Peach Pound Cake
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This sweet Peach Pound Cake is filled with juicy chunks of peaches and topped with brown butter icing. It’s the ultimate end-of-summer dessert!
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Peaches are, in my opinion, one of summer’s best fruits – and wildly underrated. I love stopping by peach stands along the side of the road in August to grab the biggest, juiciest peaches they have…and bringing them home to get creative in the kitchen!
I’ve been making this peach pound cake since 2015 (!!!) and I’ve finally landed on the absolute best peach pound cake recipe. This cake is based on my original basic pound cake recipe and cream cheese pound cake, with a few tweaks.
First and foremost, this cake is loaded with chunks of fresh, juicy peaches. The juice makes this peach cake incredibly moist while still having the slightly dense texture of a traditional pound cake. Think of a combination between a vanilla cake and a buttery pound cake. Is your mouth watering yet?!
Second, unlike my other pound cake recipes, I use chemical leavening in this one. I found that baking soda with buttermilk offered a pleasant texture with a very soft crumb.
The end result is a cake with peach flavor infused in every single bite, with a soft crumb that all but melts in your melt. Top it with a brown butter glaze and a more perfect peach dessert has never existed!
If you are a fan of fruit-flavored pound cakes, give my strawberry pound cake a try next!
Ingredients
The star ingredient in this recipe is, of course, fresh and juicy peaches! Everything else is your standard pound cake ingredients, plus baking soda and buttermilk.
For the ingredient measurements and the entire recipe, be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the blog post where the recipe card is located.
- Diced peaches: Be sure to use fresh peaches – nothing that comes from a can! And choose the ripest peaches you can find. That will give the cake the very best flavor.
- Butter: The butter should be softened but not melted.
- Granulated sugar: Add just the right amount of sweetness to this pound cake. It’s sweet but not too sweet, just the perfect balance!
- Eggs: Eggs should be at room temperature before using.
- Vanilla & almond extracts: Add a light flavor to the batter.
- Flour: Regular all-purpose flour works great.
- Baking soda: Gives the cake a tender texture.
- Salt: Just a pinch for flavor, you may want less if using salted butter.
- Buttermilk: I do not recommend substituting buttermilk for anything else.
- Confectioner’s sugar: Creates the sweet, creamy texture for the glaze.
- Milk: Whole milk works best for the glaze.
Step by Step Directions
Making pound cake does require some hands-on time as it takes several minutes to cream the ingredients and mix everything properly – but it’s a very straightforward process and quite easy!
For the full recipe instructions, scroll down to the bottom of the blog post to the recipe card.
- Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Grease the pan with nonstick spray.
- Prepare the pound cake batter. Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla and almond extracts. Continue beating for 2 minutes. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and add to the mixture. Slowly pour in the buttermilk, taking care not to overmix. Fold in the peaches.
- Bake. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick in the center comes out clean, approximately 70 to 80 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then remove from wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the glaze. Melt the butter over medium-high heat until it turns a golden-brown color with a nutty aroma. Pour over confectioners’ sugar and whisk. Add just enough milk to make the glaze pourable. Drizzle over cooled cake and allow to sit until the glaze hardens.
Tips For Success
If this is your first time making pound cake with peaches, you’ll want to keep these few things in mind.
- How to tell if a peach is ripe. Fresh summer-ripened peaches are essential for this peach pound cake. To tell if a peach is ripe, gently squeeze it with your fingers. If there’s only a tiny bit of give, the peach isn’t ripe enough. Ready-to-use peaches will have a strong sweet smell as well.
- Make your own buttermilk. If you don’t keep buttermilk on hand, you can easily whip up your own homemade buttermilk with regular milk and lemon juice!
- Adjust baking time. Bake time will vary depending on how juicy your peaches are. Since juicy peaches add extra moisture to the cake and it can be difficult to tell when it’s done, it’s best to cook for the maximum baking time.
- Be sure to fully cream the butter and sugar. The mixture should be light and fluffy. This should take 5 to 7 minutes. This is how the cake gets its light and fluffy texture.
- Serving suggestion: When topped with a simple brown butter glaze, this peach pound cake is absolute perfection on its own. Enjoy at room temperature and every bite will be tender, moist, and full of sweet peach flavor that needs no extras.
FAQ
Leftover pound cake (or pound cake made in advance) should be covered tightly and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Peach pound cake will stay fresh in the freeze for up to 3 months. Allow the cake to cool completely then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil.
Peach Pound Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 5 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 3 cups (390 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup (80 g) buttermilk, room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (350 g) diced fresh peaches
For the glaze
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (120 g) confectioner's sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons whole milk
Instructions
Make the cake
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease 10-inch fluted pan with nonstick spray.
- Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed for about 5-7 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
- Reduce the speed to medium-low and add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add in the vanilla and almond extracts. Continue beating for an extra 2 minutes, scraping down the pan once or twice so that everything gets well mixed.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir with a whisk. Add to the butter mixture. With the mixer set to low speed, slowly pour in the buttermilk. Continue to beat just until combined. Do not over mix.
- Use a silicone spatula to gently fold in the peaches. Pour into prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 70-80 minutes.
- Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the glaze
- In a small pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Cook until the butter turns a golden brown color and has a nutty aroma, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Pour butter over confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl. Stir until well combined. Whisk in just enough milk to make the glaze pourable.
- Drizzle glaze over cooled cake and allow to sit until glaze hardens about 15 minutes.
Notes
- Peaches: For the best flavor use fresh summer ripened peaches. Gently squeeze the peach with your fingers. If there’s only a little bit of give, the peach isn’t ripe enough to give the best flavor. Ready to use peaches will also have a strong sweet smell.
- Buttermilk: I do not recommend substituting!
- Bake time: Bake times will vary depending on how juicy your peaches are. Juicier peaches will seep more liquid into the cake which requires a longer bake time.
- Keep the cake covered tightly and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- The cake can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided is for convenience and as a courtesy only. It is not guaranteed to be accurate because nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator and input the exact ingredients and brands you used in the recipe.
I made this today with local tree ripened peaches. Outstanding! I was surprised at the mild sweetness level with two cups of sugar. It was just right. The only change I made was to use 1/2 C butter and 1/2 C extra light olive oil, which I do in a lot of my baking to cut down on saturated fat. Also, my butter for the glaze browned way before 7 minutes, so keep your eye on it.
Wondering if I can make this recipe into muffins??? Thoughts??
I’ve never attempted to do so, so I’m unsure how it will turn out. If you try it, I’d love to hear how it goes.
Has anyone tried using frozen sliced peaches after thawing and drying well?
You can use frozen and thawed peaches but I highly recommend ripened fresh peaches for the very best flavor.
Is the flour to be sifted before or after measuring. Perhaps not at all?
I didn’t sift the flour. I just stirred with a whisk as stated in step 5.
This looks like a wonderful recipe. Unfortunately, like another reviewer I have found the peaches this year 2021 in my area are not great. Sooo I was wondering could I use canned peachs that are drained?
Thanks.
Carol
Canned peaches may be too wet but you can give it a try.
I am a lifelong baker and just made this cake earlier this week and it is amazing. One of the best cakes that I have ever baked. Such a great texture and so moist. Followed the recipe exactly. I do need to find some better tasting peaches-mine we’re not the best tasting. The brown butter icing is so yummy! Compliments from everyone!
So glad you enjoyed the cake, Lynn! Yes, the peaches make such a difference in the overall taste.
I had an abundance of fresh peaches earlier this summer and frozen some. If I thaw the frozen peaches would they work for this recipe?
I’m afraid the frozen peaches will be too juicy. This can affect the bake time and final outcome of the cake.