Almond Pound Cake with Strawberry Compote

Ah, what a gorgeous day outside today! Spring is just around the corner and I am enjoying every minute that I can outside! Today the Warrior and the Princess and I went on a wonderful bike ride and tons of playing in the sun! I even enjoyed a short 2 mile run! With all that exercise, I needed to find something to bake! It only makes sense, right? Well, in my mind it does. Especially since spring makes me think of going to the strawberry patch and the strawberry patch makes me think of strawberries (duh!) and strawberries make me think of almond pound cake with vanilla bean ice cream and strawberry compote! Mmmm...mmm...good! The strawberries have been so good lately we are on our 4th carton and I have 3 extras in the fridge because we are going through them so much!
Your going to love this not-too-sweet moist cake with gentle almond and vanilla flavors. We did!

ALMOND POUND CAKE

½ cup butter, room temp

1 cup sugar

2 tsp almond extract

2 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

½ cup sour cream

1 ½ cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

Heat oven to 325. Grease loaf pan. Sift together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl cream butter, sugar, almond extract and vanilla with a mixer on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating and scraping the bowl with rubber spatula between each add in. Mix in ½ the flour mixture and ½ the sour cream and combine on low speed. Add remaining flour and sour cream and mix until well combined. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

 Cool cake in pan for 20 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to finishing cooling or serve warm!

We didn't have vanilla bean ice cream on hand this time, so we settled for cool whip. But I think that my customers were still happy!

STRAWBERRY COMPOTE

2 cups strawberries, washed, hulled and cut into quarters

2 Tbl sugar

Over medium-low heat, in a sauce pan combine the strawberries and sugar. Stir and let them simmer for about 10 - 15 minutes or until then begin to break down to the consistency that you like. 

I love to serve mine warm over ice cream! The family loves cool whip too!

Enjoy! 

Warmly, 

Mary