Mema’s Pound Cake Recipe

Happy Sunday, Mad Dashers! Today is a very special day for all the foodies out there and we couldn’t help but celebrate — National Pound Cake Day! So, in honor of this most delicious of days, we thought we’d throw your tummies a party with a little help from Mema!

The first inklings of pound cake date all the way back to 18th century Europe where the recipe called for a pound each of flour, sugar, butter, and eggs — hence the name! Since then, this tasty tradition has passed down family hands and seen countless iterations, and somewhere along the way it landed in my Mema’s kitchen. Her pound cake has seen some dalliances over the years as she experimented with embellishments such as fruit, nuts, icing, extracts, and juices. Truthfully, the only variance we ever truly accepted was chocolate — but every alteration and attempt was an exercise in loving. You see, there are some recipes so entrenched in your spirit that they almost become part of the family, like a distant cousin or favorite aunt; you know them inside and out, and no cookbook is necessary to deliver their greatness! Making them is as natural as breathing: they’re the types of recipes that the women in my family have been making for decades. An expression of love, they have seen birthdays and funerals, church and holidays, neighborly gestures and everything in between. They’re completely and lovingly worn in, and every time I honor their tradition in my own kitchen, their sublimity just grows. One bite, one whiff, the memories pour in, and suddenly I’m six years old in Mema’s kitchen and everything feels like home!

Now, getting ANY recipe from my Mema is nearly impossible, and asking her for one is usually answered by a sweet “I’ll make it for you!” or the odd “I’ve never written it down, honey, I don’t know.” That’s the magic and mayhem of grandmothers, I suppose! But, with a little finagling and a few Mema pound cakes, we’ve managed to write one down! And so, I give you Mema’s recipe: from her kitchen, to mine, and lovingly to yours!

Happy National Pound Cake Day, lovelies! May your pound cakes be tasty, your bellies be happy, and your hearts be full!