CREAM CHEESE POUNDCAKE (aka: kristine’s birthday cake)
*the key to good poundcake is room-temperature ingredients and thorough beating at each stage.
Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine
8 oz cream cheese
1 _ cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
2 _ cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
_ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 300.
In a large bowl, mix butter with cream cheese until very light and soft.
Gradually beat in sugar, until it is largely dissolved.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg.
Beat in the vanilla.
In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
Gradually blend into creamed mixture until silky in appearance.
*At this point, you can fold in chocolate chips or raisins or other additives, if you choose.
Pour into a very well greased 9 inch bundt pan. (OR as my grandmother and I do, use two 7 _ X 3 _ X 2 inch loaf pans)
Bake at 300 for one hour or until cake tester comes out clean. (I find it often takes slightly longer than an hour.)
Allow cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes. Shake loose and onto rack to continue cooling.
*At this point, you can frost or glaze the cake, if you choose. (I used a lemon-orange glaze on kristine’s cake.)