Basic Butter Cake

This recipe is adapted from the May 2003 issue of Health magazine (I can't find the original recipe on their site, though). I hadn't made it in a long time but found it when I was transitioning my paper recipes to Pinterest (where I've pinned over 450 recipes now!).

Basic Butter Cake



nonstick baking spray (not cooking spray; baking spray contains flour and works better with baked goods)
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cover the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment or wax paper and generously coat the bottom and sides with baking spray.

2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar on medium high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after addition. Add vanilla.

3. In a medium bowl, stir flour, baking powder and salt with a fork or whisk until well-mixed. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to butter mixture, scraping and mixing until just combined.

4. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cake cool completely, then remove from the pan.

The cake is a nice afternoon accompaniment to a cup of coffee, but is a little plain by itself. I recommend sprucing it up with whipped cream and berries for dessert.