Recipe from Susan Levin Turner
Adapted by Kim Severson
- Total Time
- 1 hour 45 minutes
- Rating
- 4(410)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Susan Levin Turner has taught many Southerners, both professional chefs and home cooks, how to bake a proper cake. She has made cakes for politicians and celebrities, and turned out five when the chef Edna Lewis turned 76. “Cakes bring people together for celebrations and funerals and everything in between,” she said. Ms. Turner, who owns Food Glorious Food in Tallahassee, Fla., developed this recipe to combine Key limes, a flavor associated with South Florida, with poundcake, a staple in the more rural, agricultural parts of North Florida. She bakes hers in an old-fashioned large square poundcake pan, but the recipe has been adapted here for a loaf pan, which is a little easier to find and work with. She likes to coat the inside of the greased cake pan with sugar, which helps the cake slide from the pan and offers a little more crispness to the crust. This recipe uses flour instead for tenderness, but the sugar method offers a homey Southern touch. Or use a combination of both. —Kim Severson
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Ingredients
Yield:8 to 10 servings
- 1cup/226 grams unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into pieces, plus more for greasing the pan
- 2cups/240 grams all-purpose flour, more for flouring the pan
- 1½teaspoons baking powder
- 4ounces/113 grams cream cheese at room temperature, cut into pieces
- 1½cups/297 grams granulated white sugar
- 4eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
- 2tablespoons lime zest
- 1tablespoon Key lime juice
- 4ounces/113 grams cream cheese at room temperature
- ¼cup/57 grams unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2cups/227 grams confectioners' sugar
- ¼cup/60 milliliters Key lime juice
- 2tablespoons lime zest
For the Cake
For the Glaze
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)
599 calories; 33 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 9 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 73 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 53 grams sugars; 6 grams protein; 166 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Make the cake: Heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Sift the flour and baking powder and set aside.
Step
2
Mix butter and cream cheese in bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer on medium speed, until blended; gradually add sugar and beat on medium speed for 5 minutes until light in color and fluffy. Add the beaten eggs about a quarter at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next.
Step
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Add lime zest and mix to incorporate. Add dry ingredients alternately with lime juice, beginning and ending with flour mixture and adding juice in two additions. Mix just enough to incorporate. Pour batter into pan until it is just ¾-inch from the top (you may have a little batter left over; do not use it or you risk overflow). Firmly tap the pan on the counter a few times to reduce air pockets.
Step
4
Bake for about 1 hour, or until just set in the middle. Check cake after 30 minutes; if top is browning too quickly, tent with foil. If the cake is not set in the middle after an hour, continue baking, checking middle at 5-minute intervals, until set.
Step
5
Cool in the pan for 20 minutes; loosen edges and turn out cake onto plate with raised edges to contain the glaze.
Step
6
Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a glass bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until well blended and a little fluffy, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on slow speed, gradually add confectioners' sugar until fully incorporated, then beat for 20 to 30 seconds.
Step
7
Mix in the lime juice, then heat the mixture in a microwave oven for a minute or more until it is very warm and loose. Using a wooden skewer, poke several holes in the cake. Pour half the glaze over cake, let sit for 10 minutes, pour remaining glaze over cake and sprinkle with lime zest.
Tip
- Recipe can be doubled to make 2 loaves or to fill a 10-by-4-inch tube pan. But a doubled recipe will overflow a smaller Bundt pan, and will almost overflow the bowl of a stand mixer. To mix a double recipe, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer, add the eggs and lime zest and then transfer the batter to a larger bowl and use a hand mixer to combine the flour mixture and lime juice. The recipe for the glaze makes enough for 2 loaves or the round cake without being doubled.
Ratings
4
out of 5
410
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Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
Kay Chandler
About the lime juice: is bottled lime juice ok? And zest from ordinary limes? Key limes are rarely seen in Wyoming
Susan Yessne
Is the 1T of lime juice in the cake an accurate amount? Seems very odd to add a single tablespoon in 2 additions.
Melissa M. Johns
As a side-note: If you are attempting to use "real" (freshly-squeezed) lime juice, it is helpful to zap the limes in the microwave for a few seconds first. It makes it easier to juice them, and you will be able to get more juice from your citrus fruit. (Works great for lemons, too, by the way.)
Anne
Are you sure there is only 1 Tablespoon of lime juice called for in this recipe? Doesn't seem like enough especially when directed to add in "two" batches. thanks.
JLT
Ok I determined that the proportion of lime juice in the cake and in the glaze got reversed via typo. I used 1/4c lime juice in the cake and 1T lime juice in the glaze. I used a slightly larger 5”x10” loaf pan and the size was spot on. No leftover batter as some complained in the comments and no overflow. Some people felt there was too much glaze. Possibly, but I used all of mine and licked the spoon as I’ve always felt the ratio of cake to frosting should be reversed. Wink.
Kim Severson
Bottled is fine!
Barbara
The recipe writers at Cook's Illustrated magazine(The Best Recipe (1999), page 495) made Key Lime pie with both Key limes and Persian limes. Taste testers couldn't tell the difference between the different pies so the editors recommend using Persian limes due to availability and ease of use.
Mary Lee
Recipe for icing should be halved.
Eliza
I made this today and I don't think it was a particularly successful recipe. There is too much batter for a 9x5 loaf pan, so it overflowed and left the top rather flat and pale, as if it had risen and then shrunk back as it overflowed. It definitely needed more time to bake. Mine was done in about 75 minutes. And why why why is the glaze recipe written for two cakes? This only resulted in a waste of ingredients as I didn't see that note until after I had finished making it.
Christine
I buy Aunt Nellies Key Lime juice as opposed to trying to juice teeny, tiny key limes. I would probably double the juice and omit the zest at that point. Key Limes have a different flavor than regular limes. I had a tree when I lived in Florida and key limes from our tree were ripe when they turned yellow.
Marj
Jennifer Steinhauer's recipe for Key Lime Pie calls for one cup of freshly squeezed OR bottled Key lime juice. I can't count on finding Key limes, harvested from June to September, in markets on the west coast of Florida where I've lived for 6 years. Substitution suggestions are respected and appreciated. I'm all for the occasional (O.K., rare) homage to Southern cooking, heavy on fat and sugar, but ours is a big country. Let's celebrate it by sharing generously!
Marj
Check the Key Lime Pound Cake with Key Lime Cream Cheese Icing from the Irreverent Kitchen online. Like J. Clarke, who commented here, Alicia, from Fort Lauderdale, advises against bottled juice. She freezes her juice and zest and uses 1/2 C. juice in her cake, baked in a 10 & 1/2 in. tube pan and 1/4 C. in her icing. Lots of zest! I'd try 2 Tb. juice for Ms. Severson's loaf. Halving a tablespoon sounds to me like expecting two wrongs to make a right or conservation run amok.
Pat
The amount of lime zest and juice works great. Follow directions as directed and it will come out great. Nice mild lime flavor, not overwhelming. Cut the glaze recipe in half; more than enough for one loaf size cake.
Connie
What is an "old fashioned square pound cake pan"? I've never seen one and can't find anything when I googled it.
Pat Pedraza
Agreed, I have enough left over for another cake!
mary
This pound cake fell in the middle and was soggy at one hour.Baked an additional 20 minutes in 9 x 5 metal pan. Why did cake fail ?
Tia
After reading all the reviews l, I made this with a few adjustments . I used a 9-inch springform pan. I used a 1/4 cup lime juice in both the cake and the glaze. I used all the glaze to ice the entire cake. It turned out lovely. The cake baked in 50 minutes and could probably have come out of the oven at 45 minutes. I tented at 30 minutes. I’d like to try this in a Bundt pan next time. Mine was moist and had a great texture. I used Wegmans fresh lime juice and only two lime’s worth of zest
chris
Half the glaze recipe is more than enough, even for a bunt cake
MakBeth
What adaptations do I need to make to use a bundt cake pan if I start with a French vanilla cake mix? I have three Tahitian lime trees that give me plenty of really yummy lime juice and I've been looking for recipes that make a really tart cake.
Keylime Pound Cake
I just made this pound cake and everyone liked it. The one comment was it was dry and crumbly. I followed directions to the T. I found the 2tbls juice in cake confusing. Another review er said she used the 1/4 c lime juice in cake and 2 Tbbs juice in glaze. Ill definitely make again with some adjustments.
Lindsey
I am so privileged to live in Tallahassee and have this cake available to me 5 minutes from my house any time I head to FGF for work lunch or date night! Now, I can make it at home. Rapture!
cee
I used lemon juice and zest instead of line, and made 6 (!) muffins from the leftover batter. For glaze, I’d run out of cream cheese so used the juice of half a lemon and quarter cup of granulated sugar. Came out pretty well, considering all the substitutions!
Nancy
Makes too much batter. Too much glaze. Takes longer than an hour to cook. Top gets too brown. Hands hurt from zesting all those limes and then reaming them to juice. But it was all worth it and the end result is freakin awesome. Suggest a bigger pan for starters. Maybe a Bundt pan. Next, cut glaze in half, at least. Needs about 70 min in oven. Can’t add enough zest and lime juice, especially to the glaze. Use at least a 1/4 cup of juice in cake and same in zest. DELICIOUS.
VicJane
I reduced sugar to one cup, upped key-lime juice to 1/4 cup (plus 1capful Boyajian lime oil), filled pan only to 3/4, poured rest in a small baker , baked 1 hour (35 min for small), skipped glaze. Result: ok (moist) but maybe I just don’t like lime so I can’t see making this again. (It was for serving to a friend whose favorite dessert is key-lime pie. )
Berlin Sally
Used the recipe as is in a buy store cake pan and I was perfect in terms of proportions.Used bottled lime juice, doubled the amount but still only a hint of key lime. Next time I’ll triple-down. It was nonetheless delicious- moist too. I followed the advice of another reviewer and lined the pan with butter & granulated sugar and it was a huge it. A keeper.
Lisa
This was fantastic! For the cake, I cut the sugar in half, as I always do, and used 1/4 cup of granulated sugar (to replace the confectioners' sugar) in the glaze, and it was marvelous! Does anyone know if this requires refrigeration? I am assuming so because of the cream cheese in the glaze.
Mimi
This is a delicious poundcake despite it being labor intensive (if you zest and juice 2 dozen Key limes like I did). I made this last summer for my mom (she loved it, her favorite flavor) and this week. I would recommend baking at 350 and keeping an eye on it rather than 325 and checking to tent and adding 5 minutes after an hour to make sure the middle's done. You also don't necessarily need 2 tablespoons of zest to garnish atop the glaze. One to one and a half teaspoons is fine.
Wren
Used 1/4 c key lime juice in cake and in glaze. Agree with others. You can make 1/2 glaze and have plenty. I’m freezing half for other breakfast bread or cookies. I’m using bottled key lime juice I bought locally in the keys. Restaurants here with best key lime pie use bottled. I used 1 tbs lime zest each in cake and glaze. Plenty of zing with that. Moist and yummy and great key lime sweet ‘tanginess’. Will wrap tightly after first cut. If it holds up well, I’ll definitely make again.
Mark P
I've made this a few times and thoroughly enjoy it. I use gluten-free flour (for an allergy), the zest from regular limes, and bottled key lime juice. I skip the glaze, as it's too much like candy and I like just the lime-scented cake with coffee. Wow is it rich, in a good way. Butter, eggs, cream cheese! and plenty of them. I do end up leaving it in the (gas) oven for 75 minutes though -- 60 minutes is a bit too short.
Elizabeth
People go nuts whenever I make this cake! Normal limes are fine!
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