52 New Recipes Week 13: Chocolate Pound Cake

I know I said that I was going to make homemade wheat crackers this week.  I also realize that chocolate pound cake is pretty much the opposite of wheat crackers.  I have several reasons for changing my mind.  1) I was under the weather and chocolate just sounded better.  2)I needed to use up some eggs.  This recipe took care of 10 bantam eggs.  3) I needed to use up some buttermilk.  Add those together, and I had no choice.

I found the recipe in Trisha Yearwood's cookbook, Georgia Cooking in an Oklahoma Kitchen.  The exact recipe can be found on Food Network.  I did drop the sugar to 2 1/3 cups and replaced the milk with buttermilk.  I prefer desserts less sweet and wanted to use up the last of my buttermilk.

If you are following the recipe online, I would like to add a couple of pound cake tips.  Grease and flour the pan.  The flour and cooling time means it will slide perfectly out of the pan.  Creaming the butter, shortening, and sugar requires at least five minutes, but I lean toward seven minutes.  This is the first step in making a pound cake light.  The other ingredients should be added with the shortest mixing time possible.  You do not want to undo all of the work from the creaming step.  These are steps I learned from older pound cake mentors and steps that are often left out of written recipes.

I did bake it slightly over an hour but kept a close eye on it so that I did not overbake it.  It rose beautifully and was light with a good chocolate flavor.  My only regret is that I forgot to add a scoop of instant espresso powder.  I will remember that for the next time I make this cake.  I will definitely make it again.

I have no idea what next week's recipe will be.  I hesitate to say the wheat crackers.  I prefer to cook whatever strikes my fancy at the time.  You will just have to come back next week.