“This pound cake hits all the marks: easy to make, ideal for multiple occasions, keeps for a few days, can be made in advance, indulgent without feeling excessive, incredible baking smells, readily accessible ingredients, and kids love it,” writes Roxana Jullapat in her cookbook Mother Grains (out April 2021). “In Spanish, this cake is called queque seco, or ‘dried cake,’ because it isn’t iced, glazed, or frosted. As a trained pastry chef I couldn’t help incorporating ricotta, which adds a buttery richness and a bit of tang to the batter.” If you can’t find it, substitute full-fat cottage cheese. Jullapat prefers the subtlety of white cornmeal in this recipe, but you can use yellow too, which has a more prominent flavor. The goal is to find the most local cornmeal you can, to taste what the country has to offer (we’d also recommend ordering the phenomenal cornmeal from Anson Mills.) Serve it for breakfast with lemon curd or jam, for dessert alongside lightly whipped cream and fresh fruit, or as is, to accompany afternoon coffee.
Recipe information
Yield
8 Servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 325°. Lightly coat an 8½x4½" loaf pan with nonstick spray, then line with parchment paper, leaving overhang on long sides.
Step 2
Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt into a small bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs and egg yolk one at a time, mixing to fully incorporate before adding the next. Scrape down sides of bowl, add half of dry ingredients, and beat on low speed just to combine. Add sour cream and remaining dry ingredients and mix 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl, add ricotta and vanilla, and mix until well combined. Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth surface.
Step 3
Bake cake 40 minutes. Rotate pan and continue to bake cake until golden brown all over and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 20–30 minutes more. (Baking the cake slowly at a lower temperature yields a tender and creamy crumb and will prevent it from drying out.) Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack, at least 1 hour.
Step 4
Carefully run an offset spatula or paring knife around sides of cake and use parchment paper to lift cake from pan; remove parchment. Cut cake into slices and serve topped with whipped cream and/or lemon curd if desired.
Do ahead: Cake can be baked 2 days ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature, or freeze up to 2 weeks.
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