Picture-perfect Cream Cheese Pound Cake checks all the boxes! Tangy, moist, and tender wins every time; simple elegance or “dressed” to impress with fruit or glaze!

This Cream Cheese pound cake is a delightful gift, whether baked in an elegant tube pan or a simple loaf pan. Pair it with my homemade honey butter for an extra touch of sweetness.

pound cake with berries and whipped cream

What Is A Pound Cake?

A pound cake, simply named for using a pound each of four ingredients: flour, sugar, butter, and eggs, is thought to have European origins, dating back to the mid-1800s. 

Fortunately, the pound cake with its dense but tender crumb made its way to America, becoming a timeless, beloved dessert cake with delicious variations!

Why You’ll Love Pound Cake With Cream Cheese

A classic pound cake recipe with cream cheese has a distinct richness and is an elegant dessert cake. Holiday gifting, Easter, Mother’s Day, you name it, this rich buttery vanilla pound cake recipe hits all the right “notes.”

  • Almond extract with decadent vanilla bean paste creates an aromatic treat with a perfect balance of flavors.
  • Cream cheese adds moisture and depth with a nuanced and tangy element.
  • Rich and buttery, pound cake has a lovely structured density.
  • Excellent as a breakfast cake, lunch treat, afternoon snack, or elegant dinner dessert.
  • It can be dressed up for fancier presentations when served with mandarin orange or peach slices,  fresh berries, and whipped cream rosettes.
cream cheese pound cake ingredients on a counter

Cream Cheese Pound Cake Ingredients

For specific amounts, please refer to the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

  • Butter – unsalted
  • Cream Cheese – full fat is optimal
  • Eggs – room temp
  • Sugar – white granulated
  • Vanilla Bean Paste – (or extract)
  • Almond Extract – (or lemon extract)
  • All-Purpose Flour – measured properly (see tip below)
  • Baking Powder – must be fresh for proper height.
  • Salt
  • Optional Garnish: powdered sugar, fresh berries, and whipped cream.

How To Measure Flour Properly

Did you know THE WAY you measure flour matters? The most precise way to measure your flour is by weight using a digital kitchen scale. 1 cup of flour weighs 125 to 130 grams. If you don’t have a scale measure your flour by scooping flour with a spoon into the cup. Don’t use your measuring cup as a scoop, as it packs the flour down and gives a different measure.

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How To Make Cream Cheese Pound Cake

This homemade pound cake with cream cheese recipe is simple, delicious, and aromatic. The biggest challenge is giving the cold ingredients enough time to warm to room temperature, closely followed by not overmixing the batter.

When you are making this recipe, you’ll want to use the full recipe at the bottom of the page.

  1. Use an electric mixer to cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Beat in eggs, followed by bean paste and almond extract. 
  2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and add to the creamed mixture until just blended. 
  3. Pour into a prepared tube pan and bake in a preheated oven for 75 – 90 minutes, testing until a toothpick comes out clean. 
  4. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, remove, and cool on a wire rack.
  5. Garnish by dusting with powdered sugar, berries, fresh mint leaves, and whipped cream.
pound cake that was baked in a fluted tube pan with fresh fruit and plates about it

Recipe Tips & Tricks

  • For easy release and a well-formed pound cake, thoroughly coat the tube pan with butter or oil to the pan using a paper towel, pastry brush, or baking spray. Lightly dust the pan with flour, tapping and rotating it to ensure an even coating and eliminate any excess flour.
  • A pound cake recipe takes longer to bake because of the high dairy content, so don’t be thrown off by the length of time. A cream cheese pound cake can take up to 90 minutes.
  • If you prefer to bake your pound cake in a loaf pan, set the temperature at 350° F and check at 60 minutes.
fluted tube pan

Heavy gauge Aluminized Steel, ensures even baking and delicious results, while Americoat promotes quick release and easy cleanup.

Perfect Pound Cake! (3 Mistakes To Avoid)

These common mistakes are easily corrected, creating surefire success with a cream cheese pound cake: batter temperature, flour weight, and expired baking powder!

  • Cold ingredients significantly lower the temperature of the pound cake batter enough to cause the cake to take longer to bake, which can create dryness. Remove the ingredients from the fridge an hour before you start the pound cake recipe.
  • Avoid scooping flour so it doesn’t pack down. Just a few grams of extra flour can affect a pound cake’s texture! using a scale simplifies the process, eliminates guesswork, and perfects the textures of baked goods.
  • Expired baking powder limits the cream cheese pound cake’s ability to rise properly, resulting in a heavier and undesirable texture.

TIP: You can test your baking powder for freshness. Simply, pour a little baking powder into hot water — if it fizzes, it’s still good to use!

slice of pound cake dusted with powdered sugar with fresh betties

Storage Tips

Room Temp – 4 days

The cooled pound cake, will keep for up to 4 days on the counter in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or aluminum foil.

In warmer or humid kitchens, it’s best to keep this cake chilled. Cover pound cake tightly and refrigerate for 5-7 days to maintain freshness.

Freezer – 2 months

For best results, double-wrap the cooled cake tightly in plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil to freeze. This double layer helps prevent freezer burn. I also like the option to slice and wrap individual pieces and put them in an airtight container or freezer bag to keep the pound cake at its best for up to 60 days.

Thaw wrapped overnight in the refrigerator.

bite of pound cake on a fork

Serving Notes

With its velvety, buttery vanilla flavor, a homemade cream cheese pound cake goes great with fresh berries, complementing glazes, or a dessert sauce.

Check out these popular and super easy glazes that are easily pulled from some of my other fantastic dessert recipes:

Cream cheese pound cake is fantastic as an ice cream sundae base! Try butter pecan ice cream and whipped cream sprinkled with toasted pecans and a drizzle of caramel or real maple syrup. (A pound cake sundae is perfect when it’s reaching day four.)

Warning……..you may want to double or triple the recipe because everyone is going to want some!

serving of cream cheese pound cake on a plate with fresh berries
Easy elegant pound cake cut in to servings

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Yield: One 10 inch fluted tube pan (or bundt pan)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Time Bake: 1 hour 15 minutes
Additional Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Picture-perfect Cream Cheese Pound Cake checks all the boxes! Tangy, moist, and tender wins every time; simple elegance or “dressed” to impress with fruit or glaze!

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups butter, softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 6 eggs, room temp
  • 3 teaspoons vanilla bean paste (or extract)
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract (or lemon extract)
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour - (360 grams)
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • Optional Garnish: powdered sugar, fresh berries, and whipped cream

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325° F
  2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; beat into the creamed mixture until blended.
  3. Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan (or bundt pan). Bake in preheated oven for 75 - 90 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
  4. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
  5. Garnish by dusting with powdered sugar, berries, fresh mint and whipped cream

Notes

For loaf pans: This recipe can yield two cake loaves if you prefer. Bake in two 8½ x 4½-inch or 9x5-inch loaf pans for 60-75 minutes.

You can also get one large loaf and 4 mini loaves with this recipe.

Bake mini loaves for about 35 mins

Recipe is from Taste Of Home Cookbook, 3rd Edition as part of a non-paid review in 2010.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 462Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 130mgSodium: 257mgCarbohydrates: 56gFiber: 1gSugar: 38gProtein: 6g

Nutrition information is estimated based on the ingredients and cooking instructions as described in each recipe and is intended to be used for informational purposes only. Please note that nutrition details may vary based on methods of preparation, origin, and freshness of ingredients used and are just estimates. We encourage, especially if these numbers are important to you, to calculate these on your own for most accurate results.

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Originally posted in Dec 2010 for a Taste Of Home Cookbook Review. UPDATED March 2024. We spiffed up this post with more information and new photos. No changes were made to the Taste Of Home recipe.

pound cake sliced and served with berries