The perfect sweet treat, Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe is moist, buttery, has a hint of lemon, and melts in your mouth. This recipe makes one loaf.

I always want a pound cake after a big Sunday dinner. Today we had classics: 2 pack slow cooker pot roast, green beans, unbundled green beans, corn casserole, and cornbread. Serve this Sara Lee Pound Cake with roasted strawberries.

Table of Contents

Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe

I have tested A LOT, and I mean A LOT, of pound cake recipes for my Pound Cake Series. I am confident that I can make the best pound cake and provide you with the best pound cakes assuming you follow my directions to the letter.

That being said, I tested other Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake recipes. I found a couple of different recipes for it. Basically, the same recipe kept popping up that used 1 cup of cake flour, 1/2 cup of flour, and 3/4 cup sugar…. and it was baked in a 9×5-inch loaf pan. This recipe did not work for me. These quantities didn’t fill a 9×5-inch loaf pan and be 3-ish inches tall like the store-bought Sara Lee Pound Cake.

Testing and Testing Again

After testing multiple times, I’m happy with the ingredients and ratios here. You’ll find it’s close to the premade Sara Lee Pound Cake.

Another positive I like about this recipe is that it makes one loaf. I always get questions asking if my pound cake recipes can be cut in half. (By the way, I prefer not to cut them in half.) However, you can divide the cake and freeze part of it. Pound cakes freeze really well for up to three months in an airtight container.

Another first, and I’ve been wanting to test this for a while. This Best Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe uses cake flour. All my other recipes use all-purpose flour. The cake flour was ‘fine’ for this recipe. I wasn’t blown away with it and I don’t think cake flour is necessary for a great pound cake. (I’m still a fan of traditional methods for making pound cakes and using all-purpose flour.)

Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe Tips

Read through your recipe completely, once or twice before beginning. Prep any ingredients that need special attention, like chopping fruit, toasting nuts, sifting flour.
I baked my cake in a 9×5-inch loaf pan. You can use an 8×4-inch loaf pan, but you’ll need to bake it slightly longer.
Bring all the cold ingredients to room temperature before beginning.
Use real butter.
Measure carefully, especially the flour. How do you measure flour? To correctly measure flour, first, sift the flour. Then using a spoon or scoop lightly scoop flour out of its container into a measuring cup. Continue filling the cup until it is overflowing, then using the back of a butter knife level the flour. Scooping the measuring cup directly into the flour to fill can result in up to 25% more flour than lightly spooning the flour into the measuring cup. More flour in a recipe will make it dense and dry.
Read all about how to Calibrate your oven in this post.
Read all my tips for Baking the Perfect Pound Cake
I use this Tube Pan.

More recipes to enjoy

Please remember that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary based on the products used.

Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe

The perfect sweet treat, Copycat Sara Lee Pound Cake Recipe is moist, buttery, has a hint of lemon, and melts in your mouth. This recipe makes one 9×5-inch loaf.

Author: Paula

4.86 from 56 votes

Print Rate

Save To Your Recipe Box

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 40

Servings: 8 servings

Equipment

Ingredients

1 cup butter real butter, no substitutions, at room temperature
1 and ¼ cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature
2 cups cake flour sifted and measured correctly
4 tablespoons powdered milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract almond or coconut extract can be used

Instructions

Line a 9×5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray. Preheat the oven to 325° F.
Cream butter until soft and there are no lumps. Add granulated sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
Add one egg at a time, beating just until it is mixed into the batter before adding another egg.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and powdered milk. Stir to combine.
Lower speed on mixer to low and slowly add the flour mixture.
Add vanilla and lemon and stir.
Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 325 degrees F for 40-45 minutes.
Test for doneness with a wooden pick. Insert pick in the center of the cake, if pick comes out clean or with dry crumbs, it is done.
Allow the cake to cool 10 minutes in the pan before removing the cake from the pan to cool completely on a wire rack. Once cooled completely transfer to a serving platter.
Store in an airtight container on the countertop for 5 days. You can freeze the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are important to you, I recommend calculating them yourself.

Want to save your favorite recipes?Create an account or login & ‘Save Recipe’ to your Recipe Box. You can access your saved recipes on any device & generate a shopping list for recipes in your collections. For more info visit Recipe Box FAQ!

Tried this recipe?Please take a moment to comment letting me know how you liked it & consider giving it a 5 star rating. I love hearing from you!

You can also find great recipes at Recipe Index