Perfectly Dense & Moist Sour Cream Pound Cake

This sour cream pound cake is a classic dessert with a rich, buttery flavor and ultra-moist, tender crumb thanks to the addition of sour cream. Unlike lighter sponge cakes, this pound cake strikes a perfect balance between dense and tender, making it ideal for slicing and serving any time - from breakfast with coffee to dessert with ice cream. With simple pantry ingredients and straightforward steps, this cake feels both timeless and homey. Its buttery richness and soft texture make every bite feel comforting and satisfying, without unnecessary fuss.

Anything that has sour cream in it is always a win for me. You can't beat the moist tanginess it provides. I developed this recipe off of my cream cheese pound cake and the All Recipes Sour Cream Pound Cake Recipe. I wanted lots of butter to create a really moist, buttery crumb. A large amount of sour cream ensures the cake crumb is tender and moist. You're gonna love this cake. It is perfect with a cup of coffee or dress it up with whipped cream and berries for a beautiful dessert.

Why These Ingredients Work

• Sour cream: The secret to this cake's ultra-moist crumb - it adds richness and keeps the texture tender without weighing it down.
• Butter: Brings depth of flavor and richness that defines a classic pound cake.
• Sugar: Sweetens and contributes to structure while enhancing buttery notes.
• Eggs: Provide structure and help the cake rise evenly while staying moist.
• Vanilla & salt: Vanilla adds warmth; a touch of salt balances sweetness and enhances overall richness.

For ingredient quantities please reference the recipe card below. On the recipe card there is a button for US or M (Metric) measurements.

Butter + Sour Cream = Cake Magic

Perfect Pairings (Cake + Friends)

You can top the cake with things like Fresh Berries, Mixed Berry Compote, Apple Compote, Whipped Cream, Ice Cream, or Lemon Curd.

Or try adding a cup of mini chocolate chips coated in flour to the cake batter. This chocolate chip pound cake recipe was developed off of this recipe.

Classic Cake Wisdom

• In my testing, I found that room-temperature ingredients (especially sour cream and eggs) produce the most even, tender crumb.
• After testing this recipe multiple times, I found that scraping the bowl well before folding the dry ingredients in preserves the cake's soft texture rather than creating dense spots.

Don't forget to check out all my favorite bundt cake recipes.

★★★★★ Please let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a star rating and comment below!

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Recipe Card

Perfectly Dense & Moist Sour Cream Pound Cake

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4.5 from 2 reviews

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This sour cream pound cake is a classic dessert with a rich, buttery flavor and ultra-moist, tender crumb thanks to the addition of sour cream. Unlike lighter sponge cakes, this pound cake strikes a perfect balance between dense and tender, making it ideal for slicing and serving any time - from breakfast with coffee to dessert with ice cream. With simple pantry ingredients and straightforward steps, this cake feels both timeless and homey. Its buttery richness and soft texture make every bite feel comforting and satisfying, without unnecessary fuss.

• Total Time: 1 Hour 25 Minutes
• Yield: 12-16 Slices 1x

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 12oz (1 ½ Cups) Butter, softened to room temperature
• 550 grams (2 ¾ Cup) Granulated/ Caster Sugar
• 6 Large Eggs, at room temperature
• 375 grams (3 Cups) All-Purpose Flour
• ½ Teaspoon Baking Soda
• ½ Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Tablespoons Pure Vanilla Extract
• 8oz (1 Cup) Sour Cream

Optional Toppings

• Powdered Sugar
• Fresh Berries
• Whipped Cream
• Ice Cream
• Lemon Curd

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325F/163C and heavily grease a 10-cup-12-cup bundt pan, set aside while you prepare the filling.
2. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or large mixing bowl with a handheld electric mixer beat the butter and sugar, and mix on low-medium speed for 3-4 minutes. Once the mixture is light and fluffy make sure to scrape down the side of the bowl so everything is fully combined, then add the eggs one at a time.
3. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Then in a separate bowl mix together the vanilla extract and sour cream.
4. Add ⅓ of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix to combine, then add ½ of the sour cream mixture mix to combine then ⅓ of the dry ingredients and repeat with the remaining sour cream and dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. You don't want to overmix the batter.
5. Pour into the prepared cake pan and use an offset spatula to spread the batter into an even layer. Bake for 65-75 minutes, the internal temperature of the cake should be 210F/99C. Let the cake cool in the pan for 20 minutes then flip onto a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with desired toppings and store leftovers in an air-tight container on the counter for up to 4 days.

Equipment

Bundt Pan

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Cordless Hand Mixer

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OXO Kitchen Scale

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Notes

Pound cake is a perfect dessert to freeze. You can wrap the whole cake or slices of the cake. Let the cake cool completely then wrap it in plastic wrap, twice. This helps ensures no freezer bite. When ready to thaw the cake let it sit at room temperature, the whole cake would need to thaw overnight but slices will thaw in a few hours.

• Author: Elizabeth Waterson
• Prep Time: 15
• Cook Time: 1 Hour 10 Minutes
• Category: Desser
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

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