Citrus Pound Cake

Happy Mother's Day week! Happy May! Happy better-bust-out-the-razor-and-shave-because-it-is-shorts-weather! It is beautiful outside today. So beautiful that I'd honestly rather be outside watching my kids play in the yard than writing, but it has been a long time and I found a little pocket of time. It was either post, or take a nap, and today the post won. So I guess I win too! But you definitely win because you are looking at a perfect spring and Mother's Day pound cake.

Light and bright with citrus flavors, this pound cake doesn't feel like a pound cake. I mean, it is still loaded with butter and sugar as all self-respecting pound cakes should be. But, orange, lemon, and lime juices,give this pound cake a springy lift. After eating a slice you feel happy and satisfied. No heavy weight of regret. That's a Happy Mother's Day right there!

I also made a citrus simple syrup to pour over the cake. The lemon and lime juice, water, and sugar combine to add a slight crunch to the cake before icing. Plus, the syrup intensifies the pound cake as the citrus flavor in the cake is fairly subtle.

I topped the cake with a pourable cream cheese icing because I thought it would look pretty. I did a fine, not incredible, job of pouring it. More important was the flavor! The tang of the cream cheese really paired well with the sweet citrus of the pound cake. Add some fresh lemon, lime, and orange zest for color and voila! You've got the perfect end to your Mother's Day brunch or dinner. The only thing that can make this cake better would be a guarantee that someone else will do the dishes!

Citrus Pound Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups butter, room temperature
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp lemon extract
• 5 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a bundt or tube pan with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar, vanilla and lemon extract. Add eggs, one at a time, until incorporated.
3. Add flour and baking powder. Slowly stream in milk and orange juice. Mix until just combined.
4. Pour batter into bundt pan and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until golden brown and cake tester comes out clean. (If cake is browning too quickly, use foil to cover edges.)
5. Cool upside down on a cooling rack for easier removal from bundt pan.
6. While cake bakes and cools, make Simple Syrup.
7. Pour syrup over cake.
8. While syrup sets, make Cream Cheese Icing.
9. Pour icing over cake and top with fresh citrus zest.

Citrus Simple Syrup

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• zest from 1 lemon 
• zest from 1 lime
• juice from 1 lime
• Juice from 1 lemon

1. Heat sugar, zest, and water in a small pot over medium-high heat, stirring consistently, until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil.
2. Pour through a sieve if desired, and cool completely before pouring over cake.

Pourable Cream Cheese Icing

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 4 oz cream cheese, room temperature (really important if you don't want lumpy icing!)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (or milk)
• 3 tbs water or orange juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp lemon extract
• lemon, lime, and orange zest

1. In a large bowl or food processor, combine powdered sugar, cream cheese, cream, orange juice and extracts. Beat until smooth, adding additional water if necessary, a teaspoon at a time. Pour over cake.
2. Let set 20 minutes before slicing. 

Bake the bread. Share the slices.