7 Up Pound Cake

Soda in a cake? Um, yes! All those little bubbles make fluffy little air pockets in this delightful 7 Up Pound Cake recipe!

 

Pound Cake Recipes

Classic Pound cakes, as a rule, are a little heavy. If you want a light, moist crumb, they aren’t your go-to. However, adding bubbly and carbonated 7 Up uses all those little bubbles to create air pockets in the batter which makes it lighter than traditional pound cake.

Pound cakes got their name because the original ingredient list was simple: One pound of butter, sugar and flour with a few eggs. Hence, pound cake. You just can’t forget it.

But with no leaveners or flavoring, this also meant they were heavy and needed to be accompanied by sauce or fresh fruit. Adding the lemon-lime flavor of 7 Up gives it a refreshing zing. And the glaze… let’s just say OMG.

7 Up Cake Recipe

Adding soda helps to lighten the cake and keep it moist and also give it a little flavor, although it is supplemented with more lemon and lime juice. It is supposed to be a fairly lightly flavored cake perfect for serving with coffee or tea.

If you really want a BAM flavor of either lemon, lime or both, add more zest. I also highly recommend using fresh citrus juice.

Citruses start to lose their flavor the moment they are juiced, so bottled isn’t nearly as potent as fresh.

Ingredients 

The ingredients for this 7Up Pound Cake recipe are pretty straightforward and simple. This recipe was adapted from the original, which was created by the brand itself.

• Unsalted Butter– Salt dries things out and brands can vary on salt content. Always bake with unsalted and then add salt as needed. Also, don’t skimp with cheap butter- it is the base for the is cake. Use a good grade A butter. 
• Sugar- This is a rich cake, but not an overwhelming sweet cake. While it seems like a lot of sugar, this is also a LARGE cake and needs to balance out unsweetened cocoa. 
• Eggs- Creates structure and stability in the finished product. 
• Lemon Juice- use fresh lemon. You can also use lemon extract (about 1 teaspoon). For even more flavor, add 1 teaspoon lemon zest (or lime!)
• Lime Juice- Same things, use fresh if you have it!
• 7 Up Soda– You can really use any lemon lime soda as long as it is carbonated. In fact, if you want to switch up the flavors, use a different flavor of soda altogether or even plain. Just need bubbles!
• Flour– Proteins that make up gluten and thus, structure and stability. 
• Baking Soda– Leavener to add fluff and neutralize acids. (Yes, some use baking powder and some don’t use either, I like baking soda best)
• Salt– Salt is essential in baking to bring out natural flavors and provide acidity. 

Decorative Bundt Pans

They are so pretty. Ones that depict lovely winter scenes of winter landscapes or have intricate lacework.

But know that the pretty cake might be harder to achieve than you think. Small peaks and intricate pictures also mean overcooked cake batter that is dry and crusty.

They are also harder to grease and flour- getting into small spaces. Use a pastry brush to help you out. Know the flour might cake in there too, preventing batter from filling it and thus leaving you with an incomplete pattern.

I have a few swirly ones I’ll use, but I make mine pretty with sauces, powdered sugar, glazes and fruit garnish. It is safer and tastes better.

It is also a good tip to make cakes in the size and shape of pan that the recipe was intended. Using a tube pan for a loaf recipe could result in disaster and vice versa.

Pound Cake Glaze

My guests thought the glaze what was really made this cake extra special. It certainly has some zing.

Mix powdered sugar (confectioners sugar) with 7 Up and lemon or lime juice. You can use both or just one if you prefer one over the other.

Mix together right before you are ready to ice, which should be after the cake is fully cooled. Then drizzle on top and allow to set or serve immediately.

Glaze will be tacky, so feel free to add small, lightweight embellishments at this stage. I topped with chopped maraschino cherries because 7 Up reminds me of Shirley Temples when I was young. And I really only ordered them for the cherries.

I like to serve mine with whipped cream and ice cream.

Trim the Bottom

It is a fact, most pound cakes aren’t that pretty coming right out of the pan. Don’t worry, dress it up and it will be pretty enough to enter any baking competition.

The first step is to trim the bottom. This is not necessary- the cake will taste just fine with an even bottom, but if you are serving it it, you might want it flat.

Use a serrated bread knife to trim it up to set pretty. Use the scraps as pieces for a trifle, for munching (by you) or if they are big enough, a dessert panini with marshmallow fluff.

Tips for BEST Pound Cake 

I’m not assuming you don’t know how to bake, but just skim these over as a refresher. This is a condensed version, check out my whole list for more details. 

• Measure wet and dry ingredients properly
• Use high quality sugar with a large grain
• Use grade AA butter with little water and liquid fat
• Make sure all ingredients are room temperature
• Avoid over mixing
• Use the size cake pan ) or (bundt pan) stated in the recipe
• Grease your pans with vegetable shortening
• Make sure you have the right oven temperature
• Tip it out of the mold while warm (but not hot)
• Allow to cool fully before adding sauce or icing

Pound Cake Variations

You can literally make this cake into any flavor you want based on the flavor of soda you use and with so many flavor packed carbonated waters and seltzers these days, the possibilities are endless.

For any of these use, omit lemon and lime juice and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

• Blackberry soda with fresh blackberries to garnish
• Grapefruit soda with grapefruit juice in the batter and icing
• Black cherry with chopped cherry topping
• Orange with 1 teaspoon of orange zest in the topping

Let us know which ones you tried in the comments!

More delicious summer desserts:

  Welcome to the 4th Annual #SummerDessertWeek event hosted by Angie from Big Bear’s Wife. We’re celebrating all things summer with a week-long event that is absolutely filled with some of the best summer dessert recipes! Follow the hashtag #SummerDessertWeek on social media to find recipes and make sure to check out the bottom of this post for even more summer desserts!   Check out the amazing #SummerDessertWeek recipes from our bloggers today! Ice Cream & Chilled Desserts:

• Berry Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches from Our Sutton Place

Sweet Summertime Cakes and Cupcakes:

• Easy Funfetti Cake Batter Cookie Bars from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• 7 Up Pound Cake from Savory Experiments
• Brownie Cake from Back To My Southern Roots
• Chocolate Cherry Cake Roll from Sweet Beginnings
• Pina Colada Cake from It’s Shanaka
• Easy Summer Beach Themed Cupcakes from Blogghetti

No Bake Treats:

• Strawberry Shortcake Fudge from Sweet ReciPEAs
• No-Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Pie from The Spiffy Cookie

Baked Desserts:

• Mixed Berry Mini Cobblers from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Tart Cherry Galette from Cheese Curd In Paradise
• Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes from Big Bear’s Wife
• Blueberry Hand Pies from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures

More Pound Cakes!

• Almond Pound Cake
• Vanilla Pound Cake
• Chocolate Pound Cake
• Berry Buttermilk Pound Cake
• Strawberry Pound Cake
• Key Lime Pound Cake
• Sour Cream Pound Cake