As a child, I wanted to be like my grandmother, having tea and pound cake.
A quintessential pound cake also provides a perfect pairing for tart seasonal fruit flavors, savory herbaceous notes and indulgent gourmet infusions. My grandmother revamped her pound cake each spring and summer by adding seasonal fruits in the form of a coulis, compote, sauce, glaze or jam.
I’ve inherited my grandmother’s love of baking and have since taken on the joyous challenge of creating a unique Springtime Jubilation Pound Cake. With fresh blueberries, mangoes and oranges, this cake is wonderful by itself, but I enjoy it with a slice of butter and a Lady Gray tea.
Makes One bunt cake | Prep time 30 minutes
Total time 1.5 hours
Springtime Jubilation Pound Cake
3 cups cake flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 cups fine sugar
7 eggs
1 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream
1 orange, whole and zested
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup wild blueberries
1/2 cup mangoes (sliced and diced)
1/2 cup water
While oven is heating to 325 degrees, sift together baking powder, flour and salt then set aside.
In a separate bowl, beat softened butter with an electric mixer for about 5 minutes until creamy and completely smooth. Add sugar in increments slowly and beat after each addition until incorporated into butter. Then add eggs one at a time, beating after each egg and scraping down sides of bowl to fully incorporate. Add in vanilla extract and most of the orange zest and beat.
Now add a third of the flour, baking powder and salt mixture and slowly beat. Add 1/2 cup of heavy cream and beat. Continue with adding the next third of dry mixture, followed by the other 1/2 cup of heavy cream and final third of dry mixture, remembering to slowly beat and scrape down sides of bowl after every addition. Beat for another 45 seconds.
Pour batter into a greased 10-inch Bundt pan and bake for 70 to 80 minutes, or until the top is golden, a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the sides start pulling away from the pan.
While the pound cake is baking, bring to boil the blueberries, diced mangos and water in a small saucepan and then let it simmer about 15 minutes or until the water level is only a thin layer at the bottom of the pan. Turn off heat and let cool on stove. Segment the zested orange and refrigerate it with the sliced mango.
Remove Bundt cake from oven but cool in the pan for another 10 to 12 minutes and then remove from pan. Spoon blueberry mango sauce on top of Bundt cake and decorate further with the sliced mango, segmented orange, remaining orange zest and powdered sugar.