I have brought buttermilk several times over the last month and have thrown it out unused, something I really don’t like doing. This time determined to use it before it expires, I found a great recipe in the Cooking Light Magazine (November 2008) for Vanilla Buttermilk Pound Cake.

The recipe makes two 8×4 loafs, which I iced with a lemon icing. Next time though I would either make a plain butter sugar glaze with the vanilla buttermilk loaf, or switch out the vanilla in the loaf for lemon. Also in my oven, it did not require the full hour of baking.

Ingredients (Vanilla buttermilk pound cake)

3 cups of all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup of butter (softened)
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 1/3 cups low-fat buttermilk

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the first 4 ingredients in a medium sized bowl and whisk. Put aside.
• Place sugar and butter in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour mixture and the buttermilk to the sugar mixture in stages, beginning and ending with flour.
• Spoon the mixture evenly into the two greased and lined loaf tins. Bake at 350 degrees F for 60 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from tins. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Ingredients (Lemon Butter Icing)

1 Tbsp butter, melted
1 lemon (finely grated lemon peel + juice from one lemon)
1 1/2 cups icing sugar (confectionary sugar)

• Place butter and lemon ingredients into a bowl
• Add the icing sugar in stages, so you can ensure the thickness you want for your icing. Mix together with a knife until blended
• Apply icing to the cooled loaves with a  knife
• Serve 🙂