Million Dollar Pound Cake

For the best results, preheat your oven to 300º before you begin. We also soften butter at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Yield: Makes 10 to 12 servings

Ingredients

• 1  pound  butter, softened
• 3  cups  sugar
• 6  large eggs
• 4  cups  all-purpose flour
• 3/4  cup  milk
• 1  teaspoon  almond extract
• 1  teaspoon  vanilla extract

Preparation

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. (The butter will become a lighter yellow color; this is an important step, as the job of the mixer is to incorporate air into the butter so the cake will rise. It will take 1 to 7 minutes, depending on the power of your mixer.) Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. (Again, the times will vary, and butter will turn to a fluffy white.) Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until yellow yolk disappears.

Add flour to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. (The batter should be smooth and bits of flour should be well incorporated; to rid batter of lumps, stir gently with a rubber spatula.) Stir in extracts.

Pour into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. (Use vegetable shortening or butter to grease the pan, getting every nook and cranny covered. Sprinkle a light coating of flour over the greased surface.)

Bake at 300° for 1 hour and 40 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from pan, and cool completely on a wire rack.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used White Lily All-Purpose Flour.