Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake (Video)

Who doesn’t like a pound cake? I am always ready to bake one because of its perfect tender crumb and heavenly taste.

Pound cakes originated back in the 1700’s by the British. The original recipe was simple with one pound of flour, eggs, butter and sugar, hence getting the name ‘pound cake’.

The sour cream adds moisture to the cake without thinning the batter which results in a fresh, tender and a very fine crumb. It also adds a tangy flavor to the bakes.

The sour cream is made by thickening the cream using the lactic acid bacteria. And that’s how we get the thick (and sour-ish) Sour Cream.

While this cake is rich, tender and complete and one can enjoy it as-is (that's how I like it) but here a few options that will further compliment this cake.

Berries: Serve the cake with any berries of your choice. Pair it with strawberries, blackberries and/or blueberries.

Spray the Pan: Generously grease the Bundt pan with a baking spray (with flour in it) to get the cake to slide down easily from the pan without a hassle.

Butter & Flour Method: Grease the pan with oil or butter using a pastry brush and then generously coat cocoa powder on the oil/butter coating. White flour can leave white patches on the dark chocolate cake, do not use it.

I prefer to use the Dutch Process Cocoa Powder for this cake.

The Dutch-process powder (also known as the alkalized cocoa) is processed with alkali and has a neutral pH, which means it is not alkaline like regular cocoa powder.

All-purpose flour - I have not tried this recipe with any other flour.

Chocolate Ganache:

Step 1: Preheat oven to 325F.

Step 2: Take a medium-sized bowl. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Step 3: Take a large bowl and beat together butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add in eggs and mix until well-incorporated.

Step 4: Now add dry ingredients and sour cream until combined well.

Step 5: Add the hot water to the batter and mix with electronic mixer at high speed for about a minute until it is incorporated well.

Sift the Cocoa Powder: Make sure to sift the cocoa powder. It usually have lumps and we want a smooth batter and for that we have to sift the cocoa powder.

Be Careful with Hot Water: While mixing the boiling water in the last step, be careful as you do not want to cook the eggs in the batter.

Yes, if you do not have sour cream, replace it with the same amount of yogurt.

It can be tricky at times to release the cake properly from the deep Bundt cake pans. To avoid this situation, I use baking spray on the Bundt cake pans right before I am ready to put the cake in the oven. Do not grease the cake beforehand or the spray will collect in the bottom of the pan.

We bake this cake at 325 F. Pound cakes are heavier with a dense crumb and therefore require more time in the oven to cook properly. This cake will take anywhere from 70 – 90 minutes to bake at 325 F.

I always find this cake tastes better the next day of baking. Somehow, the ingredients fuse better overnight. My two cents are to make this cake ahead of time to fully enjoy it.

On the Counter: This cake will stay fresh in an airtight container for 2-3 days. Do not put ganache if you want to serve it a day or two later. It is better to make fresh ganache.

• Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake
• Caramel Pecan Upside Down Cake
• Coca-Cola Cake
• Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
• Old-Fashioned Sour Cream Pound Cake

If you have tried this recipe and loved it, please leave a rating and comment below. Your valuable feedback means a lot and helps me to tailor the content on the blog accordingly.