Chocolate Chip Pound Cake (with sour cream)
A simple vanilla pound cake studded with chocolate chips. Bake it as a snack cake, cupcakes, loaf cake, or cake layers to be frosted and filled. It keeps well and can be frozen.
Servings 12 squares
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips regular or mini chocolate chips
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract optional but very good
- 4 eggs at room temperature
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup sour cream at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons heavy cream or heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 350°F (180°C).
- Spray or butter an 8x11-inch rectangular pan or similar, line the bottom with parchment paper if you want to, or sprinkle with flour and dust off excess.
- Take 1 tablespoon of the flour amount and mix it in a bowl with ¾ cups semisweet chocolate chips to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cake during baking. Reserve.
- In a large bowl, beat 1 cup unsalted butter until creamy and add 1 cup white granulated sugar and 1 cup light brown sugar gradually, beating for 2-3 minutes more.
- Add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and ¼ teaspoon almond extract, if using, and mix.
- Sift the dry ingredients: 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt. Add them in 3 parts to the butter preparation, alternating with 1 cup sour cream in 2 parts, which means you start and end with the flour mixture. I have the dry ingredients measured and sift them directly over the batter, but you can sift them first in another bowl.
- Mix well, but don't overbeat; mix only until incorporated. Fold in the reserved chocolate chips with flour and 3 tablespoons heavy cream or heavy whipping cream, stirring to integrate with a rubber or silicone spatula.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with ¾ cups semisweet chocolate chipsBake for 45-55 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cool on a wire rack. If some cake stuck to the sides, carefully run a smooth-bladed knife around the sides before removing it from the pan. Serve at room temperature.
Notes
Baking time: consider that all ovens and pans are different, even if they look similar. The baking time in my recipes is as accurate as possible, but it might take you more or less time. You can use a thermometer to check that your oven is at the right temperature. I recommend tracking how your oven works and what tiny details you might need to adjust.
Sugar: some readers successfully reduced the amount of sugar to 1 ¾ cups total (white and light brown).
Variation: use nuts instead of chips, or milk chocolate chips (sweeter). Add a spice like ground cinnamon or a different extract like maple or orange, or a few tablespoons of liquor like Amaretto, Grand Marnier or hazelnut liqueur.
Storing: it keeps well for a few days at room temperature as long as it's wrapped or covered with a dome. It can be frozen for a month.
Cake pans: the batter is enough for 2 loaf pans (about 8x5-in each), 15-18 cupcakes, 1 tube or large bundt cake, 2 or three layers (8 or 9-inch, depending on how thick you make them), or 10-12 mini bundt cakes. These are approximate, but you get an idea.
