This Citrus Pound Cake brims with flavor thanks to orange zest, orange juice, and orange extract. Flour, eggs, sugar, and butter are its classic ingredients. They produce a texture that is both weighty and tender, two qualities every great pound cake should have. There’s something so rich, so decadent, so downright divine about a great pound cake, especially a perfectly baked one. Read on to learn just how special this cake is.

Best Cake Overall

This particular Citrus Pound Cake recipe, shared below, led to big blue ribbon bragging rights for baking enthusiast Candace Freeman of Minnesota. She won “Grand Cake of the Fair” with it at the Minnesota State Fair (2014). Grand Cake means it ranked best in its own category (pound cake), and best overall out of every type of cake entered. It’s a big deal for any home baker, especially at the Minnesota State Fair, where hundreds compete.

Candace credits the cookbook, “Scandinavian Classic Baking” by Pat Sinclair for the recipe (provided here with Pat’s permission). Candace notes the cookbook is a “must have.”

Baking Ideas, Tips

• This recipe is the best. You can bake it in a variety of sizes and shapes; in differently-themed pans, a more classic tube style, or even an angel food cake pan. Just be sure not to overfill the pan you use. Plus, adjust the baking time as needed.
• Grease the pan well. We followed Candy’s tip to not miss a single spot, and used butter. Get every corner and crevice to help your cake come out clean, and without any damage.
• For the holidays we baked this in a seasonal bundt pan and finished it with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.
• A glaze would also taste great, if that’s your preference.
• Store leftovers in an airtight container.
• If you love pound cake, try this divine dessert using a pound cake and custard as pie filling.

Citrus Mini Bundt Cakes

Bake this and it will become your go-to pound cake recipe as it has ours.

-Cyndi