This almond flavored cake will become your go-to pound cake recipe. SO delicious, moist and flavorful! Seriously the best moist pound cake recipe out there!
Almond Pound Cake Recipe
Pound cake is a dessert I’ve been trying to perfect for a while now. There are a lot of pound cake recipes out there that are much more complicated than necessary and that just wasn’t working for me.
Other recipes turned out dry or just too dense or with hardly any flavor at all.But, finally, with this Almond Pound Cake recipe, I hit the jackpot.
This pound cake is moist, dense like a pound cake should be but not super heavy, and so flavorful. And the almond pound cake glaze?! To die for!
The key to the perfect almond pound cake is patience. You can’t add everything to the bowl at once and expect to get the right consistency. Five minutes of beating the mixture for such deliciousness is well worth it!
This Almond Pound Cake recipe is one I love to serve guests. Since the cake needs to cool completely before adding the tasty almond pound cake glaze, I like to make this in the morning or early afternoon.
Make Ahead
That way, it’s done and I don’t need to worry about dessert while I’m also prepping dinner. Then, I just need a few minutes to whip to together the glaze and this delicious dessert is ready to be served.
Since the almond pound cake glaze is so delicious, this is a pound cake recipe that can be served by itself or with a cup of coffee. However, for a little something extra, you can serve it with fruit and whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream. Yum!
If you’ve tried a pound cake recipe before and found it too much of a hassle, I definitely recommend giving this Almond Pound Cake a shot! You may be surprised how easy it is!
But first… here are a few tips on making the best moist pound cake!
ONE. Do not overmix the batter. The most commonly made mistake in making a pound cake is overworking.
This is actually made easier when you are using a stand mixer because we overestimate how long the batter has been beaten. Pay attention or set a timer. You can also mix by hand and get a good arm workout!
TWO. Sift the dry ingredients. Even if you are using a boxed cake mix, sift the cake mix to get out any clumps. This will make it blend better, but also make it less likely that you will over mix.
If you don’t have an actual sifter (I like the crank handle version) then gently shake your ingredients through a mesh colander.
THREE. Eggs. Eggs make a cake moist and yolks make them even more moist. Try adding one or two extra yolks to your favorite cake recipe and watch the crumb get even crumblier. Yes, I made that word up!
You can even omit egg whites altogether and use 2 egg yolks for every whole egg.
Another baker trick (that I have no tried…) for a light and fluffy cake is to use the egg whites, but seperate them and beat them to a froth, then fold them in. Much like you would for pancakes.
FOUR. Don’t over bake your cake! This might seem like it is obvious, but many folks wait too long before taking the cake out of the oven and presto, dry cake. Whomp, whomp.
Don’t let the top get lightly browned and use a cake tester. I also like to rotate my cakes while baking to avoid hot/cold spots.
FIVE. Measure your flour. You might think you measure your flour, but are you doing it correct?
Scoop flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a flat spatula or butter knife.
Don’t pack it down, just let is sit how it did when you scooped it. Additional flour makes cake dry and even have a slight heap on your measuring cup could be the culprit.
Tools for making Almond Pound Cake:
Loaf Pans – While you can get away with having one, I prefer to have two for baked goods like this, which typically call for 2 loaves.
Cooling Rack– Cooling racks aren’t just great for cooling, they are also the best for drizzling!
Questions you might have about how to make pound cake:
Can I make this recipe in a bundt pan? Presumably you can, however I have not personally tried it. There should be enough cake batter to make 1 average bundt cake. If you do try it, let us know!
Can I use cake flour instead of all purpose flour? For most recipes you can substitute cake flour for all purpose, so yes.
What is the difference between cake flour and all purpose flour? According to the kitchn…
Cake flour is a finely milled, delicate flour with a low protein content; it’s usually bleached. The primary difference between cake flour and all-purpose (AP) flour is the protein content (which becomes gluten). The protein content of cake flour is about 8%, while the protein content of AP flour is slightly higher.
Can I use vanilla extract instead of almond extract? You can, but you will then have a vanilla pound cake instead of an almond pound cake. Not bad, just not the same.
Here the recipe for my classic vanilla pound cake and sour cream pound cake in case you want to give them a whirl!
My cakes are sticking? Did you grease and flour your pans? Just grease alone often doesn’t do the trick. Make sure to lightly flour your pans, tapping them on the sink so there is just a tiny amount.
More easy cake recipes:
- Pistachio Icebox Cake
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake
- Tiramisu Pound Cake
- Passion Fruit Tres Leches Cake
- Chocolate Pound Cake
Red Velvet Cake
Caramel Apple Dump Cake
Almond Pound Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Almond Pound Cake:
- 3 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt
- 2 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter , softened
- 5 large eggs
- 1-2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1 cup milk
Almond Glaze and Topping:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and lightly flour two 9×5-inch loaf pans.
- In medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
- Add almond extract and eggs, beating on high speed 5 minutes.
- Add flour mixture into sugar mixture alternately with milk on low speed, beating just until smooth after each addition.
- Evenly divide into two pans.
- Bake 55 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool 20 minutes; remove from pan(s) to wire rack. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
- In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar, almond extract and 2-4 tablespoons milk, whisking until smooth. Amount of milk will vary, you want a consistency that sticks to the back of a spoon, but is still pourable.
- Pour over cooled pound cakes. Top with almond slices while still tacky.
- Allow to set for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, please come back and leave us a comment!
Tried this and it was perfect… definitely a keeper.. it is now my go to recipe for almond pound cake 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Glad you loved it and thank you for coming back to let us know!
When halving the recipe do I Put in 2 eggs or 3 eggs. I read one of the comments that said she added an extra egg but she wasn’t halving the recipe. I’m new at all this
Thank you
Nonnie
You can use 2 eggs and one white or yolk so it is essentially 2 1/2 eggs. 🙂
I made this recipe this morning. I altered it slightly. I added 2 tsp almond extract into the whole batter. I used salted butter. I also added 1/2 cup sugar coconut flakes onto the top of one loaf. Then after it baked & cooled down, I used a silicone bristle to brush the glaze on! I made a thicker glaze, I didn’t want it to roll off the top too much! I would suggest brushing the entire surface of the loaf in the glaze!
I was wondering if I halfed recipe could I still use one tsp of the extract and have it not overwhelming thank you
Sure! That much won’t overwhelm the recipe.
Loved it, just needed more milk for the glaze. Skipped the slivered almonds because we didn’t have them. We also wanted to eat it sooner than later, so I glazed it while it was still a bit warm… got eaten very quickly.
Oh and on a side note, the batter is lighter and more liquid than most loaves so don’t panic 😊
Thank you, Shelley! We appriciate the time it takes to leave valuable feedback. Have a nice day!
Hi! I was wondering what the cook time would be with mini loaf pans? Since this recipe calls for 2 regular sized loaf pans I think 4 or 6 mini loaf pans would be good.
Hi Amy! I have not made it in mini loaf pans, but I would probably start at 25 minutes and then check them every 2-3 minutes. If you do try it, come back and let us know what the magic time is and I’ll add it to the recipe card for others who might want minis. Thanks!
Your recipe does not designate salted or unsalted butter. Which do you use in this recipe? It sounds delicious, & I look forward to making it.
I’ll fix that! Unsalted is preferred for most of my baking. Enjoy!
Made this yummy cake today! I had added approx. 1/2 tsp. Extra of the almond extract! We love the almond flavor! Also I did not use the glaze but after 15minutes of baking I sprinkled slivered almonds on top to bake in and get a little toasty! Came out so tasty!
Although I found it a bit too sweet, I was thinking can I cut the amount of sugar?
You can surely reduce the sugar if you’d like. Thanks for the feedback!
I also reduced the sugar from 2.5 cups to 2 cups and upped the almond extract. I also added an extra egg. It tasted amazing!!
Thanks so much for the feedback and glad you loved it!
I made this today for a friend whose dog died this morning. She loves almond, so I thought this would be perfect. I made it exactly as written, using cake flour. I used two loaf pans and cooked at 350. It cooked too fast on the outside and was not even set I. The middle when the top and sides were beginning to brown. To get the toothpick to come out clean, the sides got way too brown. I only cooked it for 45 minutes. I also would have liked more almond flavor. The cake is light and nice in the center.
Thanks for the feedback!
I would like to revise my prior comment. After the cake completely cooled and glaze formed up, the almond flavor was very good. I still don’t know what happened with the baking time. I used dark, nonstick Wilton loaf pans. Perhaps with darker nonstick pans the heat should be reduced.
Hi Sammie, glad you thought it tasted better. Dark nonstick pans are pretty well-known for needing a lower temperature with altered cook time. The packaging usually has a note on them letting users know. 🙂
Just made it first time today! Oh my the cake is tender and moist and oh so delicious!!!!!!