.)
- Add the flour and mix until fully incorporated, but do not overmix.
- Line a 9x5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- Transfer the batter to the pan and smooth the top into an even layer.
- Bake for 60 – 62 minutes until the edges are dark or golden brown, the top is set, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with very few crumbs.
- Cool in pan 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack.
- Let the cake cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
Notes

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8 comments
So glad to see you back here posting. I have missed seeing your new recipes. I came to your website yesterday because I wanted to make your banana bread recipe with 2 bananas (a family favorite) and squealed when I saw your newest recipes. Love the format with recipes in date order so I can immediately see what’s new. Guess I’ve got some baking to do as the carrot cake and pound cake recipes caught my eye.
Aw, really?! That’s so sweet of you to say. I like the new format too! I was tired of seeing the same recipes on the homepage (and I figured other people were too lol). If you try either one let me know what you think! I’m always eager for feedback whenever I post a new recipe.
Absolutely Delicious! I am no baker. I followed the recipe and it came out moist and delicious- my husband loved it and it was so simple to make.
Yay! I’ve been waiting for someone to make this. FINALLY. Thank you so much for the feedback, Veneda. I made sure to keep the instructions as simple as possible so that they would be very easy to follow. I’m so, so glad that you and your husband enjoyed it.
Can you please tell me what kind of loaf pan you used? Was it glass, dark or light? I hear it makes a difference. I am anxious to try this recipe. Thank you!
I used a dark pan. Enjoy!
I followed this recipe to a T. Followed every obstruction and used the ingredients listed. It did not taste good. I didn’t care for the crispy outside texture and the inside was just so plain, it had to be served with lots of sugary fruit..
I’m sorry to hear that. I will revise the recipe! Thanks for the feedback.