If you’re looking for the best sour cream pound cake, look no further. This rich, buttery pound cake is the perfect dessert for any occasion. The moist crumb of this dense cake makes it a pound cake lover’s dream come true.

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My sour cream pound cake recipe has been well-tested by family and friends across the country, and they all say the same thing. It absolutely delicious and a great cake for cookouts and family get-togethers. It’s also a delicious afternoon snack or breakfast treat with a cup of coffee or a glass of milk.
This buttery cake is one of my favorite cake recipes and one I’ve been making for over 30 years at home and at the restaurants I’ve worked at.
If you’re like me and can’t get enough of pound cake, check out my delicious lemon pound cake or easy peach pecan pound cake.
Ingredients to make sour cream pound cake
Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make my delicious sour cream pound cake. In Chef Speak, this is called the “Mise en Place,” which translates to “Everything in its Place.”
Not only does setting up your ingredients ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.
Made with simple ingredients
- Unsalted butter
- Full-fat sour cream
- Large eggs
- Granulated sugar
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
If you want to substitute cake flour for the all-purpose flour, add an additional 2 tablespoons of flour per cup or 6 tablespoons of additional cake flour for this recipe. Cake flour has a lower protein count than all-purpose flour, which makes a tender cake that is lighter and fluffier, but it also weighs less, which is why you need to add the extra flour.
How to make sour cream pound cake
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Grease a 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan and coat it with sugar. Or use pan-release spray.
- Add the all-purpose flour, table salt, and baking powder to a medium bowl.
- Whisk to combine the dry ingredients. Set aside until needed.
- Add the unsalted butter and granulated sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or electric handheld mixer and large bowl).
- Cream the mixture until light and fluffy at medium-high speed. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed using a rubber spatula.
- Add the room-temperature eggs one at a time to the creamed mixture at medium speed.
- Beat each egg into the creamed mixture before adding the next. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl between each addition.
- Add the room-temperature sour cream to the butter mixture.
- Mix until fully combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, one-half cup at a time.
- Mix on low speed just enough to incorporate. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add the vanilla extract to the cake batter.
- Mix until just combined.
- Pour batter into the prepared cake pan.
- Place the cake pan on the center rack of a preheated oven and bake for 80-85 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. *If you have an instant-read thermometer, the cake is done when it reaches 210°F.
- Remove the cake from the oven, and run a thin knife around the edge. Then place the pan on a wire rack and let the cake cool.
*I used a tube pan with a removal bottom, but you can also use a bundt pan.
Serve this classic sour cream pound cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and fresh berries.
Store any leftover pound cake in an airtight container or tightly wrapped with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. It can be refrigerated or left on the counter. If you refrigerate my sour cream pound cake, make sure to let it warm up to room temperature before serving.
Recipe FAQ’s
Sour cream is an easy way to add moisture to a cake batter without thinning it out the way a liquid would. That helps create a cake with a very tender, very fine crumb.
The usual reason a pound cake doesn’t turn out is simply from overbaking, which will make it dry. Using too much flour (or not enough butter or sugar) can also result in a dry-pound cake.
One of the most important things to do to make the perfect pound cake is to precisely measure ingredients so that the ratio of wet to dry ingredients is exact. Also, make sure that they are at room temperature before you begin.
Sour cream does add a little tang to the flavor of the cake, but it’s hardly noticeable. The good news is the fat from the sour cream contributes to the moistness and richness of the cake and helps create a tender crumb.
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Sour Cream Pound Cake
Equipment
- tube pan with removable bottom or bundt pan
Ingredients
- 8 oz unsalted butter 2 sticks = 1 cup
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs -room temperature
- 8 ounces sour cream -room temperature
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Grease a 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan and coat it with sugar. Or use pan-release spray.
- Add the all-purpose flour, table salt, and baking powder to a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside until needed.
- Add the unsalted butter and granulated sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment(or electric hand mixer and large bowl)and cream until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add the room temperature eggs one at a time, beating each one in before adding the next. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl between each addition.
- Add the room temperature sour cream and mix it into the butter mixture.
- Add the dry ingredients to the mixture, one-half cup at a time until combined. Mix on low just enough to incorporate.Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add the vanilla to the cake batter and mix to combine.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Place the cake pan on the center rack of a preheated oven and bake for 80-85 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.*If you have an instant-read thermometer, the cake is done when it reaches210°F.
- When you remove the cake from the oven, run a thin knife around the edge. Then place the cake (in the pan) on a wire rack to cool.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 to 25 minutes. Then invert on a serving plate to cool completely.
- Serve with fresh berries, vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream.
Wendy G Siler says
I discovered this recipe about a month ago. I have made it 4 times since then! It is wonderful.
The tip about putting sugar to make the cake release easier worked!
This recipe will be a family staple.
Note: I didn’t have AP flour, so I used SR and didn’t add the baking soda and salt. I only had salted butter. Also, I misread the directions and used 16 oz of sour cream. It still turned out great!
Chef Dennis Littley says
Its a forgiving recipe, thats for sure! Thanks for letting me know you’ve been enjoying one of my favorite cakes!
Barbara says
Thank you for the recipe it looks like it’ll melt in your mouth. Gotta make it 👌
Chef Dennis Littley says
It’s one of my favorite pound cakes!