Pound Recipe

Prepare

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan or line it with parchment paper, leaving an overhang for easy removal.

Bring the butter and eggs to room temperature if not already. Measure and have all ingredients ready (mise en place).

Cream butter and sugar

In a large mixing bowl, beat the room-temperature unsalted butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 1 minute to soften. Add the granulated sugar and continue beating for 3–4 minutes until the mixture is pale, light, and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl and beater as needed.

Add eggs

Add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds after each addition until fully incorporated. Scrape the bowl between eggs to ensure even mixing. The batter may look slightly curdled at times; this is normal.

Combine dry ingredients

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and fine sea salt until evenly distributed.

Alternate additions

With the mixer on low speed, add one-third of the flour mixture to the butter-egg mixture and mix just until combined. Then add half of the milk and vanilla, mixing briefly. Repeat: add another third of the flour, the remaining milk, then the final third of flour. Mix only until just combined after each addition to avoid overworking the batter.

Finish batter

Once the batter is smooth and uniform, scrape down the bowl and give it one final short stir by hand to ensure evenness.

Bake

Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan, smoothing the top with an offset spatula. Bake in the preheated oven for 50–65 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs (not wet batter). If the top is browning too quickly, tent loosely with aluminum foil after about 35–40 minutes.

Cool

Remove the cake from the oven and let it rest in the pan on a wire rack for 10–15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges, then lift the cake out using the parchment overhang (or invert onto the rack). Let cool completely before glazing, about 1–1.5 hours.

While the cake cools, make the glaze by whisking the confectioners' sugar with the lemon juice or milk and optional vanilla until smooth. Adjust consistency by adding a few drops more liquid to thin or a pinch more sugar to thicken.

Once the cake is completely cool, place it on a serving plate and drizzle the glaze over the top, letting it run down the sides. Let the glaze set for 10–15 minutes before slicing.