Less traditional than your classic key lime pie, this key lime pound cake still packs a tart punch that’ll have everyone asking for seconds this summer and every summer. Combining a slightly dense but perfectly moist pound cake with the sharp flavors of key limes creates a new but tasty spin to a Florida classic.
This is a recipe I came up with a few summers ago (2018-19 I believe) while experimenting and doing recipe development for a good pound cake. Since it was June, I saw some great looking key limes at the grocery store and thought that could add a really good flavor to a standard pound cake, and it was different. Now I’ve been making this every summer since and I always get requests for this dessert from coworkers.
The pound cake itself is also a little different, using a few techniques that keep it moist and fluffy, but still retains the denser crumb that’s a signature of pound cakes. This recipe also includes both a soaking solution and a glaze for final touches, but both are optional. I usually always use the soaking solution however, because I do add less sugar to the pound cake itself, and the added key lime juice in the solution ramps up the flavor inside and out.
Key Lime Pound Cake Ingredients
A few of the key changes here from a classic pound cake are what keep this moist and light, yet still dense like a pound cake should be. Additional egg yolks, replacing some of the butter with oil, replacing some of the flour with potato starch, and replacing some of the buttermilk with whipped cream that’s folded in at the end.
Flour – Regular all-purpose flour works fine here, though I would suggest a slightly lower protein brand like Pillsbury or Gold Medal as opposed to King Arthur.
Potato Starch - Depending on where you shop, this can be a little trickier to find. Be sure to use potato STARCH and not potato FLOUR though, they are two different things. If you don’t see this in a baking aisle, try looking where they sell the gluten-free products. Potato starch works like corn starch: it has larger granules than flour and binds with water well and can be used as a thickener. The purpose here is to hinder the development of gluten in the flour and it keeps the finished product moist for a longer period. If you can’t find this, you can try corn starch instead.
Baking Powder – Just a bit to help give a little rise in the oven.
Butter – Unsalted butter at room temperature.
Oil – Replacing some of the butter with oil keeps the batter wet without adding water for the gluten to combine with. This helps keep the final bake moist. Use a neutral oil like vegetable or canola.
Sugar – White granulated sugar works fine here for the pound cake and the soaking solution, as well as some confectioner’s sugar for the glaze if you make that.
Eggs – 5 large eggs and 2 large egg yolks at room temperature. Again, the two extra yolks help to retain moisture and give a less cakey texture.
Key Limes – You’ll want both some zest and the juice from key limes here. These are typically sold in a 2lb bag, and you’ll use them all. One cup of key lime juice takes around 30-35 key limes, and you’ll need just shy of that much between the pound cake, the soaking solution, and the glaze.
Milk & Cream – You’ll use a ½ cup of buttermilk for the batter and a ½ cup of heavy whipping cream here. Buttermilk is best, but if you don’t want to buy it just for this amount, you can also mix a ½ cup of whatever milk you have on hand with about a tablespoon of key lime juice to make clabbered milk instead.
How to Make Key Lime Pound Cake
Preheat your oven to 350°F / 177°C, meanwhile, place a metal mixing bowl and the beaters from a hand mixer into the freezer.
In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, potato starch, baking powder, salt, and key lime zest. Whisk together until fully combined and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, combine the butter and oil and mix on a medium speed about 1 minute. Add the sugar and to the butter and oil and cream together on a medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Now pour in the key lime juice and mix on a medium-low speed until well combined.
Next, add your eggs in, one at a time, ending with the two egg yolks, still mixing at a medium-low speed the whole time. Once fully combined, add in some of the dry mixture, followed by some of the buttermilk. Continue mixing at a medium speed while alternating the dry mixture and the buttermilk until you’ve used all of both.
Remove the bowl and beaters from the freezer and pour in the ½ cup of heavy whipping cream. Begin mixing at low speed, gradually increasing the speed as it thickens. Once you’re just passed the soft peak stage (just like in the photo above), begin adding the whipped cream to the batter, folding it in by hand with a spatula.
Now setup a 12 cup Bundt pan for your batter. Use a baking spray that contains flour, like Baker’s Joy, or use butter to completely coat the inside of the pan, then coat with flour and shake out the excess. The better you do here, the cleaner your pound cake will come out at the end.
Pour the batter into the Bundt pan and smooth it out with a spatula. Now lift the pan about an inch or so off your counter and drop it. Repeat 2-3 times. This helps level everything out, but should also dislodge any air pockets you may have added when pouring the batter in. Place in the center rack of your oven and cook for about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Begin checking around the 50-minute mark and remove when a toothpick comes out mostly clean (a few moist crumbs is fine).
While the pound cake is baking, prepare your soaking solution if using. In a small saucepan, combine ¼ cup of key lime juice with a ¼ cup of white granulated sugar. Set over medium heat and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved. Keep stirring until it just starts to simmer and then remove from the heat and set aside. Wait to do this step until the baking is almost done. The soaking solution doesn’t need to be hot but should still be warm when you apply it.
Once the pound cake has cooked, remove it from the oven and place the entire Bundt pan on a cooling rack set over some wax or parchment paper. Wait about 5-10 minutes for the pan to cool, then set it on your counter, flip the cooling rack over and lay it on top of the Bundt pan. Now, while holding the cooling rack with one hand, grip the side of the Bundt pan and flip the whole thing over and the pan should lift off the pound cake cleanly. If it doesn’t come out easily, reverse the process and try lightly banging the side of the pan on the edge of your counter a few times, then try again.
As soon as you remove the key lime pound cake from the pan, use a pastry brush and begin brushing the soaking solution all over the outside of the pound cake. Be sure to coat the entire cake, including the sides and the smaller inside hole as well. Repeat this process 4-5 times until most or all the solution has been used. Now, allow the pound cake to cool completely before adding the glaze, about an hour.
If using the glaze, wait until the key lime pound cake has cooled, then make your glaze. In a bowl, combine 1 cup of sifted confectioner’s sugar with 2 tablespoons of key lime juice and mix with a spoon until it’s fully mixed and the consistency of a slightly thin paste. Spoon the mixture slowly over the top of the pound cake and let it go down the sides naturally. For best results, wait for the glaze to harden slightly at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to an hour before serving.
Alternatives to Key Lime & Decorating
If you have trouble finding fresh key limes, you do have two alternatives. The first option is using regular limes instead. While the flavor isn’t 100% the same, it’s not a bad alternative. You’ll need roughly 8 limes to get 1 cup of juice, and 1-2 limes for 2 tablespoons of zest. Another great option is to just get 1-2 limes for their zest and buy a bottle of key lime juice. Nellie and Joe’s makes a great key lime juice that’s very popular and available in most grocery stores and online.
As mentioned earlier, the soaking solution and glaze are optional. If you skip both, you may want to add another ½ cup of sugar to the pound cake though. Normally when I make mine, I add a few drops of green food coloring just before folding in the whipped cream, and only coating with the soaking solution.
Another alternative would be to dye the glaze a light green before adding it. For the pictures here I sprinkled on some green sanding sugar for a pop of color, but you could also sprinkle on some more zest as well. Play around with what you like best and make this your own.
Storing Key Lime Pound Cake
Your initial instinct might be to place the pound cake into the fridge, but these are actually best left out covered at room temperature. You can wrap the pound cake in plastic wrap or in an airtight container and leave sitting at room temperature for 4-5 days without a problem.
You can also wrap or store as above and place in the refrigerator where it should be good for at least 7 days but will also dry out faster and have a worse texture after a few days than leaving it out.
Finally, you can also freeze key lime pound cake. Fully covered in an airtight container, you should be able to store it for 4-6 months before the flavor and texture start to deteriorate.
📋 Recipe
Key Lime Pound Cake
Ingredients
Key Lime Pound Cake:
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup potato starch
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons Key lime zest
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup neutral oil
- 2 cups white granulated sugar
- ½ cup Key lime juice
- 5 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
- ½ cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream, kept cold
Soaking Solution:
- ¼ cup white granulated sugar
- ¼ cup Key lime juice
Glaze:
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- 2 tablespoons Key lime juice
Directions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F / 177°C, meanwhile, place a metal mixing bowl and the beaters from a hand mixer into the freezer.
- In a mixing bowl, combine 2 ¾ cups flour, ¼ cup potato starch, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons key lime zest. Whisk together until fully combined and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, combine 1 cup of butter and ⅓ cup oil and mix on a medium speed about 1 minute. Add 2 cups sugar to the butter and oil and cream together on a medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Now pour in the ½ cup of key lime juice and mix on a medium-low speed until well combined.
- Next, add your 5 whole eggs in, one at a time, ending with the two egg yolks, still mixing at a medium-low speed the whole time. Once fully combined, add in some of the dry mixture, followed by some of the buttermilk. Continue mixing at a medium speed while alternating the dry mixture and the buttermilk until you’ve used all of both.
- Remove the bowl and beaters from the freezer and pour in the ½ cup of heavy whipping cream. Begin mixing at low speed, gradually increasing the speed as it thickens. Once you’re just passed the soft peak stage (just like in the photo above), begin adding the whipped cream to the batter, folding it in by hand with a spatula.
- Now setup a 12 cup Bundt pan for your batter. Use a baking spray that contains flour, like Baker’s Joy, or use butter to completely coat the inside of the pan, then coat with flour and shake out the excess. The better you do here, the cleaner your pound cake will come out at the end.
- Pour the batter into the Bundt pan and smooth it out with a spatula. Now lift the pan about an inch or so off your counter and drop it. Repeat 2-3 times. This helps level everything out, but should also dislodge any air pockets you may have added when pouring the batter in. Place in the center rack of your oven and cook for about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Begin checking around the 50-minute mark and remove when a toothpick comes out mostly clean (a few moist crumbs is fine).
- While the pound cake is baking, prepare your soaking solution if using. In a small saucepan, combine ¼ cup of key lime juice with a ¼ cup of white granulated sugar. Set over medium heat and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved. Keep stirring until it just starts to simmer and then remove from the heat and set aside. Wait to do this step until the baking is almost done. The soaking solution doesn’t need to be hot but should still be warm when you apply it.
- Once the pound cake has cooked, remove it from the oven and place the entire Bundt pan on a cooling rack set over some wax or parchment paper. Wait about 5-10 minutes for the pan to cool, then set it on your counter, flip the cooling rack over and lay it on top of the Bundt pan. Now, while holding the cooling rack with one hand, grip the side of the Bundt pan and flip the whole thing over and the pan should lift off the pound cake cleanly. If it doesn’t come out easily, reverse the process and try lightly banging the side of the pan on the edge of your counter a few times, then try again.
- As soon as you remove the key lime pound cake from the pan, use a pastry brush and begin brushing the soaking solution all over the outside of the pound cake. Be sure to coat the entire cake, including the sides and the smaller inside hole as well. Repeat this process 4-5 times until most or all the solution has been used. Now, allow the pound cake to cool completely before adding the glaze, about an hour.
- If using the glaze, wait until the key lime pound cake has cooled, then make your glaze. In a bowl, combine 1 cup of sifted confectioner’s sugar with 2 tablespoons of key lime juice and mix with a spoon until it’s fully mixed and the consistency of a slightly thin paste. Spoon the mixture slowly over the top of the pound cake and let it go down the sides naturally. For best results, wait for the glaze to harden slightly at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to an hour before serving.
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