And by “them,” I mean “me.” I really try to do this baking thing every Wednesday—mainly because it’s the weakest part of my cooking-fu and I welcome any chance to try. I had planned on making a fairly elaborate layer cake but opted for the somewhat simpler poundcake.

Anyone from the South knows poundcake. Your grandma probably made it, maybe an aunt. And while the idea itself may seem deceptively easy—a pound of eggs? butter? flour? sugar? pssh! I got this!—it’s a little more difficult than that. The end perfection of any poundcake is a tight crumb.

If my mad photo skills were anything resembling awesome, the above photo would have demonstrated this to you. So take my word for it that the cake turned out delicious. Also, do wait for the cake to cool COMPLETELY before inverting it and taking it out of its bundt pan. If you don’t, then it remains tasty but unattractive.

Dot’s Poundcake

1 lb. (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 2/3 cups granulated sugar

8 eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

pinch of salt

1/2 cup canned evaporated milk

1 tbl. vanilla extract

1 tbl. almond or lemon extract (or some of each)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a bundt pan, or spray with a generous amount of cooking spray. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, add eggs one at a time, alternating with the flour and pinch of salt. Add the evaporated milk and extract(s), and mix 1 to 2 minutes on low. Spoon batter into the prepared pan; tap on the countertop a few times to remove any large air bubbles.

Bake for 1 1/2 hours, until top is golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. (If the cake seems to be browning too quickly, reduce the heat to 300 degrees.)

Cool for 15 minutes in the pan before inverting onto a wire rack. Cool at least 30 minutes before serving.