National Pound Cake Day

Today is National Pound Cake Day.

Traditional pound cake is made with a pound of each flour, sugar, butter and eggs. This of course would be to much cake for most families to consume. Over the years the recipe has been scaled down to accommodate a much smaller cake.

Different countries and regions have different variations of the traditional pound cake. There have been additions of flavorings, dried fruits, baking soda and baking powder or sour cream and buttermilk resulting in a less dense and flavorful cake.


Different Variations:

Southern American style
The traditional pound cake recipe is typically used in the Southern United States and is a staple at picnics and potlucks.

British style
Britain's variation of pound cake is a Sponge cake (served with tea) or Madeira cake (served with tea or liquor). Both are light in texture and are traditionally flavored with lemon.

French style
The French version of Pound cake is called "quatre-quarts" which means four-quarters. Popular and traditional in the French region of Brittany, the recipe uses the same quantity of 4 ingredients. Some variants, are made by adding chocolate or lemon juice for flavor.

Mexican style (i was not able to fully confirm this)
In Mexico, the pound cake is called panqué. The basic recipe of Mexican panqué is much like the traditional U.S. recipe. Most common variants are panqué con nueces (pound cake with nuts) and panqué con pasas (pound cake with raisins).